SOAP LAKE, Washington — A Washington hay farm is seeking $240,000 in damages from USDA for financing upstream wetland projects that have allegedly infringed on its water rights.

Round Lake Farms of Soap Lake, Washington, has filed a complaint that claims USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service helped fund several wetland projects without obtaining required state permits.

Between 2005 and 2013, the agency provided financial and technical assistance for eight private landowner projects that diverted water from Crab Creek for wetland restoration on 2,233 acres, the lawsuit said.

Historically, spring floodwaters from the creek flow into a channel that connects to Round Lake, which the farm relies on to irrigate about 840 acres of hay, the complaint said. During other parts of the year, the creek level is too low to fill the channel.

In 2020, however, the creek’s water level didn’t rise enough in spring to send water into Round Lake, depriving the farm of irrigation water and forcing it to acquire a new water source for its hay crop, according to the lawsuit.

“A single year without adequate water for irrigation risks loss of the annual crop and hay stand mortality,” the complaint said. “Hay stand mortality requires planting and re-establishing the stands the following year at significant additional cost.”

While the farm suffered a “substantial” reduction in hay yield due to the irrigation delay, water flowed into the wetland projects even though they hadn’t obtained reservoir or dam safety permits from the Washington State Department of Ecology, the complaint said.

Streamflow measurements show that an 825-acre wetland project reduced the creek’s flow by up to 83%, and the other seven projects totaling 1,408 acres likely had a similar effect, the complaint said.

The USDA’s own documents demonstrate that its wetland reserve program is intended to retain surface water and recharge groundwater, the complaint said.

Through a public records request, the farm also obtained a technical analysis indicating that USDA intended or at least knew the specific Crab Creek wetland projects “would be a net user of water and result in reduced creek flow,” the complaint said.

The USDA did not respond to requests for comment on the lawsuit as of press time.

Because the USDA didn’t follow federal policy by complying with state permitting laws, the agency is liable for damages due to negligence, trespass and nuisance under the Federal Tort Claims Act, according to the lawsuit.

The farm is seeking compensation of about $163,000 spent on replacement water from the East Columbia Basin Irrigation District and about $77,000 spent on private consultants who investigated the problem and represented the plaintiff during emergency water hearings.

Round Lake Farms is also asking a federal judge to order USDA to remove the wetland projects or to mitigate their effects on its senior water rights.