Commissioner Mary Lou Peterson says without water rights, land is useless for agriculture. In an agricultural county that’s already experiencing water shortages, it’s worrisome to see water rights sold downstream, local officials say. In Okanogan County in north central Washington, there have been several instances recently, where orchards came up for sale and the water rights for the property were sold to developers or growers further south on the Columbia River. Gerry O’Keefe, Columbia River policy coordinator with the Washington State Department of Ecology, said when there are no new sources of water or new permits being issued, users are […]