Wiggins: Council moves water project along

From The Fort Morgan Times (Dan Barker):

Council members approved a resolution certifying that the current project to bring water from a new source into town is an appropriate use of taxpayer dollars, as well as an emergency ordinance establishing the Town of Wiggins Water Enterprise. This is part of the effort to complete a set of conditions created by the USDA for receiving a loan and a grant to pay for the project. Since the money for the project comes from American Recovery and Reinvestment Act stimulus funding, governments that receive such funding must certify that their projects are appropriate ways to spend the money, said Wiggins Town Attorney Sam Light. That was one of the conditions for the loan and grant. In order to create bonds to sell to pay off the loan, an attorney who specializes in that kind of work said it is best to officially name the Wiggins water system an “enterprise,” although that is already the way it has been run, Light said. As an enterprise, the water system is exempt from Taxpayers Bill of Rights (TABOR) requirements to have voters approve any increases in costs, he said. Basically, this amounts to renaming the water fund to the water revenue fund, Light said.

The town is also working on the other conditions for the loan and grant, Rogers said. The town has gathered documentation of some of the right of way easements required for running a pipeline from a well northwest of Wiggins into the town, but is still working on it, Holbrook said. A title company is working on certifying that those easements do not have any liens or other encumbrances on them, Rogers said. The town’s auditor has said that he is sending a letter to document the town’s financial condition, but that has not come in yet, he said.

The USDA will be coming to Wiggins to present an official check on Monday, Rogers said.

More Wiggins coverage here and here.

Aurora: Prairie Waters dedication recap

From the Aurora Sentinel:

Hundreds of people attended the Prairie Waters Project opening celebration last week at the Peter Binney Water Purification Facility near the Aurora Reservoir…

It is expected to increase Aurora’s water supply by 20 percent and deliver up to 10,000 acre-feet of water per year…

“Water projects in the arid west don’t just happen,” said Mark Pifher, director of the city’s water department, at the celebration. “They require the natural resource itself — the water, many permit approvals, technological means to capture that water, to treat it and distribute it, and perhaps most importantly … projects of this nature need the political will to bring them forward from design to fruition. This project possessed all of those attributes.”

More Prairie Waters coverage here.

La Niña: Big snows in December and January?

From the Summit County Citizens Voice (Bob Berwyn):

Joe Ramey, a climatologist with the National Weather Service in Grand Junction, went out on a limb last weekend to forecast a snowy winter, beginning in December and lasting at least through January, and possibly into February. The early part of the ski season might stay dry and warm a little longer than most eager skiers and snowboarders would like, but odds are the dumps should arrive for the heart of the season, he said. “The weather flip-flop in 2010 gives us a high level of confidence … but don’t bet the ranch,” Ramey said, speaking last week at the annual Colorado Snow and Avalanche Workshop in Leadville.

He based his forecast on the dramatic shift away from El Niño to La Niña, with much cooler than average sea surface temperatures in the eastern equatorial Pacific. Based on those temperature readings, this year’s La Niña is shaping up to be one of the strongest in several decades, but that alone doesn’t guarantee a big winter.

2010 Colorado elections: The Denver Post editorial board endorses Michael Bennet over Ken Buck

From The Denver Post:

Bennet has the potential to lead a bipartisan coalition of centrist U.S. senators who can finally begin tackling the nation’s burdensome debt, the unsustainable entitlement system, and the confusing, unfair tax code while also helping to guide us out of two wars and a deep recession.

More 2010 Colorado elections coverage here.

Forecasting water supply in a La Niña year

From the Vail Daily (Lauren Glendenning):

The La Nina weather pattern this coming winter means one thing for sure — there will be unusually cold ocean temperatures in the eastern Pacific Ocean near the Equator. The conditions tend to bring wetter than normal conditions across the Pacific Northwest and dryer and warmer than normal conditions across much of the southern tier of the United States. Colorado sits right in the middle, meaning things here could go either way. The last La Nina winter was 2007-08 and brought tons of snow to the valley. Powder days became the norm, but you never would have known it based on some early winter weather predictions that year, though…

[Klaus Wolter, a Boulder-based climatologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration] said this coming winter is a “big La Nina year,” but that doesn’t necessarily mean previous La Nina patterns in the area mean anything about what’s to come. “2007-08 was a La Nina that was very beneficial for us, and unfortunately that doesn’t mean it will happen again,” Wolter said…

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s long-range weather prediction for Western Colorado for the upcoming December, January and February months shows a 7.5 percent probability for record high amounts of snowfall, a 30.4 percent chance for above normal snowfall, a 36.1 percent chance for near normal snowfall, a 33.4 percent chance for below normal snowfall and an 8.7 percent chance for record lows of snowfall. Greene said looking at data like that and interpreting it “kind of depends on if you’re a glass half-full or glass half-empty person.”

Sanchez Reservoir: The Colorado Division of Wildlife plans to eradicate rusty crayfish in the reservoir

From The Pueblo Chieftain (Matt Hildner):

Tom Remington, the division’s director, signed the order this week in an effort to keep the rusty crayfish from being moved into other waters. “Rusty crayfish are a tenacious invasive species that have the potential to impact streams and lakes,” Greg Gerlich, the agency’s aquatic section manager, said in a news release. The crustacean has large claws and out-competes native species for food and habitat. They’re also capable of clearing large areas of aquatic plants, reducing habitat for invertebrates and shelter for small fish.

More rusty crayfish coverage here.

Interbasin Compact Committee: How much of the future municipal water gap can be met with conservation?

From The Pueblo Chieftain (Chris Woodka):

The IBCC is looking at how much of the state’s municipal water gap could be met by conservation and how the state should be involved in achieving conservation as part of a plan it hopes to complete in December. A subcommittee of the IBCC recommended stepping up state efforts to promote water conservation. Last year’s HB1051 required domestic water providers who supply more than 2,000 acre-feet — more than 100 are in that category — to report on water conservation…

Recommendations also included reducing water use by state agencies and adopting statewide efficiency standards that are tougher than federal rules for appliances in building codes in the short term.
In the long-term, the subcommittee wanted to look at more storage of conserved water and to see if more efficient agricultural irrigation could be a source of supply for municipal water.

Some IBCC members thought more mandatory conservation measures should be required, while others said that was too big a step that undermined local control and could put low-income homeowners at a disadvantage. “A lot of smaller communities would welcome the help because they see what happens when the cities buy and dry agriculture,” said Jay Winner, general manager of the Lower Arkansas Valley Water Conservancy District. “This is the lowest hanging fruit. Either we adopt this or stop meeting.”[...]

Several members of the IBCC disputed the idea that a reduction of water use on agricultural systems could be used to improve municipal supplies. Any savings would be passed on to the next junior water right, said Eric Wilkinson, executive director of the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District. Wilkinson also pointed out that passive savings, the expected natural consequence of higher rate structures, updated appliances through market forces or public consciousness, would reduce demand, as staff of the Colorado Water Conservation Board projects. “It’s reduced demand that increases your supply. It just never shows up,” he said…

A savings of about 150,000 acre-feet annually is projected by the year 2050 through passive measures.
More active measures — the mandated building codes or landscape requirements — could save another 500,000 acre-feet annually by 2050. However, the water saved could either serve as security against drought or a future supply. “Since 2002, the Front Range has added 800,000 people and no water,” said Rod Kuharich, executive director of the South Metro Water Authority. “Conservation has gone to provide supply.”

More conservation coverage here. More IBCC — basin roundtables coverage here.

2010 Colorado elections: Pueblo County and City of Pueblo officials are freaking over the prospect of Proposition 101, Amendment 60 and Amendment 61 passing

From The Pueblo Chieftain (Peter Roper):

Pueblo County and city government officials are facing a tough budget year in 2011, but they don’t even want to imagine the difficulties if state voters approve the tax-cutting ballot measures known as Amendments 60, 61 and Proposition 101…

But when council asked Finance Director Sam Azad what would be the impact of the three ballot measures, he was blunt: Taken together, the city would lose $10 million in revenue in 2011 and up to 15 to 20 percent of its revenue over the next three years…

Calvin Hamler, Pueblo County’s finance director, said county revenues would shrink by $7.7 million next year if the ballot measures pass. “We’d see a loss of $6.4 million in property taxes alone in the first year,” Hamler said last week…

Proposition 101 would be more expensive, by Azad’s computations. The city would lose $6.7 million in revenue from a list of tax cuts or eliminated fees. The biggest item on the list would be the loss of $3.2 million in lost sales tax on telecommunications, auto sales and rentals.

Looking at the county’s budget for 2011, Hamler said Amendment 60 would cost $6.4 million in property tax revenue and $1.3 million more if Proposition 101 passes as well. While Pueblo city government depends on sales tax revenue, county government leans heavily on property tax receipts.

Hamler is forecasting property tax revenue of $41 million in 2011, but the passage of Amendment 60 would cut that down to $34.6 million.

More coverage from the Vail Daily (Chris Romer):

These issues have broad, bipartisan opposition across both sides of the aisle.

Our State Senator, Al White (R), said, “You know what the contingency for 60, 61 and 101 is? There isn’t one. Move to Wyoming. My position is hell no. No way.”

Add to that State Senator Greg Brophy (R), who said, “It’s like losing your job and getting sick at the same time. I’m for limited government, but not no government.”

Colorado Attorney General John Suthers (R) called these tax-cutting measures “pure anarchy.”

Weld County Commissioner Sean Conway (R) said “these measures make matters much worse in Colorado. They eliminate jobs, keep employers from moving to Colorado and putting people to work and push Colorado deeper in recession.”

The Denver Post, in an editorial against these issues, summed it up with the understanding that 60, 61 and 101 “might be tempting for some voters. But they would be devastating for Colorado.”

The Aurora Sentinel says, “Proposition 101 isn’t just a bad bill, it’s an insidious leap toward catastrophe disguised as economic aid for taxpayers.”

More 2010 Colorado elections coverage here.

Climate change and human water use alter rivers, eliminate top predators

Here’s the release from the U.S. Geological Survey (Theodore Kennedy):

Climate change and growing human demands for water are leaving an indelible mark on rivers and streams, shortening food chains and eliminating some top predators like large-bodied fish, according to a new study led by Arizona State University and co-authored by a U.S. Geological Survey scientist.

The team studied the food webs of 36 rivers and streams in the United States, ranging in size from the Mississippi and Colorado Rivers to their small tributaries. The study found changes in river hydrology, both drying and flooding, reduce the populations of some species in the middle or top of the food chain, and increase the likelihood of top-predator fish species being eliminated from aquatic ecosystems.

“The question becomes can you have fish and tomatoes on the same table?” said John Sabo, an Arizona State University associate professor and the study’s lead author. “Our results suggest that drying a river to provide water for agriculture and other uses may reduce the production of river-caught fish, a particularly important source of protein in the developing world.”

Worldwide, rivers are drying with increasing frequency because of human appropriation of water. Models indicate climate change will further exacerbate river drying and lead to more variable river flows, including flooding, in the future.

“This information has important implications for the management of U.S. rivers,” said USGS co-author Theodore Kennedy. “For instance, it may be possible to use controlled disturbances, such as experimental high-flow releases from Glen Canyon Dam in Arizona, to manipulate the system to benefit native fish.”

Results of the study, The role of discharge variation in scaling of drainage area and food chain length in rivers, were released October 15, 2010, in Science Express and will appear in Science in November. The research team includes John Sabo, Arizona State University, Tempe; Jacques Finlay, University of Minnesota, St. Paul; Theodore Kennedy, U.S. Geological Survey, Southwest Biological Science Center, Flagstaff, Ariz.; and David Post, Yale University, New Haven, Conn.

Here’s the release from the National Science Foundation (Cheryl Dybas/Skip Derra):

Rivers and streams supply the lifeblood to ecosystems across the globe, providing water for drinking and irrigation for humans as well as a wide array of life forms from single-celled organisms up to the fish humans eat.

But humans and nature itself are making it tough on rivers to continue in their central role to support fish species, according to new research by a team of scientists including John Sabo, a biologist at Arizona State University.

Globally, rivers and streams are being drained due to human use and climate change. These and other human impacts alter the natural variability of river flows.

Some affected rivers have dried and no longer run, while others have seen increases in the variability of flows due to storm floods.

The result is that humans and nature are conspiring to shorten food chains, particularly by eliminating top predators like many large-bodied fish.

“Floods and droughts shorten the food chain, but they do it in different ways,” said Sabo.

Sabo is the lead author of a paper reporting results of a study of 36 rivers in this week’s issue of the journal Science.

“The length of food chains is a crucial determinate of the functioning of ecosystems,” says Alan Tessier, program director in the National Science Foundation (NSF)’s Division of Environmental Biology, which funded the research.

“Ecologists have long sought to explain why food chain length varies among different ecosystems. This study provides a quantitative answer to that question for stream ecosystems, and provides critical evidence for the importance of flow variation.”

High flows “take out the middle men in the food web, making fish [the top predator] feed lower in the food chain,” said Sabo. “Droughts completely knock out the top predator.”

“The result is a simpler food web, but the effects we see for low flows are more catastrophic for fish–and are long-lasting.”

Sabo and co-authors–Jacques Finlay, University of Minnesota, St. Paul; Theodore Kennedy, U.S. Geological Survey, Southwest Biological Science Center, Flagstaff, Ariz.; and David Post, Yale University, New Haven, Conn.–suggest that the fate of large-bodied fishes should be more carefully factored into the management of water use, especially as growing human populations and climate change affect water availability.

The researchers studied rivers and streams in the U.S. ranging in size from the Mississippi and Colorado Rivers, down to small tributaries.

The rivers provide water to large cities like New York City, Minneapolis, Phoenix, Las Vegas and Los Angeles.

The study employed naturally occurring stable isotopes of the element nitrogen to measure how top-predators were faring in the food chain.

Nitrogen provides an indicator as it bioaccumulates, increasing by 3.4 parts per million with each link in the food chain.

“Floods simplify the food web by taking out some of the intermediate players so the big fish begin to eat lower on the chain,” Sabo said.

“With droughts, it’s completely different: droughts eliminate the top predator altogether because many fish can’t tolerate the low oxygen and high temperatures that result when a stream starts drying out.”

He added that climate change will play a growing role in coming years.

“Climate is giving us a new set of operating terms to work with,” Sabo said. “We will experience overall drying and greater weather variability, both of which will shorten river food chains.

There will be drying in some regions, particularly along the equator, and increased flow in some rivers, primarily at higher latitudes, scientists believe.

“We will see more variability because there will be change in the seasonality of storms,” said Sabo. “Ocean currents are changing, and the way the ocean blows storms our way is going to be different.”

The human effect on rivers and streams, and the food chain they support, is closely tied to land-use change, such as water diversion and regulation of flows due to dams.

Sabo outlined a classic scenario that humans face during drought years.

As drought takes hold, the need for water for irrigation and agriculture increases and leads to a draw-down of natural river flows.

The effects downstream can be devastating.

“We would not have guessed that the infrequent drought that results would have a big effect on a stream, but our results show that it does,” Sabo said.

“Some streams affected by drying five to ten years ago are still missing large-bodied fishes, compared with same-sized streams that never dried.

“Food webs can recover sooner after a flood, in roughly a year, but it takes far longer to recover in the case of drying or drought.”

The study hints that competing users of a river’s water–for agricultural production and recreational uses like fishing–need to work out amenable uses of rivers and streams that not only look to the immediate future, but also project long-term effects.

“The question becomes: can you have fish and tomatoes on the same table?” Sabo asked.

“They compete for the same resources, and society depends on both: agriculture for grain, fruits, vegetables, and fish for protein, particularly in the developing world.

“Humans may need to make hard decisions about how to allocate water so that we grow the right food, but still leave enough in rivers to sustain fish populations.”

More climate change coverage here.

Dust on snow

Here’s Part 3 of Mike Horn’s series running in The Crested Butte News. Click through and read the whole thing. Here’s an excerpt:

There’s a delicate balancing act here of ranching, recreation, water storage and stream health. And when there isn’t enough water to go accommodate everyone’s ideal stream flows, challenging—and often contentious—decisions need to be made. Fortunately things haven’t reached a desperate level in the Gunnison Basin—yet. But if drought conditions and climate change continues, and dust on snow continues to negatively affect water yields and reschedule runoff, conflicts are sure to arise amidst the many stakeholders, near and far, looking for their fill.
After a dry September in the Gunnison Basin, and the continuation of what the experts call a nine- to ten- year drought, stream flows are currently running well below normal. Some of that deficit can certainly also be attributed to dust on snow, and the resulting reduction in overall runoff, paired with snowmelt occurring up to three weeks earlier in the spring.

For ranchers, low flows this time of year make it more difficult to irrigate fields, and raise potential conflicts between recreation and ranching. Significant water is released during the summer from storage facilities like the Taylor Reservoir to accommodate recreation, be it for the boating or fly fishing industry. However, that is not the time of year ranchers need higher stream flows; they need adequate flows in the fall to irrigate their fields as they prepare next season’s hay crop, and bolster feed for cattle that will graze on-site through the winter.

More Gunnison River basin coverage here.

Colorado River District’s fourth quarter meeting October 19

Here’s the link to the agenda.

More Colorado River basin coverage here.

NIDIS Weekly Climate, Water and Drought Assessment Summary of the Upper Colorado River Basin

Here are this week’s notes from the Colorado Climate Center.

Denver Water rates going up?

Here’s a release from Denver Water (Lori Peck):

Denver Water staff presented to the Board of Water Commissioners a preliminary proposal to adjust water rates for 2011 at its meeting today. The adjustment would provide further funding for the utility’s capital projects, which include upgrades to aging infrastructure over the next decade.

“We need to invest in our water system so we can continue to provide reliable service and clean water to our community,” said Angela Bricmont, director of finance. “Next year’s projects include more forest health related work like dredging Strontia Springs Reservoir, as well as replacing the 105-year old valves at Cheesman Dam, finishing major upgrades at Williams Fork Reservoir and Dam, and stepping up our pipe rehabilitation and replacement program.”

The effects of the proposed changes on customer bills would vary depending upon the amount of water the customer uses and whether the customer lives in Denver or is served by a suburban distributor under contract with Denver Water; the more customers use, the more they will pay. Under the current rate proposal, average Denver residential customers would see their bills increase by about $41 a year — an average of $3.40 per month. Typical suburban residential customers served by Denver Water would see an increase of $32 per year — an average of $2.66 per month. For example, the average annual cost for water for an inside-city customer in 2010 was $330, and would be $371 in 2011. Similarly, the average annual cost for an outside-city customer in 2010 was $555, and would be $587 in 2011. Adjustments also have been proposed for commercial, industrial and government customers.

“The future is going to be very challenging for every western water system,” said Tom Gougeon, Denver Board of Water Commissioners vice president. “We all face similar issues, including the need to invest in infrastructure, new supplies, watershed protection, recycled water and conservation. And, we live in an era where climate change will likely shrink supplies and increase demand. Even with a focus on cost control, productivity and efficiency, the cost of providing water is going to go up. Our job is to ensure that our customers are getting good value for the increasing investment they will need to make.”

If the proposed adjustments are approved, they would take effect March 2011. Rates for Denver Water customers living inside the city would remain among the lowest in the metro area, while rates for Denver Water residential customers in the suburbs would still fall at or below the median among area water providers.

Denver Water owns and maintains more than 3,000 miles of distribution pipe — enough to stretch from Los Angeles to New York — as well as 12 raw water reservoirs, 22 pump stations and four treatment plants. Ongoing rehabilitation and replacement of infrastructure is needed throughout the water distribution system, much of which dates back to post-World War II installation or earlier.

Denver Water plans to expand its system capacity over the next decade to meet the future needs of its customers by expanding the utility’s recycled water system, enlarging Gross Reservoir by 18,000 acre-feet, finishing the development of gravel pits that store reusable water, and exploring ways to work with other water providers to bring more supplies to its system.

Denver Water is funded through rates and new tap fees, not taxes. Its rates are designed to recover the costs of providing reliable, high-quality water service and to encourage efficiency by charging higher prices for increased water use. A significant portion of Denver Water’s annual costs do not vary with the amount of water sold and include maintenance of the system’s distribution pipes, reservoirs, pump stations and treatment plants. Denver Water also examines and adjusts its capital plan as necessary each year.

The Board is expected to vote on the proposed changes on Wednesday, Nov. 17, after considering public comment. Public comment will be taken at the Nov. 10 and Nov. 17 Board meetings at 9 a.m. The meetings are open to the public and will be held at Denver Water, 1600 W. 12th Ave. Public comment also will be taken at Denver Water’s Citizen’s Advisory Committee meeting, Thursday, Oct. 21, 6:15 p.m., at Denver Water. Comments also may be sent to the Board via e-mail.

See details of the 2011 rates proposal. Members of the public who have questions about the proposed rate adjustment may call 303-628-6320.

More Denver Water coverage here.

Aurora: Prairie Waters dedication today

From the Denver Business Journal (Cathy Proctor):

The project (website here) boosts Aurora’s water supply by 20 percent — about 3.3 billion gallons of water a year. It came in ahead of schedule and $101 million under the original $754 million budget, said Greg Baker, spokesman for the Aurora Water Department. “We’re ahead of schedule and well under budget,” Baker said. “How often does a city get to say that?”

Water equivalent to what Aurora gets from the Western Slope, uses and sends into the South Platte River is pumped out of the river near Brighton, then filtered through a series of gravel and sand beds into a pipeline. The 34-mile pipeline sends the water to a new treatment plant. From there it goes on to city residents and businesses — who use it before its returned to the river. It’s a continuous loop of use and re-use. “It’s one of the most sustainable new water supplies in the Southwest,” said Scott Ingvoldstad, a spokesman for CH2M Hill. “It combines natural purification with a state-of-the-art new treatment facility that uses the latest technology to ensure that Aurora will have a sustainable and high-quality water supply for many decades. “It uses water rights that Aurora already owns and recaptures them in the South Platte River so that they didn’t have to build a new dam on the Western Slope. It’s making the most efficient use of the water rights that they already own,” Ingvoldstad said.

More Prairie Waters coverage here and here.

Pueblo County files appeal of judge’s ruling forcing the county out of Fountain Creek lawsuit

From The Pueblo Chieftain (Robert Boczkiewicz):

[Pueblo District Attorney Bill Thiebaut] filed a notice Wednesday in U.S. District Court that he is appealing a judge’s 2007 decision that kicked out his 2005 lawsuit against Colorado Springs.
“Our office is confident the district court orders will be overturned by the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals and that our claims will be reinstated,” Thiebaut said…

[Senior Judge Walker Miller] concluded in a 2007 decision in favor of the city that district attorneys do not have the legal authority to use the Clean Water Act to sue, as Thiebaut had done, on behalf of county citizens.
Thiebaut, in addition to appealing Miller’s decision to throw out his lawsuit, stated in Wednesday’s court filing that he also is challenging other decisions the judge made. One of those decisions granted the request of city-owned Colorado Springs Utilities to be removed as a defendant. Another decision granted Colorado Springs’ request to recover from Pueblo County about $7,475 in costs — not attorneys’ fees — the city purportedly incurred in fighting Thiebaut’s lawsuit. Appeals to the federal appeals court in Denver, where Thiebaut’s challenges are headed, typically take 18 to 24 months to be decided by the appellate judges.

More Fountain Creek coverage here. More on the lawsuit here.

Arkansas River Basin: Walsenburg water rights meeting recap

From The Trinidad Times (Steve Black):

James G. Felt, a Colorado Springs-based water rights lawyer, was the featured speaker at the meeting, along with Steve Witte, State Engineer for Colorado. Felt, who also teaches at the University of Colorado’s Continuing Education Division in Advanced Real Estate Law and Water Law, commented on the increasing awareness of the scope of the water rights problem. He said one of the reasons he and Witte had come to the meeting was to clear the air, describing the history of the water rights issue in the mountain West, and offering solutions to water users who find it difficult to understand complex, and sometimes confusing, water rights laws.

Felt spoke about the recent controversy in Crowley County, where the city of Colorado Springs bought up a canal long used by area farmers and ranchers. The water from the canal was then diverted to supply the exploding population of Colorado Springs, resulting in economic and environmental devastation for Crowley County. Without water for irrigation, the county’s agricultural land dried up, the land lost most of its value, the tax base collapsed, jobs were lost and essential government services could no longer be maintained. Felt spoke about County 1041 regulations, the state legislature’s reaction to what had happened in Crowley County, and other places in the state. “The purpose of the county 1041 regs is to mitigate the damage caused by drying up land,” Felt said. “If you dry up agricultural land it affects the tax base. The 1041 regs are designed to create a formula for balancing competing interests. By these laws, if you dry up farmland and that causes a loss in the tax base, then that loss has to be countered by a gain somewhere else.”[...]

Ponds are a popular option for many area citizens and communities, as much for beautification as for agricultural purposes. Water held in ponds is subject to evaporation, thus lessening its utility as a resource. Felt emphasized that the ponds are subject to regulations and that those having them or wanting to build them need to know what the rules are regarding ponds. He also discussed the issue of head stabilization ponds, where a rancher can hold water in a pond for a maximum of 72 hours before releasing it downstream. Augmentation, a process where, when water is depleted from a resource it must be replaced from another resource, was also discussed at length by Felt. He has worked on augmentation issues for 35 years, and said that laws vary on the subject, depending on whether the resource used is a tributary or non-tributary source.

More Arkansas River basin coverage here.

2010 Colorado elections: Proposition 101, Amendment 60 and Amendment 61

From The Aspen Times (Janet Urquhart):

“It’s dangerous to use the citizen initiative process to write fiscal policy into the constitution,” said [Reeves Brown, executive director of Club 20], appearing Thursday in Aspen to give his presentation on the three initiatives to anyone who cared to listen. The audience included county Commissioner Rachel Richards, the county’s representative on the Club 20 board of directors, two newspaper reporters and commissioner candidate Jack Johnson. Brown has been traveling the state to present pie charts, graphs and fiscal projections associated with each of the ballot measures. Next week will take him to Grand Junction, Glenwood Springs, Pagosa Springs and Durango, he said.

Club 20, a nonpartisan and generally conservative voice for the Western Slope, represents a diverse constituency spread over 22 counties, but the 22-member board of directors voted unanimously last spring to oppose 60, 61 and 101, or the “Bad Three” as opponents call the measures. “When Club 20 speaks and speaks unanimously, that carries some weight,” Brown said…

The potential effects of the measures are complex and difficult to summarize, he said, and a voter who reads only part of the ballot language for the three measures isn’t likely to realize their ramifications. “Collectively, they will put Colorado in a constitutionally mandated recession,” he said.

More 2010 Colorado elections coverage here.

Interbasin Compact Committee meeting recap

From The Pueblo Chieftain (Chris Woodka):

State agencies often throw obstacles to moving water projects because of conflicting missions, legal restrictions and narrow interpretations of their purpose, a subcommittee of the Interbasin Compact Committee reported Thursday. “The state needs to be involved in asking the people of the state to support a water project,” said Travis Smith, chairman of the subcommittee. Smith is a rancher and represents the Rio Grande basin on the Colorado Water Conservation Board as well. “There has to be a willingness of state agencies to solve problems rather than create problems.” A task force of state agencies that would establish a process to gain approval for water projects was suggested. It would give proponents of projects a clearer idea of what is needed to obtain permits, Smith said.

The IBCC discussed whether the governor, Legislature or agency directors need to act, and when action would be appropriate. Other concerns included how to interact with federal agencies, overcoming legal restrictions of water court and how the turnover in state government could affect water projects that might take a generation to develop…

“We have to start doing things in a new way, because our tools today are different than 40 years ago,” said Eric Kuhn, manager of the Colorado River Conservation District. “We have to find new approaches to move creative ideas through water court, or else we’re fighting yesterday’s battles.” Kuhn said the district reached substantial agreement with Denver, Colorado Springs and other Front Range water suppliers eight years ago, but the process has stalled in water court…

The IBCC gave the proposal its nod as part of a report on how to deal with projected shortfalls of municipal water supply. The final report is expected to be completed in December.

More IBCC — basin roundtables coverage here.

2010 Colorado elections: Salazar/Tipton debate recap

From The Pueblo Chieftain (Peter Roper):

Tipton has campaigned against earmarks, the special projects that Salazar and other lawmakers put in budget bills for their districts. Salazar was happy to hold up the $5 million he secured this year for the initial funding of the Arkansas Valley Conduit, the pipeline that is intended to take water from Lake Pueblo to communities down the valley.

He said Tipton apparently preferred to “stand idly by” while federal dollars were sent to other states. “Stand idly by?” Tipton answered, saying Salazar had voted for spending bills that helped drive the deficit to $13 trillion. That was greeted by Salazar supporters with shouts of “Bush! Bush!” — a reference to President George W. Bush’s administration. Pressing on, Tipton said he would support the conduit too, “But we also need to look out for our wallets.”

More coverage from Joe Hanel writing for The Durango Herald. From the article:

The Chieftain of Pueblo sponsored the debate. The newspaper has long advocated for the protection of the area’s water, and the first two questions centered on water issues. “The Salazars have never walked away from a water fight,” Salazar said, noting that he fought the 2003 water bonds known as Referendum A.

Tipton also said he would fight for water, but he would oppose earmarks in Congress, even for popular local projects like an Arkansas Valley water system.

“I think you as American citizens deserve to be dealt with squarely. Let’s have a straight-up vote,” Tipton said.

Salazar said he was proud that he secured an earmark for the Arkansas Valley project, and he will not stop seeking earmarks for his district.

“(Tipton) would rather sit idly by and allow California and New York to fight for that funding. I went to Washington to fight for the 3rd Congressional District, and I will fight to the death,” Salazar said.

Tipton replied that the federal debt is already too large to allow more spending without also making cuts.

More 2010 Colorado elections coverage here.

Aspinall Unit update

From email from Reclamation (Dan Crabtree):

Reclamation will be reducing releases from Crystal Reservoir during the coming weeks in response to the dry fall conditions and to provide low river elevations for the Brown Trout spawn. The target base flow for the Black Canyon will be 400 cfs this winter due to the current dry conditions. On Saturday October 16th at 4:00 p.m., releases from Crystal dam will be reduced by 100 cfs resulting in a flow in the Black Canyon and Gunnison Gorge of about 500 cfs. During the coming weeks, as the Uncompahgre Valley Water Users reduce diversions through the Gunnison Tunnel, there will probably be some minor flow fluctuations in the river. Flows in the Gunnison Gorge and Black Canyon will settle in the 400 cfs range sometime during the last two weeks of October.

More Aspinall Unit coverage here.

Fryingpan-Arkansas Project update

From email from Reclamation (Kara Lamb):

It is the time of year where we start making adjustments to Ruedi Dam for our fall and winter release schedule. As a result, we will curtail releases from Ruedi to the Fryingpan tomorrow, October 15, by about 35 cfs. This will put around 75 cfs in the ‘Pan at the Ruedi Dam gage.

Inflow to the reservoir has been dropping over the course of this week. It is currently around 45 cfs. The reservoir water elevation is at 7738 feet.

More Fryingpan-Arkansas Project coverage here.

Energy policy — oil shale: Three research projects are moving on to an NEPA review

Update: Here’s a release about the oil shale NEPA review from Governor Ritter’s office (Evan Dreyer):

GOV. RITTER STATEMENT ON BLM STEPS TOWARD OIL SHALE RD&D LEASING

Gov. Bill Ritter issued the following statement today regarding the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s steps toward additional oil shale research activities:

“BLM Director Bob Abbey’s announcement that it will continue to analyze three oil shale research proposals follows Interior Secretary Salazar’s important reforms in Research, Development & Demonstration leasing. The RD&D program that this Administration is implementing has elements that I have long supported, including constraints on the size of leases and substantial due diligence and reporting requirements.

“Colorado has always supported a robust RD&D process to research and evaluate the technologies that could be used to develop oil shale and to better understand the environmental impacts.

“The potential for oil shale development in Colorado, and the economic opportunity that it represents, is huge. But the prospect of commercial-scale activities raises significant questions about how oil shale can be successfully integrated into our state’s economy and how we can protect the state’s environment, water, wildlife and communities.

“The RD&D program is wisely designed to answer fundamental questions about the feasibility of the technologies, their likely impacts on the environment and communities of Western Colorado, and their use of our scarce and valuable water supplies. As I have always maintained, these questions must be answered before oil shale research can transition to commercial development.

“I’m therefore pleased that Director Abbey is taking such a thoughtful approach.”

Here’s the release from the Bureau of Land Management (Matt Spangler/Vince Vogt):

The Bureau of Land Management today announced that it has taken a key step to advance research on an important potential source of domestic energy.

The BLM’s Washington, D.C., Office has completed its review of three nominations for oil shale Research, Development, and Demonstration (RD&D) leases in Colorado and Utah. These second-round leases would allow the proponents to test the feasibility of various oil shale recovery technologies on public lands in the two states. The nominations will now be forwarded to the agency’s Colorado and Utah State Offices for the next phase in the review process.

BLM Director Bob Abbey said, “To determine whether oil shale will be a viable energy source on a commercial scale, we need to support critical research to answer fundamental questions about the feasibility of the technologies, their impacts on the environment and local communities, and their use of water. This second round of leases will help us answer those critical questions so that we can chart a safe, orderly, and responsible path for our energy future.”

Abbey added, “The BLM is committed to careful consultation with all affected stakeholders in the oil shale process, including states, counties and tribes. The analysis that our states will now conduct will help us chart a wise path for western shale oil resources.”

In November 2009, the BLM published a notice in the Federal Register calling for nominations for a potential second round of oil shale RD&D leases, following the awarding of six leases in an initial round in 2007.

The BLM solicited nominations of parcels, not to exceed 160 acres, for the conduct of oil shale research, development, and demonstration under a 10-year lease term. Applicants could also identify up to an additional 480 acres to be reserved for a potential commercial lease, for a total of 640 acres. The lease size available for commercial development was reduced from the 5,120 acres in the first round of leasing because the substantial reserves represented by 640 acres are more than adequate for a major oil shale production operation. The second- round leases would contain substantial diligence requirements, including specific timeframes for submitting plans of development, obtaining state and local permits, developing infrastructure, and submitting quarterly reports.

The BLM received three nominations in early 2010: two in Colorado, from ExxonMobil Exploration, Co., and Natural Soda Holdings, Inc.; and one in Utah, from AuraSource, Inc.

Earlier this year, the BLM formed an Interdisciplinary Review Team (IDRT) with representatives of the Governors of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming; the Department of Energy; and the Colorado School of Mines. The team recommended that all three nominations be advanced.

The Colorado and Utah offices will now conduct National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) reviews of the nominations. The analyses may take from four to 18 months to complete, depending upon the complexity of the resource issues to be analyzed.

Oil shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock containing organic matter from which shale oil may be produced. The organic matter, derived mainly from aquatic organisms, is called kerogen.

According to the United States Geological Survey, the U.S. holds more than half of the world’s oil shale resources. More than 70 percent of the U.S. supply lies on Federal lands in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming.

From the Deseret News (Amy Joi O’Donoghue):

Colorado and Utah offices of the BLM will now complete a federally mandated environmental review. That could take up to 14 months. One lease is held by AuraSource in Utah, while the other two are in Colorado with Exxon?Mobil Exploration Co., and Natural Soda Holdings Inc.

AuraSource Chief Financial Officer Eric Stoppenhagen said the two-year-old company uses a low-temperature catalytic process to recover oil from oil shale, relying on less than one barrel of water per barrel of shale oil that is produced. Water consumption is driven more by mining and road dust control, as well as reclamation efforts. In China, AuraSource’s plant in Qinzhou has the processing capacity of 1 million tons of oil shale.

BLM’s director Bob Abbey said the projects will serve as a good blueprint to answer fundamental questions about the technology of oil shale extraction. “To determine whether oil shale will be a viable energy source on a commercial scale, we need to support critical research to answer fundamental questions about the feasibility of the technologies, their impacts on the environment and local communities, and their use of water,” Abbey said. “This second round of leases will help us answer those critical questions so that we can chart a safe, orderly and responsible path for our energy future.”[...]

Environmental groups, however, blasted the announcement. “Oil shale is nothing more than a dirty, expensive pipe dream,” said Bobby McEnaney, lands advocate for the Natural Resources Defense Council. “This administration is making smart decisions by investing in clean energy that will create jobs and reduce our dependence on oil. Oil shale undermines that effort,” McEnaney said.

More coverage from the Colorado Independent (David O. Williams):

BLM director Bob Abbey today announced the federal agency has reviewed nominations for three potential lease-holders — ExxonMobil and Natural Soda in Colorado and AuraSource in Utah – and will now forward them on to state regulatory agencies for the next phase of consideration. “The potential for oil shale development in Colorado, and the economic opportunity that it represents, is huge,” [Governor Ritter] said in a release. “But the prospect of commercial-scale activities raises significant questions about how oil shale can be successfully integrated into our state’s economy and how we can protect the state’s environment, water, wildlife and communities.”

“People have been trying to figure out how to suck the hydrocarbons out of these rocks for over a century,” former oil shale worker Craig Thompson said in a release. Thompson is now a professor of engineering at Western Wyoming Community College and on the board of the National Wildlife Federation. “No one has found an economic solution. When Exxon pulled the plug on their $5 billion gamble and laid off 2,200 workers, the West learned a bitter lesson. The last thing we need is another pipe dream and another economic ‘bust.’”

More coverage from the Denver Business Journal (Cathy Proctor):

The leases — the second round of federal oil shale leases offered in recent years — underwent review at federal agency’s headquarters in Washington and now will undergo additional review by BLM personnel in Colorado and Utah, the agency said. The department-level review team included representatives of the governors of Colorado, Utah and Wyoming, the U.S. Department of Energy and the Colorado School of Mines. The team recommended that all three nominations be moved to state-level reviews. The BLM’s Colorado and Utah offices will now conduct National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) reviews of the proposals, a process that could take four to 18 months to complete, according to the BLM.

More oil shale coverage here.

Animas-La Plata Project: Planner to host a series of public meetings to help chart the course of recreation at Lake Nighthorse

From The Durango Herald (Dale Rodebaugh):

“People are afraid they’re going to get run over,” [Planner Joy Lujan] said. “They fear they aren’t going to be heard.” She wants to dispel these fears by engaging the public in a series of open meetings starting early next month and ending early next year.

Meetings will include:

•One or two open houses with self-explanatory information stations and project participants to answer questions.

•Forums at which members of the public can express opinions. Keypad polling will determine support for different positions.

•Structured workshops to reach tentative agreements on issues such as boating. Motorized versus nonmotorized craft is one contentious topic.

•Design workshops that bring preferred recreation options into the plan.

•A session to review the overall recreation blueprint before it is adopted…

The Animas-La Plata Water Conservancy District took on the job of providing recreation at the lake 18 months ago after Colorado State Parks said it was broke. They caught a break when the National Park Service offered free for two years the services of Lujan to lead the public-participation aspect of a recreation plan. DHM Design of Durango is the consultant on technical and financial matters.

More Animas River watershed coverage here and here.

2010 Colorado elections: The Pueblo Chieftain editorial board endorses John Hickenlooper over Dan Maes and Tom Tancredo

From The Pueblo Chieftain:

As mayor, and as a former private entrepreneur, he has been able to shrink the size of Denver’s government. He promises to do likewise as governor…

During a Chieftain-sponsored forum in Pueblo this week, Mr. Hickenlooper stated that “we should make sure every drop of water in the Arkansas (River) stays there. We import so much of our oil, just think about if we start importing our food. We have to make sure that resource is protected.”

More 2010 Colorado elections coverage here.

Blue Mesa Reservoir storage pool to protect against a Colorado River Compact call?

The Arkansas and Gunnison Basin roundtables are hoping to push along a storage pool of 200,000 acre-feet of water to protect transmountain diversions junior to the Colorado River Compact. Here’s a report from Chris Woodka writing for The Pueblo Chieftain. From the article:

The roundtable is developing the plan in conjunction with the Gunnison Basin Roundtable. It would release water from storage in Blue Mesa to prevent curtailment of diversions if downstream states in the Colorado River Compact issue a call on the river…

The plan of the Arkansas and Gunnison roundtables would be to store up to 200,000 acre-feet of water to release during dry times in order to allow transmountain diversions to continue. “Our motivation is that almost all of our transmountain rights are junior to the conditional rights of energy companies on the Western Slope,” said Gary Barber, chairman of the roundtable. “For the Gunnison folks, it would shift management to within the state of Colorado.”

The process of getting the Bureau of Reclamation to agree to a storage contract that would renew annually is complicated and the roundtables want to send a team to Washington to explore the possibility, rather than a letter which was proposed at the last meeting…

The group voted to send [Jim Broderick, vice chairman of the Arkansas Basin Roundtable], who has worked with top Reclamation officials through his position as executive director of the Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District, to Washington. Under the joint proposal, the Gunnison roundtable would send a representative, and top state water officials would also attend. “We want to see if the water in Blue Mesa could be put to use for the whole state,” Broderick said…

The plan would not allow water from the Gunnison River to be pumped over the Continental Divide, which is still fiercely opposed by water interests in the Gunnison basin, said Jeris Danielson, a water consultant and former state engineer. The storage account proposed in the agreement would provide protection for absolute water rights — water that has been put to a beneficial use rather than simply claimed — prior to Sept. 10, 2010, explained Alan Hamel, executive director of the Pueblo Board of Water Works. It would allow for protection of existing water rights or against depletions in the Arkansas, South Platte and Colorado basins, but would not preclude development of future transmountain projects, he said. “The idea would be to develop a pool of water to be used against a call from the downstream states,” Hamel said. “Other entitlements within the state could still be developed.”

Colorado’s Front Range imports nearly 500,000 acre-feet (160 billion gallons) annually from the Western Slope. The Arkansas Valley imports about 130,000 acre-feet (42 billion gallons) annually, through the Twin Lakes, Boustead, Homestake and Carlton tunnels, as well as several ditches.

More IBCC — basin roundtables coverage here.