Carbondale: Wastewater tap fees to rise

From the Glenwood Springs Post Independent (John Stroud):

An increase in tap fees for new development is being proposed to pay for an update of Carbondale’s 14-year-old water and wastewater master plan. The revised plan would analyze the impact of anticipated future development over the next 20 years and help determine how soon a new sewage treatment plant and water system upgrades will be needed to keep up with growth. Town trustees, at some point in the near future, will formally consider a proposed increase of $11.41 to the existing tap fee for each new single-family residence, or equivalent, to pay for the study. The estimated cost to update both the water and wastewater models included in the plan is about $23,800. In the meantime, the town is prepared to spend more than $1.7 million over the next couple of years on upgrades to the existing sewage treatment plant, designed to keep it properly functioning for the remainder of its 9- to 16-year life expectancy. Included in those upgrades will be a variety of fixes aimed at eliminating an ongoing odor problem that became particularly noticeable on the north end of Carbondale this past winter.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

Nestlé Waters Chaffee County Project: Climate science and the project

Lee Hart continues her coverage in the Salida Citizen of the Chaffee County Commissioners deliberations over Nestlé Water’s Chaffee County Project 1041 permit.

First up is a long post about the lack of discussion about climate change in the debate over Nestlé’s plans to truck 200 acre-feet or so of water out of basin to Denver for bottling. Read the whole article, here are a couple of excerpts:

Yet here in Chaffee County, conservation and climate change didn’t merit so much as a passing mention as the Board of County Commissioners began deliberations on a multi-decade commercial water harvesting proposal, even as an overwhelming majority of scientific studies anticipate a reduction of total water supply by the mid-21st century is likely to exacerbate competition for over-allocated water resources especially in the fast-growing West. The county’s own consultants, Colorado National Heritage Progam, cautioned commissioners: “In the interest of maintaining the wetland plant communities, any proposed development plan that impacts water resources should take into consideration global climate change.” Yesterday, CNHP ecologist Delia Malone, writing as a private citizen, spoke out on what she called the commissioners’ “short-sightedness” in dismissing climate change from deliberations on the water harvesting project proposed by Nestle Waters North America. Without a trace of ambiguity, a 2008 report by Western Water Assessment asserts, “Climate change will affect Colorado’s use and distribution of water.” The report notes that “changes in long-term precipitation and soil moisture can affect groundwater recharge rates; coupled with demand issues this may mean greater pressure on groundwater resources.”[…]

As inextricably as hyrdrogen is linked to oxygen at water’s most basic level, so too it seems the scientific community believes climate change must be factored into any decision-making that impacts natural resources. “Basically anybody in 2009 who is thinking about water resources, water planning, water supply . . . if they’re not thinking about climate change, they’re missing the mark,” explained scientist John Katzenberger, executive director of the Aspen Global Change Institute. Katzenberger was also a contributor to a 2008 report published by the National Resources Defense Council and the Rocky Mountain Climate Organization entitled, “Hotter and Drier, The West’s Changed Climate.”

Hart and the Salida Citizen are running a letter sent to the Chaffee County Commissioners from Ecologist Delia Malone. From the article:

Regardless of all the good, hard data out there, Malone lamented the commissioners dismissing the role of climate change in their deliberations about Nestle. Indeed, countless scientific books and research papers from all corners of the globe have written about the certainty of impending water shortages due to climate change that is already measurable…“Accessible water is rare and for Chaffee County to just give it away is really short-sighted,” Malone said. “You can’t get it back and when you really need it, it will be too late.”

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Montrose: Workgroup forms to regulate streams and rivers through town

From the Montrose Daily Press (Kati O’Hare):

The city council selected 11 Montrose residents, including property owners along waterways, realtors, developers, recreation advocates and citizens for the workgroup. The workgroup will meet about three times before coming to council with recommendations by September or October. Montrose River/Stream Workgroup: Rob Brethouwer; Ron Harthan; Diann Fulks; William Gleason; Judy Kittson; Shawn Lund; Matt Miles; Elizabeth Roscoe; Ben Tisdel; Bryan Walchle; Jason Wilson.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Montrose: Gunnison Tunnel 100th year celebration

From the Montrose Daily Press:

Celebrating 100 years of water provided by the Gunnison Tunnel, the Uncompahgre Valley Water Users Association invites Montrose, Olathe, and Delta community members, and all Coloradoans, to join in activities culminating with celebrations and ceremonies in Montrose at UVWUA headquarters Saturday, Sept. 26. The water users association celebrated its own centennial in 2002. The federal legislation that established the Bureau of Reclamation in 1902 also authorized the Gunnison Tunnel Project and formation of the UVWUA. Water users association Manager Marc Catlin said the benefits of the tunnel to the Uncompahgre Valley cannot be overstated. “Opening the Gunnison Tunnel and then delivering the water to growers, made this valley green while attracting a thriving population,” Catlin said. According to U.S. Census Bureau data, the populations of both Delta and Montrose counties more than doubled between 1900, when the idea was first developed, and 1910, one year after the tunnel was completed. The data show that the decade from 1900-1910 saw the most significant population growth in the valley.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Renaissance on the River at Clear Creek

From the MileHighNews.com (Dennis Pleuss):

Welcome to the Renaissance on the River at the Clear Creek Whitewater Park, more affectionately known as the Golden Playpark by those who frequent the waters. [Jessica] Vose was just one of many people who have taken advantage of the free instruction offered by Denver-based Renaissance Adventure Guides every Wednesday evening, where everyone from beginners to regulars take to the water for a little relaxation and some thrills. The only cost is a $10 charge for those who need to rent equipment…

The Clear Creek Whitewater Park is one of the most popular places in the area, if not the state, to kayak. Dedicated in 1998, the 800-foot course is divided into sections and runs from the Clear Creek RV Park to Lions Park to Golden City Hall to Golden Feed and wraps up at Vanover Park. The City of Golden continues to make improvements to the course, and in 2002 added six more drop structures. That makes the Playpark a golden place to kayak, whether you’re interested in river running or playboating in the various drops and pools…

Renaissance Adventure Guides also offers instruction with pool sessions at the Golden Community Center, teaches weekend classes at Chatfield Reservoir and also takes kayakers on weekend trips to Glenwood Springs. The Renaissance on the River at Clear Creek is in its fourth year, and RAG does the free nights every Wednesday from 5:30 to 8 p.m. from April to September, provided the water levels are running high enough.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

Fountain Creek Watershed Flood Control and Greenway District: Citizen advisory group forms

Here’s a recap of the first meeting of the citizen advisory group for the Fountain Creek Watershed Flood Control and Greenway District, from Chris Woodka writing for The Pueblo Chieftain. From the article:

The citizens advisory group of the Fountain Creek Flood Control and Greenway District met for the first time, and even had a test case before it. The group of 15 citizens is charged with making recommendations to the district board, which meets again in Fountain at 1 p.m. July 31.

“This is where the ideas come from,” said Ferris Frost, who was elected chairwoman of the committee. “This is where the energy comes from. I want to be near the center of it.” Frost is an El Paso County landowner along the creek and was active in the Fountain Creek Vision Task Force, which spearheaded formation of the district by the state Legislature earlier this year. Her family has preserved farmland along the creek with a conservation easement. Jay Winner, general manager of the Lower Arkansas Valley Water Conservancy District, was elected vice-chairman…

There was some confusion over the role of the group, some of whom have been dealing with Fountain Creek issues for three years and some who met for the first time Friday. The district itself is just 11 days old, but it is building on work that began nearly a decade ago…

The district has both direct authority in the flood plain area and an advisory role throughout the watershed, explained Cole Emmons, assistant El Paso County attorney.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Summit County: Invasive species — tamarisk

From the Vail Daily (Bob Berwyn):

Tamarisk, also known as salt cedar, was found a couple of years ago growing in a rock wall in Frisco. The plants were likely brought in during construction, said Lisa Taylor, director of Summit’s weed control program. The invasive plant has infested many areas in the lower Colorado River Basin, drinking millions of gallons of water that could otherwise be used for irrigation, municipalities or environmental purposes. A second tamarisk sprout was located near Silverthorne, Taylor said. The plant is difficult to eradicate when established, requiring heavy duty applications of herbicides and even burning. Taylor said the Summit County specimens are gone. It’s not clear how easily the plants spread in the higher-elevation cool climates, but Taylor doesn’t think tamarisk will be a major problem here. Keeping Summit County free of tamarisk is a high priority because of its impact on water resources.

Taylor said a couple of other non-native plants have made a spotty appearance in Summit County, including absinthe wormwood and sulphur cinquefoil, the latter in the Heaton Bay campground.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel: Senator Udall and Representative Lamborn introduce legislation to fund and authorize Reclamation treatment of mine water

Here’s a report from Chris Woodka writing for The Pueblo Chieftain. From the article:

“We both share a strong, deep commitment when it comes to the Leadville drainage tunnel,” Udall said. “We need for someone to step in and take responsibility,” Lamborn added. The lawmakers are sponsoring the legislation to avert disaster if the blockage in the Leadville tunnel were to give way under pressure and release a toxic flood into the Arkansas River. It will also improve the water quality of water from the mines that is returned to the river, Udall said. [ed. the toxic flood scenario was debunked by Reclamation last year].

In response to the emergency, a relief well was added to remove water backed up in the Leadville tunnel. The water was pumped to Reclamation’s treatment plant north of Leadville…

The bill would give Reclamation the authority to continue operating the relief well and to take steps toward a long-term solution. Previously, Reclamation claimed it lacked specific authority to treat water behind the blockages in the tunnel, a federal facility built to drain mines as a way to improve production in World War II and the Korean War. Reclamation and the EPA have been unable to reach a long-term solution.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

Republican River Basin: Republican River Compact compliance update

From the Yuma Pioneer:

The decision is nonbinding, as is all abritration between the three compact states, which includes Colorado, so the battle possibly will continue in court. In a decision released last Tuesday, June 30, arbitrator Ken Dreher ruled Nebraska will not have to shut down wells as Kansas sought, but did deem Nebraska’s future plans for compliance to be insufficient.

Here’s the link to the final decision from the Republican River Water Conservation District website.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

FIBArk recap video

Here’s some video of this year’s FIBArk Hooligan Race and Boater X from Kevin J on Vimeo via the Salida Citizen.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

Chaffee County: Xerces Society is pushing for endangered status for the Susan’s purse- making caddisfly

From The Pueblo Chieftain (Tracy Harmon):

The Susan’s purse-making caddisfly is found only in Trout Creek Spring area of Chaffee County and in High Creek Fen in Park County.

The petition was submitted by the Xerces Society, Center for Native Ecosystems, WildEarth Guardians and Western Watersheds Project. It asserts that grazing, logging and other activities affect Susan’s purse-making caddisfly habitat.

Here’s the link to the petition. Here’s the link to the federal rule-making webstie where you can deposit your comments.

Here’s the release from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

Australia: Bundanoon in New South Wales outlaws bottled water

Circle of Blue (Nadya Ivanova):

In the remote picturesque Southern Highlands of Australia, a small town leads by water example. The citizens of Bundanoon in New South Wales voted by a significant majority to ban the use of bottled water, making Bundanoon the first bottled water-free town in the country, The Daily Telegraph reported Wednesday.

Circle of Blue is also pointing to two studies of the bottled water industry. The GAO, “released a report that concluded that FDA consumer safety rules are less strict than the comparable EPA protections required for tap water,” according to Connor Boals writing on the website.

The other group concluded that bottled water is no safer than most municipal supplies and there is no way to know because the EPA rules for water providers do not apply to bottled water.

And then they’re running this article recapping yesterday’s House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee hearing about labels on bottled water.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Weld County: Powertech acquires more land for uranium development

Powertech is still buying property in Weld County for their proposed in-situ uranium mining operation. Here’s a report from the Northern Colorado Business Journal. From the article:

Powertech Uranium Corp. has entered into two agreements to purchase an additional 3,585 acres in Weld County, expanding its uranium resources near Nunn. The pending purchases add adjacent parcels to the 3,677-acre Centennial project, bringing the total surface land holdings to 7,262 acres. The option agreements include associated water, mineral and lease interests, the company announced…

In June, Powertech announced that an original estimate of 9.7 million pounds of inferred uranium resources within the project had been increased to 11.5 million pounds. The additional properties would bring the inferred resources to 12.8 million pounds.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Woodland Park: Radium in supply cause for concern?

From KRDO.com (Stephanie Wurtz):

People living at the Alpine Village Mobile Home Park in Woodland Park get their water from three wells. But state testing shows their water isn’t safe for anyone to drink. “We have to look toward cancer, bone cancer,” says one woman who lives in the park. Cancer is one risk listed in a letter from the Colorado Division of Water Resources, warning the family about their well water…

A representative from Alpine Village says he’s very aware of the problem and engineers are trying to determine how the radium is getting into the water. He says the issue should be resolved within 60 days. He says the water is safe to drink. A state enforcement order requires Alpine Village management to fix the water problem. But the woman NEWSCHANNEL 13 talked with isn’t going to wait and says her family is moving out in the fall. Torres says the liver will naturally flush the Combined Radium out of the system. He says the family needs to get regular blood tests, to make sure levels are returning to normal.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

Carbondale: Tap fees to rise?

From The Aspen Times (John Stroud):

An increase in tap fees for new development is being proposed to pay for an update of Carbondale’s 14-year-old water and wastewater master plan. The revised plan would analyze the impact of anticipated future development over the next 20 years and help determine how soon a new sewage treatment plant and water system upgrades will be needed to keep up with growth. Town trustees, at some point in the near future, will formally consider a proposed increase of $11.41 to the existing tap fee for each new single-family residence, or equivalent, to pay for the study. The estimated cost to update both the water and wastewater models included in the plan is about $23,800. In the meantime, the town is prepared to spend more than $1.7 million over the next couple of years on upgrades to the existing sewage treatment plant, designed to keep it properly functioning for the remainder of its 9- to 16-year life expectancy.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

Nestlé Chaffee County Project: Recap of commissioner’s July 1 meeting

Here’s the next part of Lee Hart’s recap of the July 1 meeting of the Chaffee County Commissioners working meeting for Nestlé’s Chaffee County Project. She writes:

Commissioner Tim Glenn tried to explain the gravity of Scanga’s testimony to fellow commissioners who either didn’t seem to understand the intricacies of water law and prior appropriation or simply did not share Glenn’s concerns. Glenn noted it was Scanga’s role to go “to bat for every water right and ag producer” in the valley and that he found Scanga’s testimony “fairly compelling.”[…]

“If you have a senior water right (as Aurora does), you can take it unless something in writing says you can’t take it,” Glenn explained to his fellow commissioners. Glenn said he’d feel better if Nestle’s augmentation came from a local entity that would probably care more about protecting local water resources than Aurora. Alternatively, Glenn suggested getting an agreement in writing that Aurora won’t draw down depletions and invoke its ability to exchange in a drought year and will only use water sources outside the Arkansas River Valley to supplement any municipal shortfalls created by the Nestle lease. But Glenn, always the pragmatist, said, “I seriously doubt that could happen.”

It’s really pretty simple. Aurora is leasing Twin Lakes water to Nestlé. The Twin Lakes decrees are pretty senior in priority. In times of low water — say, a drought — the river is governed by calls in any given stretch. Calls are made when someone with a decreed water right asks for their water. If current demand in that stretch exceeds the volume of water called for, water is doled out in order of priority, oldest first. So, again in a given stretch, a decreed party might just fall out of priority. This is determined by the decree and ditch company or project rules. Ditch companies generally allocate water equally — so much water per share.

The water that Aurora is leasing to Nestlé is for augmentation. The water will be released from storage at Twin Lakes to the Arkansas mainstem to pay the river for the water that Nestlé plans to pump at Hagen Spring. They’ll always pay this water to the river unless they fall out of priority which has been rare. Remember, Twin Lakes water comes from the rainy side of Colorado. The folks that will be effected in a drought are those junior to Aurora’s Twin Lakes rights.

Nestlé plans to truck 200 acre-feet or so of spring water per year to Denver for bottling.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Basalt: Growth controls effect revenue from sewer taps

From the Glenwood Springs Post Independent (Scott Condon):

Officials from both the Basalt and midvalley sewer districts have criticized the Town Council for clamping down on growth. They claim the town is choking a prime source of income by limiting growth because they won’t collect as many fees for new service. As a result, existing customers could end up paying higher monthly service bills. Mid Valley Metropolitan District (MVMD) board of directors president Robert Clark delivered a blistering criticism of the Town Council’s policies at a recent public hearing held by the Eagle County Commissioners on Ace Lane’s development proposal in El Jebel. Basalt is against approval of the project by the county and wants to force Lane to apply to the town. The metro district supports Lane’s request for 319 residences and 96,000 square feet of commercial space…

The Town Council adopted new growth control measures in April that limit the annual approvals for free-market residences to 32 per year. Developers have to complete for those approvals. Employee housing is exempt. “The Town’s policies are not adaptable to economic conditions and display a lack of concern regarding the financial impact on essential service providers,” Clark said. “Moreover, the MVMD board considers the present Town Council’s position on growth to be inconsistent with the attitude of the majority of residents outside of the town limits in the El Jebel/Midvalley areas.”[…]

Basalt Sanitation District — which provides sewer service to old town Basalt, Southside and the Roaring Fork Club — voiced similar concerns about Basalt’s direction. District Manager Denise Diers attended a public hearing last spring urging the Town Council to reconsider its tough stance on growth. Diers said Monday the district is very small and depends on fees for new service to raise funds for capital improvement projects to the existing infrastructure. Many of the sewer lines in old town Basalt were installed in the 1960s and need replacement. Funds raised through new service are dedicated to that type of work, she said. “We need about 50 tap fees per year to break even on our capital,” Diers said. If that funding source disappears it will create and either-or situation for the district. “It means the district is potentially going to be in disrepair … or that service fees are going to have to go up significantly,” Diers said. Basalt’s charge for sanitation service is already slightly above average in Colorado at $31 per month, Diers said…

When Diers expressed her concerns to the council, members of the board questioned if the sanitation district’s business model should depend on growth — or, in another way of looking at it, if the community should grow to satisfy that business model. Councilman Chris Seldin said Monday that Basalt voters have stated clearly that they want a policy of “slow and smart” growth. “Candidates with these views won the last two elections by wide margins,” Seldin said. “It’s unfortunate if this community vision impacts the Districts’ business models, but the Town’s policy needs to prioritize this clear charge from the voters.”

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

BLM: Proposed wild and scenic designation for western Colorado streams

The BLM is moving ahead with studying 155 miles of stream reaches for possible Wild and Scenic designation. Many see it as an intrusion on state control over water resources. Here’s a report from Le Roy Standish writing for the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. From the article:

The designation could limit private property rights on lands adjoining streams designated wild and scenic. The designation also could curtail water rights and possibly touch off an exhaustive fight with the federal government, according to water stakeholders…

Mely Whiting, water counsel with Trout Unlimited, said part of the wild and scenic discussion needs to be about long-lasting effects to the river brought on by permanent activities, such as ranching, on land. “The reality is how long are they going to hold on to that (land) and what is going to come next?” Whiting said of private property owners adjacent to rivers. “The purpose here is to make a statement and preserve it for future generations so they can decide what to do with it.”[…]

The Grand Junction BLM Field Office recently studied 117 sections of streams and rivers on federal lands, not private lands, in the counties of Mesa, Garfield, Delta and Montrose. The resulting eligibility report found 20 segments on 15 waterways as candidates for the new designation. Affected rivers include the Colorado, Gunnison and Dolores rivers. “Including a 20-mile stretch of the Colorado River west of Grand Junction, 18 miles of Big Dominguez Creek, 15 miles of Little Dominguez Creek and stretches of the Dolores and Gunnison rivers,” according to a statement on the BLM’s Web site.

During a briefing to the Mesa County Commission, Catherine Robertson, director of the Grand Junction BLM Field Office, said even though the designation would apply only to federal lands, what happens on adjoining land, or upriver on private lands, may affect the BLM’s ability to manage wild and scenic river stretches. She expands on that statement, as quoted on the BLM’s Web site: “These segments would be determined not to be suitable for designation.”

On June 16 the Colorado River District gathered multiple stakeholders at BLM’s Grand Junction offices. The meeting was to begin the process of analyzing the BLM’s Wild and Scenic River Eligibility study to find a “collective alternative” that everyone can agree on and then submit it to the BLM, said Chris Treese, a spokesman for the Colorado River District…

With the designation could come a federal reserved water right, which could touch off a legal fight on par to what played out over years in the Black Canyon of the Gunnison case, he said. “We would like to avoid that,” Treese said. In an attempt to avoid a legal fight, he is spearheading the effort to bring together local concerns and submit a preferred local alternative to the BLM by mid-2010. “We (the River District) think that a local alternative is a preferred alternative to the unilateral federal designation,” Treese said. “Yet there are those that may favor federal control.”

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Colorado Foundation for Water Education: 4th annual Friends of Water Education Golf Classic August 3

Click here to sign up.

Then click here to register for Western State College of Colorado’s 34th Water Workshop up in Crested Butte.

Energy policy — coalbed methane produced water regulation

From the Pine River Times (Carole McWilliams):

“The grounds of the suit were that groundwater diversions had to be regulated under state water law,” Klahn said. “We thought it would be a nice quiet little suit, but then BP intervened. In April this year, we were affirmed on all accounts by the State Supreme Court. It’s the kind of win you only get once in your career.” The repercussions are still being sorted out.

“We are proceeding on all fronts to try to maintain our win,” Klahn said. “We aren’t assuming it will be fine. We want more than a paper win.”

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

23rd Annual Poudre River Fest July 11

From email from the Friends of the Poudre:

TheFriends of the Poudre, a member of the Save the Poudre Coalition invites you, your family and friends to the

23rd Annual Poudre River Fest

Saturday, July 11
11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

At Picnic Rock in the lower Poudre Canyon

You’ll enjoy live music, booths and picnic cuisine prepared by Avogadro’s Number … and, of course, the river and Poudre Canyon.

The river is still running beautifully high and the canyon is lush this year with wild flowers.

The event is the oldest river festival in Colorado.

Replace prior appropriation?

Here’s an opinion piece advocating that Colorado move away from the doctrine of prior appropriation, from Bob Berwyn running in the Summit Daily News. From the article:

The biggest problem is that the environment has always been an afterthought. Fish and other animals that depend on stream water, wetlands and riparian ecosystems weren’t able to make a legal claim on water back in the late 1800s, so they’ve gotten short-shrift ever since. Hundreds of miles of streams in Colorado experience extreme depletions every year, to levels well below those needed to maintain healthy ecosystems. A couple of times in recent years, the state’s namesake river was in danger of running dry upstream of Kremmling, due to a combination of diversions to the Front Range and irrigation demands on the West Slope.

To its credit, the state has tried to protect the environment within the framework of existing water law by establishing “minimum instream flows” and spending millions of dollars to buy water rights. But the instream flow program falls far short of its goals, leaving many streams unprotected and subject to environmentally damaging diversions. In some cases, stream gauges freeze up at critical times, just when trout spawning season and peak ski resort demand for snowmaking water coincide, making it difficult to accurately measure flows. In other cases the state lacks the resources or political will for meaningful enforcement. Many other streams simply don’t have any protection at all.

It’s time to take a deep breath and acknowledge that the archaic and outmoded 18th [ed. should be 19th] century law doesn’t meet the needs of the 21st century. Continuing down its current path, Colorado is building a fragile house of cards that will someday collapse, most likely as the result of an extended drought. Before that happens, elected leaders, environmental experts and other stakeholders need to sit down together and develop a statewide water plan that reflects current and future realities, including the need to protect Colorado’s environment beyond today’s “reasonable” standard that falls far short of achieving its goals.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

Precipitation news

From the Fort Morgan Times (Dan Barker):

A sudden storm tore through Morgan County Friday night, leaving broken trees, downed power lines, hail damage and floods in its wake, and rain continued in some areas Saturday. Fort Morgan took the brunt of damage to cities, as a storm moved across central Morgan County and started dropping rain about 9:40 p.m. Friday, said Fort Morgan Police Chief Keith Kuretich. About two to three inches of heavy rain fell within a 15-minute period, with winds in excess of 75 miles per hours at times, he said. The National Weather Service characterized the storm as a wet microburst and there was a flash flood warning, Kuretich said.

Pueblo: Stormwater utility

From The Pueblo Chieftain (Chris Woodka):

Pueblo residents began paying a stormwater fee in 2003, and about one-third of the money – $900,000 a year – goes toward maintenance of the city’s stormwater system. Maroney said some parts of town have more problems than others because the drainage systems were not built to handle larger volumes of water. “One thing we’re trying to do is develop green infrastructure, that will allow source controls to hold the water on site or let it soak into the ground,” [Pueblo’s stormwater director Dennis Maroney] said. “We can retrofit these. One example is the work they’ve done at the Colorado State Fairgrounds.”[…]

Everything from shopping carts, furniture and landscape materials wind up in drainage ways, but the worst problem is caused by plastic bags and bottles, which build up to block water and do not decompose, Maroney said…

At the Pueblo Chemical Depot, a microburst removed a 400 square-foot section of roof on 45,000 square-foot warehouse, damaging a fire sprinkler and causing water to leak into the building, said Chuck Finley, executive director of the depot authority. Boone Hill East Road and Bergemann Road, southwest of Pueblo, washed out in places. On Red Creek Springs Road west, Rock Creek had 4 to 5 feet of water running over the road and is expected to continue to run for the next two days. The largest rainfall in the county over the Fourth of July weekend was at the Hatchett Ranch, south of Pueblo and east of Colorado City, where storms that moved north and south of Pueblo converged. The rain left a total of almost 2.5 inches, on top of half an inch the day before.

San Miguel watershed: BLM seeking public comment on commercial use

From the Montrose Daily Press:

The Bureau of Land Management Uncompahgre Field Office is seeking public comment on a proposal to issue new Special Recreation Permits for BLM managed lands in the San Miguel River corridor. Potential permitted activities would include whitewater boating, float-fishing, walk/wade fishing, and mountain biking.

A temporary moratorium limiting commercial recreation to existing outfitters and use levels was placed on the San Miguel several years ago, pending an environmental analysis to determine if new commercial use is appropriate. Since then, BLM has developed additional recreation facilities in the corridor improving access and environmental conditions. In addition, M59 road, which parallels the river in its upper reaches, has been closed to motorized use. Partially in response to these management changes, BLM has lifted the permit moratorium and is performing an environmental analysis on the effects of additional commercial permits.

The analysis includes BLM lands associated with the river from its upper end at Deep Creek (near Telluride) downriver to its confluence with the Dolores River. Comments must be submitted no later than Aug. 3.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Wet Mountain Valley: Vickerman family ranch to be preserved

From The Pueblo Chieftain (Tracy Harmon):

Thanks to a recently awarded $484,200 Great Outdoors Colorado grant, the San Isabel Land Protection Trust will be able to preserve the 720-acre ranch. It will stay as it always has been, a working cattle and hay ranch that also is home to wildlife on the valley floor. “We grow native hay that requires just one cutting usually in mid July to the end of July. Since my husband passed, we’ve taken in cattle for pasture,” Mrs. Vickerman said. “We have a lot of deer and antelope. They like the alfalfa and when we are haying we see where they’ve made beds to stay in the meadow then they move on when it is cut low and not as protective.”

The $1.3 million Vickerman Ranch project consists of a $400,000 contribution from the Vickerman family through the donation of development rights to the property, $450,000 in matching funds being sought through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm and Ranch Protection Program and the GOCo funds.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

South Platte River Greeway Foundation: Confluence Concert and River Flicks

Here’s the dope on the Greenway Foundation’s summer events.

Nestlé Chaffee County Project: Recap of July 1 commissioners meeting

Here’s an in-depth look at the July 1 Chaffee County Commissioners meeting from Lee Hart writing for the Salida Citizen. She writes:

Clearly, the biggest annual economic beneficiary of Nestle’s project, other than the company itself, isn’t even in this valley [or basin]. Under terms of a 10-year water lease agreement, Nestle will pay Aurora $200,000 each year for 200 acre feet of water to replace the spring water it will harvest here. The lease may be renewed for an additional 10-year period.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Aspinall Unit, Green Mountain update

From email from Reclamation (Dan Crabtree):

Inflow to the Aspinall Unit is finally dropping off so that it is possible to begin decreasing releases from Crystal Reservoir. Beginning today, July 6th, flows from Crystal will be reduced 200 cfs each day through Monday, July 13th. Currently, flows in the Black Canyon and Gunnison Gorge are about 2,800 cfs. Following the reduction, which will occur over the next week, flows will stabilize around 1,100 to 1,200 cfs.

From email from Reclamation (Kara Lamb):

Over the weekend, we saw a slight break in the rain storms. As a result, we scaled back releases from Green Mountain Dam to the Lower Blue River several times in 100 cfs increments. As of this afternoon, we should be releasing just about 1850 cfs to the Lower Blue.

Precipitation news

From The Pueblo Chieftain (Chris Woodka):

At Pueblo Memorial Airport, the National Weather Service reported 1.34 inches, a new record for the date going back to 1925, when 0.86 inches fell…The highest precipitation total in the area was at Colorado City, south of Pueblo, where 1.5 inches fell. Beulah had 0.84 inches, Swallows 0.80 inches and Rye 0.78 inches…Sunday’s rain brought the official precipitation total for the year to 5.82 inches, which is just slightly below the historical average of 5.90 inches.

Greater Arkansas River Nature Association: Arkansas River bioregion introductory seminars

Here’s a release from Greater Arkansas River Nature Association via The Mountain Mail:

Two free introductory meetings explaining a new year long program about man’s place in respect to the Arkansas River bioregion will be held in July. Sponsored by Greater Arkansas River Nature Association, the first will be held in Salida at 7 p.m. July 13 downstairs at Bongo’s Salida Café. The second will be in Buena Vista at 7 p.m. July 20, in the Sangre de Cristo Electric Association meeting room. Those interested are encouraged to attend one of two introductory meetings. Each will include a movie describing the new program set to begin in August. Participants are encouraged to enroll for the year, but may attend seasonally.

Each month will include an evening program and a Sunday field trip. Topics will be introduction to the bioregion, geology, history and future of agriculture; wildlife, the river, and piñon-juniper ecosystem. Others are weather, story of the seasons, astronomy, geology, geothermal and minerals, indigenous peoples, birds, riparian ecosystem, boreal toads and alpine-subalpine flowers.

More information is available by calling Greater Arkansas River Nature Association, 539-5106.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

Runoff (precipitation) news: Tom Kleinschnitz, ‘Anytime you have Cataract Canyon at over 30,000 cfs, [it is] a great water year’

From the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel (Dave Buchanan):

“It’s a great water year,” said the always enthusiastic Tom Kleinschnitz of Adventure Bound River Expeditions in Grand Junction. “Anytime you have Cataract Canyon at over 30,000 cfs, it’s a great water year.”[…]

The Yampa River on Friday was running at 3,620 cubic feet per second at Deer Lodge Park. The San Juan near Bluff, Utah, was up to 1,500 cfs. And here at home, the Colorado River was hurtling through Grand Junction at 16,700 cfs, plenty high even though down a bit from the 20,000 cfs flows of last week. That’s about 5,000 cfs higher than the 58-year average, according to the U.S. Geologic Survey…

As that early runoff began to fill the state’s reservoirs, water managers nervously eyed water levels creeping higher and higher. Usually, runoff is spread over two or three months, giving managers time to gradually release stored water to keep up with runoff. This year, though, reservoirs topped out early, even as cool temperatures returned, extending the state’s runoff season. “May’s inflow into Blue Mesa Reservoir was 158 percent of average while June’s inflow was only 78 percent of average,” said Dan Crabtree, lead hydrologist with the Bureau of Reclamation in Grand Junction…

“Some people are calling it a ‘Twin Peaks’ runoff,” said Kara Lamb of the Bureau’s Eastern Colorado office, which oversees Green Mountain and Ruedi reservoirs. “We’ve been saying runoff started and then cooler weather would slow it down. It’s almost as if runoff is running about three weeks behind.”[…]

“We were at maximum power production and bypass releases at Crystal and with last week’s rain we weren’t sure what exactly was going to happen,” Crabtree said. “Crystal spilled in May and came within three-quarters of an inch of spilling last weekend, and Blue Mesa was within about three inches of spilling.”

More coverage from the Summit Daily News (Bob Berwyn):

For June, the National Weather Service site near Dillon Reservoir recorded 2.09 inches of rain, well above the historic average of 1.14 inches for the month…

In Breckenridge, weather watcher Rick Bly tallied the 12th-wettest June on record, with 2.27 inches of precipitation, 64 percent above average. Bly said the notable statistic was the number of rainy days in June — 22 — compared to an average of eight. For the weather year-to-date (beginning Oct. 1), Bly said moisture is about 5.5 percent above average…

Summit County could be on track for plentiful summer moisture, with an emerging El Niño (warmer than average eastern Pacific) potentially boosting moisture late summer, according to Klaus Wolter, a climate researcher with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The cyclical variation in the Pacific doesn’t make a huge difference in terms of summer thunderstorms, but can push more moisture into the southern Rockies at the tail end of summer, he said. “El Niño is on the march. In general, it’s kind of good for us,” Wolter said, explaining that, in the past 10 years, abundant moisture in September and October coincided with El Niño conditions.

More coverage from Elizabeth Miller writing for the Boulder Daily Camera:

Boulder, Broomfield, Lafayette, Louisville, Erie and Superior all use computer-automated systems, some that are wirelessly linked to weather stations, to reduce water use as cued by weather patterns. Those systems can even shut off sprinklers when rain starts to fall. “There’s some really cool new technology that just gets more water delivered to where it belongs,” said Paul Bousquet, Boulder Parks and Recreation spokesman.

For April and May, the city budgeted 54.75 million gallons to water baseball fields, parks and golf courses, but only used 6.18 million gallons — about one-tenth of what was allotted…

Three strategically-placed weather stations in Boulder and a network of weather information available through a collaboration with the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District relay information to park stations that trigger sprinkler systems. Those sprinklers activate based on the evapotranspiration rate, a figure that combines weather conditions including rainfall, humidity, wind, temperature and solar radiation to estimate how much moisture plants have lost because of weather. When the evapotranspiration rate indicates that grass is staying hydrated, the computer system shuts off the sprinklers. Low-flow technology, improved sprinkler head design and drought-tolerant hybrid grass seeds have also set Boulder up to use less water this summer and in drought years that may follow. Park irrigation systems are updated every 10 years to keep them current with new developments in watering technology. Monte Stevenson, Lafayette’s director of parks, open space and golf, said that efficient water use is essential. With the computerized system, he said, “water savings can be an average of 10 to 50 percent better than the best human decision you can make.”

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

Alamosa: Levee recertification

Here’s an update on the recertification of Alamosa’s levees along the Rio Grande River through town, from Matt Hildner writing for The Pueblo Chieftain. From the article:

To come into compliance with new rules governing the maintenance of the levees, the city would have to make a number of improvements, including the removal of hundreds of trees and other vegetation along the roughly four-mile barrier. Not making the repairs would mean the federal government no longer would repair the levee following a flood. It also might lead to the reclassification of flood insurance ratings for some residents, who currently are not required to buy mandatory flood insurance from the federal government. Following a tour of the levee with Army Corps officials, Mayor Farris Bervig said Tuesday that the city likely would try to get the levee recertified. “There’s too many unanswerables in that to not have the levee recertified,” he said.

The agency’s new rules have tabooed trees such as the cottonwoods and willows, which sit atop the levee in spots and and within 15 feet of the base of it in many other areas. Tree roots are considered a hazard to the levee because they serve as conduits for water to weaken the barrier’s structure. The burrows created by rodents such as the beaver, which were seen during Tuesday’s tour, likewise threaten a levee’s stability. Pressurized water sprinkler systems also pose a risk if their pipes burst and lead to erosion below ground. How to deal with houses that impinge on the levee would be another matter…

Any removal of trees might require consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service since the trees form part of the habitat for the southwestern willow flycatcher, an endangered bird, said City Manager Nathan Cherpeski. While an easement through private property allowed the levees to be built and provides access for maintenance, a number of trees that don’t fit the agency’s new guidelines sit on private property.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

Breckenridge and Summit County score 10 acres of wetlands

From the Summit Daily News (Bob Berwyn):

The wetlands are at the base of the Monte Cristo Gulch drainage, near the turnoff to the Quandary Village subdivision south of Breckenridge. The purchase of the [10 acre] parcel complements other recent open space purchases in the area, providing a broader scale conservation of vital wetland habitat and function. Rare plants, inventoried by the Colorado Natural Heritage program, grow in the area. The Monte Cristo Gulch drainage holds the only known population of an endemic plant known as Draba weberi, with 20 to 100 individual plants growing in the valley.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

Nestlé Waters Chaffee County Project: County drawing up stipulations

From The Mountain Mail (Paul Goetz):

After about 3½ hours of discussion among themselves, Chaffee County Commissioners Wednesday directed Barbara Green, county 1041 attorney, and other experts to draft stipulations to satisfy county issues. The commissioners’ meeting chamber was filled to capacity with people wanting to hear the discussion…

To allow time for drafting stipulations, commissioners set a tentative date for continued deliberation at 9 a.m. Aug. 5 if the commissioners receive the documents in time. Bruce Lauerman, Nestlé natural resources manager, asked for a late-July date to avoid more project delay. Green asked for a mid-August date to allow ample time for her to “wordsmith” the conditions. After the meeting, Lauerman told The Mail he appreciates the commissioners’ “thoughtful” deliberation.

Among sticking points is specific treatment of water rights and drought scenarios that might injure agriculture or deplete storage. Commissioner Tim Glenn said he “struggled” with the efficient use of water and water rights. He said he is worried about a drought scenario such as one included in earlier public testimony by district manager Terry Scanga of the Upper Arkansas Water Conservancy District. Glenn said there is potential for water storage depletion during a prolonged drought.

Economic loss is another sticking point. Glenn said the Nestlé Ice Mountain Bottling Plant in Michigan has an annual payroll of $16 million. In Chaffee County, Ruby Mountain spring has enough water to run a bottling plant in Denver, but Nestlé has no plans to build a bottling plant in Chaffee County…

Other stipulations to 1041 standards include:

• A time line for wetland restoration former hatchery area and a guarantee of continued well monitoring at the Big Horn Spring site.

• A limit on Nestlé truck traffic on Trout Creek Pass during holidays and peak hours.

• Defining possible uses by the county for mitigation fund money agreed to by Nestlé.

• Improved Arkansas River fishing access at Ruby Mountain spring.

More coverage from the Salida Citizen (Lee Hart):

In a meeting that seemed focused more on how, rather than if, to approve Nestle’s proposal, the three-man board of commissioners spent the bulk of their time today debating proposed conditions of approval for the project that seeks to extract 65 million gallons of spring water from Chaffee County for transport to Denver where it will be bottled and sold under Nestle’s Arrowhead water brand. In the end, the hearing was continued to Aug. 5 to give staff time to draft legally enforceable conditions addressing key concerns commissioners have with the proposal. The draft proposed conditions are scheduled to be presented to the Commissioners on Aug. 3 for consideration at a public hearing two days later. The week of July 27, staff will provide an update on its progress and if it needs more time, the commissioners’ meeting may be pushed back to Aug. 19, the date staff originally proposed but which was objected to by Nestle project manager Bruce Lauerman.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Ouray County: Regional water boards seek county cooperation to keep water on the land

From OurayNews.com (Christopher Pike):

In early May, representatives from several regional water boards in and around Ouray County met with the Board of County Commissioners to begin a water summit with a mission to develop a plan to meet the county’s future water needs. The meeting is expected to continue in September with work sessions that will consider how to preserve and keep water rights in Ouray County and the surrounding region. “We would like to find ways to provide incentives to land owners to tie their water rights to their property,” said Commission Chair Heidi Albritton recently. “I think that’s what we’d all like to work to.”

The commissioners wish to evaluate all of the challenges which now crowd a sizable game board, in an input process that will comprise the members of the BOCC, the Ouray County Planning Commis-sion, the Tri-County Water Conservancy District, the Colorado River District, the Gunnison Basin Roundtable, the Shavano Conser-vation District, the Uncompahgre Watershed Partnership and likely San Miguel and Montrose County elected officials and their staffs.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Crestone: New municipal water system going in the ground

From the Crestone Eagle (Leanna Bradbury):

The big spectacle downtown this summer is the realization of the Town’s long time dream of a municipal water system with a dependable supply, pure water, and life-saving fire hydrants. For many decades some town residents have had shallow wells which ran dry in drought years and were easily contaminated by old septic systems. Others have lived in Crestone more than 30 years with no well at all, hauling water to fill cisterns. And what did we do if there was a fire? 3,000 gallon water trucks shuttled from refills at one municipal well and the golf course.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

Montezuma County: U.S. House Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development approves distributing $2.6 million to Jackson Gulch project

From the Cortez Journal (Kristen Plank):

Jackson Gulch Reservoir serves the Mancos Valley, which makes up approximately 2,300 residents, as well as Mesa Verde National Park. The 60-year-old system needs realigned earthen canals, protective waterproof linings, maintenance upgrades, pipes in canal structures, and concrete rehabilitation. Total cost for the project will reach approximately $9 million, Kennedy said. Construction on the canal system has already started, and $1.2 million has been spent on the rehabilitation project during the past three years. The next stop for the funding is the House floor in mid-July. It will then move to the Senate, Kennedy said. At the earliest, the water district could receive the money by May 2010.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Gunnison Basin: Upper Gunnison River Water Conservancy District turns 50

Here’s a retrospective looking back on the 50th anniversary of the creation of the UGRWCD, from Evan Dawson writing for The Crested Butte News. From the article:

The Upper Gunnison River Water Conservancy District (UGRWCD) was created in June 1959 to work along with the federal government in creating a series of water storage projects throughout Gunnison County.
The Upper Gunnison Storage Project, as it came to be known, was never entirely feasible or cost effective. The idea was finally abandoned altogether in 2008…

Gunnison area resident Richard Bratton served as the District’s attorney from 1959 to 1999. Bratton says he was in the office when the district was first created in 1959. Note, however, the “office” at that time consisted of Bratton and board members like Bill Trampe and Lee Spann, talking on the phone at 7 a.m. Bratton says the true beginning of the district happened in 1956 when the Colorado River Storage Project was authorized by Congress and construction began on a number of large reservoirs across the southwest, such as the Navajo, Flaming Gorge and Blue Mesa reservoirs. Alongside the big reservoirs, the government agreed to provide financing for “participating” water storage projects, Bratton says. The state water court formed the UGRWCD in 1959 to act as a liaison between the local participating project and the federal government. “Gunnison had a project called the Upper Gunnison Project. They had reservoirs and ditches all across the basin,” Bratton says. But in order to get the funding, there had to be an equal cost benefit ratio on each project—the cost of constructing the water storage project had to be equal to the benefits water users would receive. “We searched for years to find a project that met that demand. We did engineering and feasibility studies. We scaled it way down. To make a long story short, we never could find a project,” Bratton says.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Pagosa Springs: Stevens Reservoir expansion — wetlands mitigation

From the Pagosa Sun (Chuck McGuire):

Though Stevens can now accommodate considerably more water than it did when the district first declared its moratorium, it won’t be filled to capacity until wetlands mitigation work ends later this year. That work, now underway, is the first of a two-step process involving site preparation; excavation and placement of several inches of wetland soils; the installation of monitoring wells, depth gages and erosion control measures; road maintenance and planting of around 1,300 small shrubs. PAWSD officials believe workers will complete the first step in 120 calendar days. Then, depending on weather, the reservoir will be filled to capacity when district water rights are in priority, later this year. To complete the final step, district managers will again reduce the reservoir level by approximately six vertical feet, sometime around May 2010. That will allow planting of an additional 70,000 wet meadow and emergent plants, before refilling the reservoir late next year, when district rights are again in priority.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Aspen: Switching over from chlorine gas treatment for potable water supply

From InDenverTimes.com:

he city of Aspen water department is switching from chlorine gas to liquid chlorine bleach, which officials say is a much safer substance to use in disinfecting drinking water. “Basically, our overall threat level has gone down from high ‘orange’ to a low ‘green’ based on the Homeland Security threat levels,” said Charles Bailey, treatment supervisor, in a city announcement of the change and reported in The Aspen Times. “This might seem like a pretty minor thing, but the water department had to go through a lot of training and work to make this happen. The community is safer as a result.”

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

S. 787: Clean Water Restoration Act

Here’s a call to arms of sorts in support of Clean Water Restoration Act from Melinda Kassen writing in the Denver Post. She writes:

For almost 30 years, the CWA worked to make America’s waters clean, fishable and swimmable. And our country moved from an ethic of “out of sight, out of mind,” to “everyone lives downstream.” Now that ethic is under assault — and so again are our rivers and streams. In recent years, the Supreme Court has issued confusing and muddled rulings that have distorted the original language of the Clean Water Act and drastically narrowed its scope. Worse, the justices themselves have not agreed on what the law means, with four justices suggesting that only rivers that flow year-round and can float logs or boats deserve protection. As a result of this legal confusion, some 20 million acres of our country’s wetlands and millions of miles of rivers and streams have been stripped of protections.

In Colorado, about 75 percent of rivers and streams — some 76,000 miles of waterways — run either seasonally during spring runoff or after summer rains, and thus may no longer qualify for CWA protection from dredging operations, oil spills, discharges of industrial waste or sewage, construction or unregulated development.

That’s why Congress must pass the Clean Water Restoration Act.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

San Juan Skyway land and water projects

From The Durango Herald (Dale Rodebaugh):

The 16 projects started in 2005 with a $5.7 million challenge grant from Great Outdoors Colorado. More than 30 partners, including cities, counties, private foundations, individuals and landowners who contributed part of the value of their conservation easements found $11.8 million to supplement the GOCO grant. “We’re very pleased we exceeded our own expectations,” said Ken Francis of the Fort Lewis College Office of Community Services, who coordinated efforts. “We raised more money, got more work done and preserved more land than anticipated.”[…]

Nina Williams, executive director of the Montezuma Land Conservancy, which acquired conservation easements on 3,100 acres of 10 working ranches along the Mancos and Dolores rivers, spoke of the relationship between people and the landscape in Southwest Colorado. “The San Juan Skyway and Southwest Colorado is defined by the relationship that people – ranchers, farmers, sightseers and hunters and fishermen – have with the land,” Williams said. “The vision of the Skyway coalition has been to preserve the intrinsic quality of the region so people can continue to maintain that relationship and their way of life.” The San Juan Skyway is a 236-mile highway loop that takes the traveler from Durango and back via Silverton, Ouray, Ridgway, Telluride, Rico, Dolores, Cortez and Mancos.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

Reuse

Here’s a release about water reuse from Douglas County Water via YourHub.com.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District tour recap, NISP rally

Here’s a recap of a recent tour of the northern Front Range set up by the NCWCD, from Shari Phiel writing for the Berthoud Recorder. From the article:

While much of the water used in the northern Front Range areas originates along the western slope, the canals, reservoirs and pumping stations find along the eastern slope are critical to delivering our water. These facilities include Carter Lake, Horsetooth Reservoir, Flatiron Reservoir and the proposed Chimney Hollow and Glade Reservoir projects. “If you look at where the demands for water are in Colorado, both in terms of agriculture and in terms of municipal and industrial use, and you look at where the water’s located in Colorado, we’re just opposite of what we should be,” said Eric Wilkinson, general manager for the NCWCD.

Meanwhile, here’s a report from Tuesday’s rally for the Northern Integrated Supply Project, from Jamie Folsom writing for the Berthoud Recorder. From the article:

“Wouldn’t this have been a time to fill a reservoir?” asked former Colorado Agriculture Commissioner Don Ament, alluding to the overflowing creeks and ponds that dot the landscape. He and others noted the excess water will head downstream to surrounding states this year. They support storing the water to ensure it would be available for future, drier years.

More coverage from the Loveland Reporter Herald (Pamela Dickman):

The message, sown strongly by speaker after speaker Tuesday, was that the water project, which would be managed by Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District, is essential to the survival of agriculture — one of the main industries in the region. Without the reservoir to store water for growing cities and towns, that burden would fall onto water currently set aside for agriculture — and farm acres would dry up, hitting the economy and local food supply, according to area farmers and spokesmen for farm agencies.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Berthoud hires Dr. Darell Zimbelman as interim public works director

From the Berthoud Recorder:

Zimbelman comes to the position with an impressive background. Prior to his retirement in November of 2006, Zimbelman served as chief engineer, associate general manager and treasurer of the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District and municipal sub-district. As chief engineer, he was responsible for the operations and maintenance of the water collection and distribution systems while as treasurer, he was a board officer directly responsible to the directors for monitoring and overseeing the financial transactions of both districts. As associate general manager, Zimbelman was responsible for the day-to-day management of district functions, including administration, employee benefits, and computer services. He also assisted the general manager in making policy decisions in conjunction with the Board of Directors.

Colorado-Big Thompson update

From email from Reclamation (Kara Lamb):

Just a quick update before the Fourth of July Holiday Weekend. We are starting to get back, almost, to more normal operations after the peak of what turned out to be a very late snowmelt run-off season. High run-off peaked last weekend and we have been adjusting the Colorado-Big Thompson Project accordingly.

With the majority of the snowmelt behind us, releases from Olympus Dam to the Big Thompson River have returned to about 125 cfs. Lake Estes is also on the rise. Currently it is at an elevation of 7471 and will probably go up a little more tonight. It should stay up through the weekend.

Pinewood has been experiencing some fluctuations as we move water on downstream through the project. It dropped pretty significantly today–to an elevation of about 6565–but is now on its way back up. It will be up–a handful of feet down from full–for the Holiday weekend. But expect it to start dropping again top of next week. Then we will refill it. As we move water through the project, Pinewood will see fluctuation like this, this summer.

Meanwhile, a little more water is coming into Carter and Horsetooth Reservoirs. Carter is at an elevation of 5747 and Horsetooth at just under 5420–both pretty full. They will remain at or near those elevations through the Holiday weekend.

From email from Reclamation (Kara Lamb):

[Thursday] afternoon, we are reducing releases from Ruedi Dam to the Fryingpan River. As you have probably noticed, we have been reducing releases throughout the week. The snowmelt run-off has peaked, the peak has passed, and we are responding accordingly. As of this evening, flows in the Fryingpan should be right around 300 cfs. They should stay at that level through the weekend.

From email from Reclamation (Kara Lamb):

Earlier this week, we were able to scale back releases from Green Mountain Reservoir to the Lower Blue to under 2000 cfs. But all that changed today with a localized rain storm. We are back up to about 2680 cfs. We have been increasing releases all afternoon in response to the storm.

Because we are working with the weather, I have no prediction for the weekend. We are anticipating releases to stay at this level or perhaps go a little higher, but depending on Mother Nature, those plans could change. As always, I advise to please check the gage before you head up to the Lower Blue. And please keep in mind that we could make changes while you are on the water this weekend.

From email from Reclamation (Dan Crabtree):

Inflow to the Aspinall Unit has finally decreased to levels at which we can begin to slowly reduce releases from Crystal Reservoir. This evening (Wednesday) releases from Crystal will be reduced by 200 cfs and another 200 cfs will be cut Thursday morning. This will bring flows in the Black Canyon and Gunnison Gorge to about 2,700 cfs. No further release changes are anticipated through the Holiday Weekend.

Delta County: Wells Gap Evap, Inc. hopes to built facility to process produced water from oil and gas operations

From the Delta County Independent (Hank Lohmeyer):

The proposed facility would be operated by Wells Gulch Evap, Inc. The company’s contact person is listed as Jim Harker of Lincoln. Their plan received a recommended approval from the Delta County Planning Commission on June 25. The Board of County Commissioners held a public hearing on Monday and tabled consideration the company’s specific development application until July 13.

The company is negotiating to buy a 124-acre site that currently is used as winter sheep range. At final build-out, the seven membrane-lined evaporation ponds ranging from 2.5 to nine acres in size would cover 40 acres and have a total holding capacity of 64.2 million gallons. The company’s specific development application to the county states, “The site will accept exploration and production (EP) water from oil and gas drilling operations. Drilling mud and cuttings will not be accepted at this site.” EP water, also known as produced water, contains high levels of minerals, salts and other chemicals classified as “non-hazardous.” The company would accept EP water from around the Rocky Mountain region. There are two other EP water sites operating in the region; one at Cisco, Utah, and another at Baggs, Wyo.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

David M. Kennedy: ‘When it comes to Mother Nature, you can only push Mother Nature around for so long before she starts pushing back’

From the Aspen Daily News (Will Grant):

David M. Kennedy, who is also director of the Bill Lane Center for the American West at Stanford University, used maps, tables, figures and photographs to show the development of the country west of the [100th] meridian, the role of water in the West and the challenges facing the nation in future management of the resource. The future challenges of water management are largely a function of the past development, Kennedy said. And most of that development, which included a lot of manipulation to benefit humans, leaves us a tough hand to play. “When it comes to Mother Nature, you can only push Mother Nature around for so long before she starts pushing back,” he said…

Today’s management of our natural resources is a function of the management regimes we’ve inherited, Kennedy noted. He used Lake Mead as an example. Lake Mead is a product of the country’s scientific development phase and was one of the government’s first, large-scale interstate projects for water. And because of upstream demands on the Colorado River, Lake Mead will never again fill to its capacity, said Kennedy, referring to a recent presentation he and other industry professionals heard on the subject. By 2020, the lake “could be nothing more than a mudhole.”

And one of the factors that has changed the game completely, Kennedy said, is climate change. Meltwater is starting to run off nearly a month earlier, which means more wildfires, and alpine snowpacks are holding less water. “There’s less of the resource available as a result of climate change,” Kennedy said.

Kennedy said that the changing climate will require new ways for existing and future generations to handle the water management regimes inherited from developers of the past century.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Precipitation news

From the Aspen Daily News (Catherine Lutz):

Total rainfall in June was 1.47 inches, not too much higher than the average precipitation of 1.29 inches, according to preliminary data from the city of Aspen water department. City water treatment plant supervisor Laura Taylor said she was surprised when she did the calculations that June didn’t come out wetter.

Still, June was “wetter than normal” across all of western Colorado, said Dan Cuevas, a technician with the National Weather Service in Grand Junction. Aspen’s yearly average precipitation is actually just 20.39 inches, he said, with the wettest month, December, usually producing 2.36 inches of precipitation (in that case meaning melted snow). June is actually typically the driest month. The next driest month, October, usually produces 1.42 inches of precipitation, according to National Weather Service records dating from 1971. (NWS also measures averages from 1899, but the last 30 years presents a more relevant comparison.) According to water department records, there were 20 days in June with no precipitation. But very few days were clear, with 15 of the 30 days classified as partly or mostly cloudy in the afternoon…

May, in fact, was far wetter, with precipitation totals of 2.54 inches. That’s significantly higher than the average for the month of 1.83 inches. In fact, May 2009 was the 14th rainiest May in 59 years of records…

Denver came narrowly close last month to its moisture record for June — 4.96 inches in 1882. With just one day to go and little chance of rain, The Denver Post reported earlier this week that 4.86 inches of precipitation had fallen on the normally dry Front Range city.

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