Click the link to read the article on the Fort Collins Coloradoan website (Rebecca Powell). Here’s an excerpt:
July 7, 2025
Key Points
- A Larimer County judge ruled in favor of Larimer County commissioners, upholding their approval of a permit for Thornton’s 10-mile pipeline project.
- Save The Poudre, an environmental group, sued the county, arguing the commissioners didn’t properly consider the ‘Poudre River option.’
- Save The Poudre is considering an appeal, while Thornton says it continues to focus on providing water to its residents.
The city of Thornton is the true winner in a recent court ruling focused on the pipeline it’s planning to build in Larimer County to bring more water to its residents. The lawsuit was filed a year ago by Save The Poudre, an environmental advocacy group. Its target was the Larimer County commissioners, who had approved a permit for construction of the pipeline.
On July 3, Larimer County District Court Judge Michelle Brinegar ruled that commissioners were justified in their decision to approve the application for 10 miles of pipeline through the county…In its lawsuit, Save The Poudre asked the judge to vacate the board’s decision to approve the pipeline. The nonprofit alleged that commissioners didn’t adequately follow the county’s standards for these kinds of applications. Specifically, Save The Poudre contends that commissioners should have required Thornton to present a plan for the so-called Poudre River option, which would have conveyed the water through the Poudre River downstream of Thornton’s current diversion point…But commissioners concluded that while they could encourage the Poudre River option, they couldn’t require it. Brinegar sided with commissioners, saying they can’t compel Thornton to present all possible alternatives, only those that are reasonable.