Water Banking and Water for Building Permits

Starting December 2, 2015, all new uses of groundwater in Kittitas County within the Yakima River Basin will need Water Budget Neutral Water Mitigation (WBN) and need to be metered. Water Budget Neutral Mitigation is a withdrawal of water whose impact to area streams is offset by water from existing water rights being left in stream. For new domestic uses, folks will need to purchase WBN mitigation for their new homes. They can buy mitigation from either a private water bank or the Kittitas County Water Bank.

Kittitas County will offer 2 mitigation packages in the Green and Yellow zones of the Kittitas County Water Bank. The package available to each customer will be determined by the parcel’s irrigation availability. Package A, only available to folks with access to other outdoor irrigation, will offer 275 gallons per day indoor domestic use only and Package B, only available to folks without access to outdoor irrigation, will offer 275 gallons per day indoor domestic only with 25 gallons per day for outdoor use up to 500 square feet. The packages offered through the Kittitas County Water Bank were determined by a Citizen’s Advisory Committee and adopted by the Board of County Commissioners.