Who is the Chehalis Basin Partnership and why are they developing a Watershed Management Plan?
The Chehalis Basin Partnership (Partnership) is an organization established in August 1998 to undertake watershed planning. 12 The Partnership is broad-based; it includes representatives from the largest four primary counties in the Chehalis Basin (Grays Harbor, Lewis, Mason and Thurston counties), two tribes, 12 cities, two water supply utilities, four state agencies, the Port of Centralia, major interests (including agriculture, business, environmental, fisheries, and forestry), and a citizen-at-large from each of the four counties. Several state and federal agencies are also active in Chehalis Basin planning to provide resources and technical assistance. Using funding the Washington State Legislature made available, the Partnership voluntarily undertook watershed planning to gather information, address water resource issues, and gain more local control over the water resources of the Chehalis Basin .
