Day: September 11, 2010

Nestlé Waters Chaffee County Project update September 15

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From The Chaffee County Times:

Bobbi McClead, natural resource manager of Arrowhead Water, a subsidiary of Nestlé Waters, will provide the Rotary Club of Buena Vista with an update on the status of Nestlé Waters construction at Johnson Village on Wednesday, Sept. 15, at 7:30 a.m. at Eddyline Restaurant, 926 South Main St. in Buena Vista. McClead will report on the completion of the storage and loading facilities as well as the commencement of trucking water from the Arkansas Valley to Denver.

More Nestlé Waters Chaffee County Project coverage here and here.

Streamflow news: Lower Blue River tributaries drying up

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From the Summit County Citizens Voice (Bob Berwyn):

Blue River water commissioner Scott Hummer said for the first time ever, a call was placed on Cataract Creek, near Heeney. Some streams are flowing at levels lower than during the historic 2002 drought — and lower than any of the long-time ranching families can remember, going back four or five generations. “It’s not producing enough water to for the most senior water rights holder,” Hummer said of Cataract Creek…

Back in July, Hummer said local streams were headed for record-low levels, but late in the month, steady monsoon rains helped sustain flows through the end of August.But now, all streams in the Blue River Basin are flowing well below their historic averages…

Hummer also reported low flows from the other end of the county, where Tenmile Creek was flowing at 24 cubic feet per second Wednesday morning, well below the 56-year median flow of 42 cfs for this date. The record low flow for Aug. 7 is 17 cfs, set in 1977. Straight Creek was flowing at about 4.5 cfs Wednesday morning, barely above the all-time record low flow of 1.7 cfs, set in 2002.

Stagecoach Reservoir operations update

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From Steamboat Today (Tom Ross):

As it turns out, the atypical dam releases probably masked just how low the river might have fallen in August without them. “Whatever it’s been, it was us,” Kevin McBride, district manager of the Upper Yampa Water Conservancy District, said Tuesday. “Here in town, we haven’t seen the real flows, that’s for sure.” He explained that in preparation for the Labor Day holiday weekend, the releases were scaled back to help ensure that recreational boaters still would be able to use the boat ramps at Stagecoach Lake State Park. The tapered flows saw the river at Fifth Street in Steamboat Springs go from almost 180 cubic feet per second Sept. 3 to 65 cfs on Tuesday. Broad stretches of the Yampa within the city limits Tuesday were ankle deep.

More Yampa River Basin coverage here and here.