Day: November 5, 2010

Strontia Springs Reservoir dredging project update

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From 9News.com (Chris Vanderveen):

…600,000 cubic yards of sediment. “That’s the equivalent of a pile of sediment on the Broncos home field 200 feet high,” says Doug Raitt, the Strontia Springs Reservoir Dredging project manager for Denver Water…

This week a number of giant pumps started to arrive to assist in the project. The “straw” is 7 miles long. It willl help take the sediment from the reservoir to the mouth of Waterton Canyon. Five separate pumps will assist the flow of the water and sediment. “It requires a boost periodically down the canyon road,” says Raitt. Once down the road, the sediment will be collected in a 15-acre sight where it will eventually be sold off…

The bulk of the work will really begin in the spring when the frozen water in the reservoir fully melts. If all goes well, the project should be done in September of next year.

More Denver Water coverage here.

Estes Park: ‘Two Views on Water in the West’ November 13

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From the Estes Park Trail-Gazette (Julie Harvey):

Renowned aquatic and terrestrial ecologists Cathy M. Tate and Tim Seastedt will go with the flow on water, discussing current ecology and uses, at the Shining Mountains Group annual dinner, Saturday, Nov. 13, at the Crags in Estes Park. Tate, an ecologist with the National Quality Assessment Program at the U.S. Geological Survey, and Seastedt, a professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Colorado in Boulder, will speak from 8 to 9:30 p.m. The public is invited to attend. Cost for the evening is $15, which includes a social hour and cash bar, beginning at 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., a buffet dinner from 6:30 to 8 p.m. and the program. Tate and Seastedt will present “Two Views on Water and the West,” and discuss the current and ongoing changes in the way water is obtained and used by animals, humans and plants in Colorado. Included will be water quality and quantity of streams, rivers and reservoirs, and related patterns of rainfall and snowfall to forest die-back, the appearance of new species, the loss of native species and how these changes will affect biological communities…

Space is limited. Payment must reach Madeline Framson by Nov. 8. Checks are payable to Shining Mountains Group — CMC, mark them for annual dinner. Send the check to Madeline Framson, 1155 S. St. Vrain #C8, Estes Park, CO 80517. For more information, call (970) 586-6623.

More education coverage here.

Pueblo: City council is looking at taking over management of Arkansas River levees through town

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From The Pueblo Chieftain (Chris Woodka):

A city proposal would dissolve the district — a process that would be carried out in district court — and turn the assets over to the city. The final decision on whether to proceed rests with the [Pueblo Conservancy District’s] board and City Council, and discussions now center around whether it’s the right course. “It makes common sense,” said City Attorney Tom Florczak. “Why have an additional layer of bureaucracy?”

Consolidating the responsibilities of the district with the city’s stormwater utility makes sense because the city has done the bulk of negotiations with the Federal Emergency Management Agency in certifying the levees provide flood protection. The city is doing the same type of work on Fountain Creek and has the resources available for planning and designing projects, Florczak said.

More Arkansas River basin coverage here.

Boulder: DARCA water law workshop November 12

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Here’s the link to the DARCA announcement. Here’s a report from John McKenzie writing for the Pagosa Daily Post:

The Water Law Workshop will be interactive and will cover specific issues ditch companies frequently face, as well as cases that are currently in progress. The workshop instructors will provide a wealth of information on a broad array of issues relevant to shareholders, directors and officers serving on ditch and reservoir companies, and water attorneys.

All topics include issues in the FRICO case, negotiating the engagement letter, conflicts of interest in representation of ditch companies and shareholders, practicing in Colorado, pre-alternative dispute resolution -The Coase Theorem, alternative dispute resolution, should ditch companies use the small claims court system?, restrictions and encumbrances on the transfer of water shares, and farms and fish, are there common interests?

The instructors for the course are Star Waring and Karl F. Kumli (Dietze and Davis, P.C.), Steven O. Sims (Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck), Cynthia F. Covell (Alperstein & Covell P.C.), Aaron Clay (Clay & Dodson, P.C.), John McKenzie (DARCA), Nate A. Keever and Jenna H. Keller (Dufford, Waldeck, Milburn & Krohn, L.L.P.) and Drew Peternell (Trout Unlimited’s Colorado Water Project).

More water law coverage here.

More education coverage here.

Pagosa Springs plans new features for their whitewater park

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From the Pagosa Sun (Jim McQuggin):

…if Army Corps of Engineers (ACoE) permitting goes seamlessly, along with other variables, river enthusiasts could have as many as seven new whitewater structures in the river by next summer…

The two new features, set for completion before next spring, will be installed in the portion of the river adjacent to Town Park.

With two new features slated for completion by mid-December, the town also approved engineering for five additional features in the near future, with construction possible as soon as next spring if ACoE permitting can make it through the process prior to late-winter thawing. Of the five features, two are planned for installation just north of the bridge on east U.S. 160, adjacent to the River Center shopping complex. Farther down the river, one feature is planned for the portion of the river adjacent to Town Hall, with two more set for construction adjacent to Yamaguchi Park. With the construction of a total of seven new features in the San Juan River, Pagosa Springs could potentially become a premier destination for rafters, kayakers and other whitewater enthusiasts…

As far as the additional five structures, Pitcher said that engineering and surveying was in process, as well as necessary easement acquisition (to fulfill ACoE requirements). “That’s going good and, as far as easements, I think we’ll have that done. Everyone seems to be supportive of the project.” If Riverbend and the town can secure those easements along with amended ACoE permits, construction on a third phase of the project (for five more structures) could begin as early as next spring.

Meanwhile, a whitewater park may be on the horizon for Montrose. Here’s a report from Kati O’Hare writing for the Montrose Daily Press. From the article:

[Scott Shipley, a world champion kayaker and veteran whitewater park designer] spoke Wednesday to a crowd of about 50 about the Uncompahgre River’s potential for a park. The discussion was part of a follow-up presentation about the city’s ongoing Uncompahgre River Corridor Master Plan process. Shipley said Montrose has the river, with its flow, and all aspects needed for a successful whitewater park. “They’re designed to mesh with the environment” and consider fish passage, vegetation and river access, he said. Designers consider 100-year floods and “most important, are designed that it doesn’t have a negative impact on the community where you put it.”

More whitewater coverage here.