YAKIMA, Wash. -- Kittitas County commissioners and the state Department of Ecology have resigned themselves to waiting for an attorney general's opinion on the authority of the state and the county to regulate exempt wells in the upper county.

While the wait may not be long -- the opinion could come out any day -- any chance for a rapid end to a two-month moratorium on new wells collapsed last week after a flurry of back-and-forth proposals between Commissioner Paul Jewell and Ecology Director Jay Manning.

"I really thought we were moving in a positive direction to get an agreement," Jewell said. "Once again, when it came to making a decision, Ecology was unwilling to move forward."

At issue are the unpermitted wells builders and property owners have been using over the last several decades to tap into groundwater to build new homes in north Kittitas County. State officials worry that there's not enough water to accommodate the newcomers and senior water rights users, but Kittitas County commissioners aren't convinced there's a problem.

Exempt wells, which don't require a state permit, have been allowed since the state groundwater code was adopted in 1945. Such wells include those for homes, a half-acre lawn and garden, industrial use and watering livestock.

Among its latest proposals, Kittitas County commissioners offered to adopt a new ordinance that would prohibit new lawns and gardens unless an irrigation district supplied the water. An owner could also irrigate lawns and gardens by purchasing a senior water right as mitigation.

But disagreement on how soon owners would be required to obtain an existing water right to make up for the new use doomed a possible agreement on that issue.

Tom Tebb, the agency's regional director in Yakima, said the agency was concerned the county wouldn't be able to adopt the ordinance on lawns and gardens for more than a month. Coupling the adoption delay with the county's request to lift the moratorium within two weeks would leave a gap in protection for groundwater.

The county also wanted to delay the mitigation requirement until the water exchange program is fully operational.

Tebb said the county's proposals would not have protected senior water rights and stream flows from being affected by the drilling of new exempt wells.

Jewell said the talks appear to be at a standstill. And now, both sides are waiting to hear from Attorney General Rob McKenna. An opinion was expected this week.

Kittitas County and the Department of Ecology have submitted questions to the attorney general about the state's legal authority to restrict exempt wells and whether county officials can adopt land-use regulations that set limits on water use, as Ecology is requesting.

One of the proposals from the state is to combine two of the exemptions -- for homes and outdoor use -- into one category, and that the water use for that exemption would be limited to less than 5,000 gallons per day.

Ecology imposed an emergency rule in July that prohibited new wells in the north end of the county west and north of Indian John Hill because of a belief that a water management agreement with Kittitas County could not be reached.

The ban has been criticized for damaging an already weak economy by halting construction of new homes.

The Department of Ecology has sought to soften the blow by launching a water exchange program under which property owners can purchase a senior water right to offset, or mitigate, their new use of water. The source for the mitigation water are rights purchased by Suncadia, the massive mountain resort near Cle Elum.

Suncadia purchased nearly 500 acre-feet of water to be left in streams under a requirement imposed by Ecology.

The water exchange Web site began operation Aug. 31.

* David Lester can be reached at 509-577-7674 or dlester@yakimaherald.com.