The Oklahomans for Responsible Water Policy (ORWP), a new citizen’s group formed to protect the region’s water and environment, drew about 500 people Thursday afternoon for their kick-off rally at the Bryan County Fairgrounds.

The rally centered around the controversial attempt to purchase 90 percent of the water rights from Sardis Lake (northeast of Antlers in Pushmataha County) by a water-oriented interest group, the City of Oklahoma City, and the office of State Treasurer Scott Meacham.

ORWP board president Charlette Hearn and attorney general and gubernatorial candidate Drew Edmondson spoke to a crowd that included mayors, city councilmen and county commissioners from all over southeastern Oklahoma.

“We are here today to tell the Oklahoma Water Resource Board (ORWB) that you can’t put the cart before the horse,” said Hearne.

Hearne went on to say that she believed the decision might be driven by greed and that “we need local control of our waters.”

Amy Ford, executive director of the ORWP, explained that a recent court decision, ordering the state to pay back some $29 million to the federal government for the construction of the lake in the 1970s has another payment of $5 million due at the end of June, and she believes the state is trying to pay back that debt by selling the water rights at Sardis Lake.

“The state never paid back that debt to the federal government,” Ford said. “Last year, a federal judge in Tulsa ruled that Oklahoma has to pay that debt. So the transfer of the holding rights to Oklahoma City and the other entities involved will basically pay that federal debt.

“They will be allowed to pump up to 90 percent of the lake,” she said, “which not only affects Sardis Lake, but also the Kiamichi River.”

Edmondson spoke to the crowd about how he feels it is important when talking about the allocation of water that the needs of the basin of origin are protected for the foreseeable future.

“That’s part of the function of the comprehensive water plan study, which will not be completed until next year,” he said. “I think it’s a little premature to talk about the transfer of large amounts of water until we know what the needs are for the basin of origin.”

He was in agreement with Ford that the transfer of the holding rights was at the very least, a questionable way to pay back the debt.

“The court decision wasn’t really a surprise,” he said. “Oklahoma was in an agreement with the Corps of Engineers that we would reimburse the cost of building the lake, and the judge told us we were in default and had to start making payments.

“The first payment is due by July 1 and it’s $5 million. I understand that the state is in a budget crisis and we might have trouble coming up with $5 million, but that doesn’t mean we should rush into a deal without knowing the long-term effects,” he said.

“I think they’re clearly trying to figure out a way to finance the payment to the Corps of Engineers for the lake. But to do that without taking care of the basis of origin is not the right course.

“We can’t make an informed decision until the comprehensive water plan is released.”