Idaho Water Resource Board approves $14.3 million for two new ESPA recharge basins
On August 7, 2026 the IWRB approved $8 million for an 85-acre infiltration basin near Shelley and $6.3 million for two 32-acre basins in the Bingham Groundwater District, under a state recharge goal raised to 350,000 acre feet a year.
- Approved August 7
- $14.3 million
- State recharge goal
- 350,000 AF/yr
- Annual appropriation
- $30 million
What happened
The Idaho Water Resource Board approved $8 million to Snake River Valley Irrigation District for an 85-acre infiltration basin near Shelley (about 87 cfs of recharge capacity) and $6.3 million to Bingham Groundwater District for two 32-acre basins (about 67 cfs) on August 7, 2026.
The projects fall under Senate Concurrent Resolution 110 (2025), which raised the state-funded ESPA managed recharge goal from 250,000 to 350,000 acre feet on average annually, backed by an ongoing $30 million annual appropriation.
What it means if you own water here
Recharge is the state’s long-run answer to the delivery call, and it is funded. Every acre foot recharged is an acre foot of mitigation credit that reduces future curtailment pressure, which over time lowers the scarcity premium on leased storage water, while in the near term the demand for leases remains statutory.
Owners with land or conveyance near the recharge sites are potential counterparties for the districts building them.
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