Summit County: Emerging contaminants

From the Summit Daily News (Bob Berwyn):

“This is turning into the next big issue for water treatment plants,” said local water quality expert Lane Wyatt. With new, extra-sensitive monitoring equipment, agencies like the EPA and the U.S. Geological Survey have been able to detect trace amounts of various substances — including Viagra and ibuprofen — that may be adversely affecting fish. Scientists also are concerned that a build-up of antibiotics in the environment could eventually lead to a significant impact on a massive scale, with changes to the way naturally occurring bacteria process vast quantities of biomass like dead wood, recycling the material into nutrients. Wyatt said the Colorado Division of Wildlife has been finding hermaphroditic trout in some Colorado rivers. Research in other areas suggests that the chemicals are starting to accumulate in the food chain. Studies from Sweden show that some of the pollutants are starting to show up in breast milk…

The issue is so new that there currently are no water-quality standards to address the new class of contaminants, Wyatt said. Upgrading water treatment plants to remove the chemicals is likely to be expensive. Keeping the pollutants out of the water in the first place could help address the problem…

Wyatt said local waters were tested with the new equipment in recent weeks to get some baseline data on the emerging contaminants. Similarly, local residents had a chance to fill out a mail-in survey on the same topic in the past few weeks in advance of publicizing the prescription drug take-back. EPA officials said they wanted to get an idea of how much the public knows about the subject before launching an education push. “This hasn’t been done in very many places,” said the EPA’s Jean Mackenzie, who is also coordinating an interagency effort to clean up pollution at the abandoned Pennsylvania Mine. She said many of the emerging pollutants act as pseudo-estrogen, leading an increased incidence of inter-sex fish. “We need to keep them out of the water because treatment is not set up to take them out,” she said.

More water pollution coverage here.

Denver Water: Public hearing in Summit County for proposed Moffat Collection System Project

Update:

Here’s the release from Denver Water. There are four meetings starting Tuesday in Boulder:

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will hold four Public Hearings on the Draft EIS. At each location, Denver Water will hold an Open House from 4 to 6 p.m. The Public Hearings begin at 6 p.m.:

Tues., Dec. 1 — Boulder Country Club, 7350 Clubhouse Road, Boulder, CO 80301
Wed., Dec. 2 — Inn at Silver Creek, 62927 U.S. Highway 40, Granby, CO 80446
Thurs., Dec. 3 — Doubletree Hotel, 3203 Quebec Street, Denver, CO 80207
Tues., Dec. 8 — Keystone Conference Center, 0633 Tennis Club Road, Keystone, CO 80435

From the Summit Daily News (Bob Berwyn):

As described in a draft environmental study, the Moffat Collection System project in Grand County would also have impacts on flows on the Blue River. Flows in the Blue River at its confluence with the Colorado River could be cut by as much as 4,800 acre feet annually, about 2 percent of the river’s flow, according to figures released by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the draft study. Denver Water project manager Travis Bray said those figures apply when at full build-out of Denver Water’s existing system, and with the Moffat Tunnel on-line. Under the new configuration of diversions that would result from the Moffat Tunnel project, Denver Water would take between 4,000 and 5,000 acre feet of additional water from Dillon Reservoir each year. Bray said the draft study shows there would only be a negligible long-term impact to boating and no impact to fisheries in the Blue River…

Although 2 percent doesn’t sound like much, peak flows are important for the river’s ecosystem, said Becky Long, water caucus organizer with the Colorado Environmental Coalition. “If the project goes forward, the Blue River would see reduced flows in the summer months during wet and average years,” she said. The peak flows in wet years help flush sediment out of the river, create new habitat and support rafting and kayaking, she said.

The main focus of the project is on increased diversions from the Fraser River, but conservation groups are concerned about overall effects on the entire Upper Colorado ecosystem. They advocated for the Summit County hearing when the draft study was released a few weeks ago. Long said the Corps was responding to requests from Summit County residents by scheduling the local hearing…

Conservation groups have identified several broad environmental goals that should be included in the project’s mitigation plan, including:

— Adequate baseline flows in the Fraser throughout the year to sustain fisheries and recreation.

— Sustained peak flows at key times of the year to mimic a natural flow regime and ensure the health and resilience of the river.

— Aggressive urban water conservation and efficiency measures to save more water, such as incentives for homeowners to replace Kentucky bluegrass with drought-tolerant landscaping. More than half of residential water use goes to watering lawns.

— Ongoing monitoring of the river’s health and a mitigation plan with the flexibility to adapt to changing conditions…

A summary of the draft environmental impact statement is online at: https://www.nwo.usace.army.mil/html/od-tl/eis/moffat.deis.vol1.exec-summary.pdf (pdf)

Here’s the public meeting information:

What: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers hearing
When: December 8 —Open House: 4 p.m.; public hearing begins at 6 p.m.
Where: Keystone Conference Center (0633 Tennis Club Road, Keystone)

More Denver Water coverage here.

Breckenridge: Illinois Gulch restoration

From the Summit Daily News (Robert Allen):

Wetlands were added, boulders were placed and trees were planted to help restore the area before development. The creek snakes through the Water House on Main Street condominium development before connecting with the Blue River. Project manager Sharon Cole with East West Partners said the creek in 2000 had been basically “a wash through the parking lot,” and that with the final phase of Main Street Station’s being built, the gulch has been reclaimed. The realignment project began March 1 and was completed about Oct. 1, and the project overall cost several hundred thousand dollars, Cole said. The company worked with the Army Corps of Engineers and environmentalists and “what we’ve accomplished is the creek now flows close to its natural origin,” Cole said. Willows have been planted and trout-spawning pools have been added to Maggie Pond. Cole said monitoring will continue the next three years to ensure the improvements make progress.

More Blue River watershed coverage here and here.

Green Mountain releases

From email from Reclamation (Kara Lamb):

A Grand County contractor, working on the county’s Streamflow Management Plan, will be collecting data along the Blue River below Green Mountain Reservoir under multiple flow regimes. In order to accommodate this data collection it will be necessary to maintain the reservoir release at 200 cfs on Wednesday and Thursday and then 400 cfs on Friday and Saturday. The release rate will be ramped down to 200 cfs by Sunday evening.

More Blue River watershed coverage here.

Old Dillon Reservoir expansion update

From the Summit Daily News (Bob Berwyn):

Completion of the environmental analysis is a huge step forward for the $6.4 million project. The agency will take public comment on the environmental analysis for 30 days. Local officials hope to begin construction next summer. Dillon, Silverthorne and Summit County will share the cost of the project, which, first and foremost, would help bolster Dillon’s water supplies. The town relies mainly on surface water from Straight Creek, a source that’s susceptible to pollution. The town also felt a pinch during the 2002 drought, when Straight Creek flows dropped to record low levels.

The proposed project includes seven elements:

— enlarging the existing reservoir from 62 acre-feet to 288 acre-feet (an acre-foot is 326,000 gallons, so the capacity would go from a little over 2 million gallons to about 10.5 million gallons);

— restoring the outlet from ODR to the south to the Blue River (now Dillon Reservoir);

— reconstructing the head gate on Salt Lick Gulch and piping the entire length of the Dillon Ditch to serve the enlarged reservoir and improving the siphon under I-70;

— rehabilitating the outlet to Salt Lick Gulch;

— temporary road access improvements;

— burying existing overhead utility lines around Old Dillon Reservor; and

— wetland creation.

About 20 acres of wetlands would be affected by the reservoir enlargement, but the impacts would be addressed by adding new wetland on the southwest shorelines of the reservoir. In the long run, there would no net impact to recreational uses in the area, according to Paul Semmer, land specialist with the Dillon Ranger District. The enlargement of the reservoir would actually decrease total diversions from the Salt Lick Gulch drainage from 573 acre feet to 450 acre feet. The reservoir and dams would permanently impact 10.1 acres of forest and meadow habitat in the project area, according to the draft study.

More Old Dillon Reservoir coverage here.

Colorado Springs Utilities may buy Summit County parcels to keep development from encroaching on Blue River System

From The Colorado Springs Gazette (R. Scott Rappold):

The city-owned utility will ask City Council on Tuesday for approval to buy three parcels, 1.6 acres in a growing area near Hoosier Pass, for $240,000, to keep residential development from encroaching on its oldest trans-mountain water line, the Blue River System. About 10 percent of Colorado Springs’ water is diverted from the Blue River watershed and under the Continental Divide at Hoosier Pass. The system began delivering water in 1953. Utilities doesn’t own the land, but easements along the pipeline’s path. In recent years, Utilities officials have grown concerned about development near the water system. The area is 10 miles south of Breckenridge, a booming ski-resort town, and houses and mountain subdivisions now abound in this once-rural area…

Utilities wants to buy the land and leave it undeveloped, and has a willing seller. The three parcels were appraised at $270,000, Utilities wrote in a memo to the council. A search of real estate Web sites shows that, while homes in Quandary Village are selling in the $700,000 to $900,000 range, while half-acre vacant lots are going for up to $240,000. Berry acknowledged that buying expensive mountain real estate is not ideal for a utility struggling with rising costs and about to embark on a major expansion of its water network, the $1.4 billion Southern Delivery System. “The alternative would be twice as costly,” Berry said. “In the grand scheme of things, yeah, you’d like to avoid that situation but if you have to do it, there’s nothing more important than preserving the integrity of those pipes and that water.”

More transmountain/transbasin diversions coverage here.

Green Mountain Reservoir update

From email from Reclamation (Kara Lamb):

We are still releasing about 700 cfs from the dam to the river. We are anticipating this will continue through next week. If there is a change, I will let you know.

More Green Mountain Reservoir coverage here.

Green Mountain Reservoir update

From email from Reclamation (Kara Lamb):

Due to continuing demand for Green Mountain water, we are still releasing around 740 cfs from the reservoir to the Lower Blue. I am anticipating that this demand will stay on through the weekend and probably well into next week. The reservoir is at an elevation of 7920 and dropping about 2/3 of a foot a day.

More Green Mountain Reservoir coverage here.

Snake River watershed: Hands on science project

Here’s a recap of a recent science project that saw students scattering about 4 different sites in the Snake River watershed, from Bob Berwyn writing for the Summit Daily News. From the article:

Helped by teachers, parents and staffers from the Keystone Science School, about 100 students from Summit Middle School set up research stations last Friday around Keystone at four different sites to measure dissolved oxygen and zinc levels, look for aquatic insects and take other measurements…

To measure the speed of the river’s flow, the students marked off a 50-foot section with red flags, then dropped apples into the water and used a stopwatch to time how long it took — about eight seconds — for the fruit to float downstream. During the next few weeks, the students will analyze the data in the classroom and put together a report of their findings, said science teacher Brian Richardson. Along with a hands-on lesson in scientific research methods, the students found out that there just isn’t much life in the Snake River around Keystone. The students who were looking for bugs came up empty handed. Seeping from the abandoned mine upstream, concentrations of zinc and other metals exceed state and federal limits, in violation of the Clean Water Act…

The Pennsylvania Mine has been fingered as one of the main sources of pollution, but smaller mines in the basin, as well high levels of natural minerals, also contribute to the problem. The long-range goal is improve water quality in the Snake River to a level that could sustain a natural fishery, said Jean Mackenzie, an EPA researcher who has led recent federal cleanup efforts. Years ago, state environmental experts and local volunteers teamed up to try and treat the water with some man-made wetlands and a passive treatment system, but the scale of the problem overwhelmed those efforts…

The current focus is on trying to pinpoint exactly how the polluted water flows through the Pennsylvania Mine and from other polluted drainages in the area. Some of the most polluted water could be diverted away from Peru Creek, experts said. Another option is to move some of the waste rock from the mine away from the water to reduce the amount of pollution reaching the stream.

More Peru Creek Basin coverage here and here.

Dillon Reservoir ending water year with cushion for winter

From the Summit Daily News:

Denver Water officials said this week that Dillon Reservoir water storage is slightly above average for this time of year. Going into the winter with a slight cushion helps ensure the reservoir will refill fully next spring, said Bob Peters, a water resource manager with Denver Water. In one of its regular updates on reservoir operations, Denver Water outlined dry, normal and wet scenarios. Even with a drier-than-average winter, the reservoir is likely to fill.

More Denver Water coverage here.

Summit County: Peru Creek Basin cleanup

Check out the photos from the Peru Creek Basin and Snake River from the Summit Daily News. From the article:

Currently, a group of researchers with the U.S. Geological Survey, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment is experimenting with traceable dyes to pinpoint the path of the pollution. The work could help establish the best options for cleaning up Peru Creek and the Snake River. Options include diverting clean water flowing into the mine, moving piles of waste rock away from the water and, ultimately, direct treatment of polluted water flowing out of the mine.

More Peru Creek Basin coverage here and here.

Peru Basin: Dye test starting September 9

From the Summit Daily News (Bob Berwyn):

State and federal experts will use three types of dye to trace water flowing through the abandoned Pennsylvania Mine, above Keystone near the headwaters of the Snake River…The Sept. 9 study will try to pinpoint underground pollution sources and identify ground water flow pathways that may be sources of water in contact with polluted…The study is expected to last approximately two years or until the dye has been observed in subsequent samplings from the monitoring locations.

More Peru Creek watershed coverage here and here.

Green Mountain update

From email from Reclamation (Kara Lamb):

…we dropped releases from Green Mountain Reservoir to the Lower Blue by 100 cfs earlier today. The Lower Blue is now flowing at about 850 cfs.

More Blue River watershed coverage here

Silverthorne: Benefit for Blue River Restoration Fund August 28

From the Summit Daily News (Caitlin Row):

Proceeds will benefit the Blue River Restoration Fund used to construct fish habitat enhancement structures, expand public access areas and maintain the Lower Blue’s Gold Medal Trout designation. Two Colorado-based bluegrass bands — Head for the Hills and Spring Creek — will perform on the Silverthorne Pavilion lawn on Aug. 28 at 6 p.m. Spring Creek will take the stage around 8 p.m.

More restoration coverage here.

Denver Water: Moffat Collection System and the proposed expansion of Gross Reservoir

Say hello to the shiny new Denver Water website. I’m most excited about the RSS feed for their news page. You Coyote Gulch readers know I crave Colorado water news.

At any rate check out the new part of the website for the expansion Gross Reservoir, part of Denver Water’s Moffat Collection System. They write:

If approved, the project would produce 18,000 acre-feet of new supply by expanding an existing reservoir rather than building a new one. The current dam height would increase from 340 feet to approximately 465 feet. The proposed project would increase Gross Reservoir from its current storage capacity of 41,811 acre-feet to approximately 114,000 acre-feet – an increase of 72,000 acre-feet. (Denver Water has determined four acre-feet of storage are needed for every one acre-foot of supply.)

Because Gross Reservoir was originally designed to be this larger size, other facilities, such as the Moffat Tunnel and South Boulder Canal, do not need to be modified and no additional water rights are needed. The additional water would be carried through the existing Moffat Tunnel from the Fraser River basin and Williams Fork River basin in Grand County, as well as from South Boulder Creek basin. Streamflow in the Fraser and Williams Fork rivers and South Boulder Creek would only be decreased by this project during wet and average years during the runoff months.

Denver Water officials anticipate that the Corps of Engineers draft environmental impact statement for the project will be released in the next few weeks.

More Denver Water coverage here and here.

Colorado’s water future dependent on new transmountain diversions?

The Colorado Department of Natural Resources is looking at four pipeline concepts and two agricultural fallowing and dry up concepts as possible solutions to watering the unbridled growth along the Front Range. Here’s a report, from Bruce Finley writing for The Denver Post, about the pipeline plans from Flaming Gorge and the Green River proposed by the Colorado-Wyoming Coalition and the Million Resource Group. From the article:

Colorado municipal water suppliers are in discussions with their Wyoming counterparts exploring the feasibility. Separately, a private entrepreneur’s proposal to build a pipeline is under federal review. Colorado government officials — who have met with both contingents and are talking with Wyoming officials — recently included the “Flaming Gorge concept” among four options for diverting Western Slope water to the Front Range…

Huge hurdles remain, including financing and Colorado’s and Wyoming’s obligations to downriver states under an interstate compact. Conservationists object to the potential environmental impact of withdrawing the water…

The pipeline concept originated with entrepreneur Aaron Million and his Million Conservation Resource Group. In 2008, the group applied for a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which regulates construction in waterways and wetlands. An environmental review has begun, and engineers are sifting through a deluge of public comments, said Rena Brand, regulatory specialist for the agency. “The majority of letters are against it” and “push for the idea of conserving more along the Front Range,” Brand said. Federal wildlife officials are among those questioning possible impacts on endangered species and migratory birds…

Million must provide a list of likely customers by January to establish a need for the pipeline, Brand said. Last week, Million said that “ongoing negotiations with 20-plus” potential customers in Wyoming and Colorado “are going well.” He declined to name them. The project could be done in five years, he said. He wasn’t invited to the municipal suppliers’ discussions at a country club, a slight he calls unfortunate. “The lack of collaboration is problematic. It was the private sector that developed the water in the West” before federal agencies got involved, he said. “This is a return to the historical development of water resources, using the efficiency of the private sector to get things accomplished.”

Meanwhile, the municipal suppliers’ group was to continue discussions in Wyoming this week. They are close to formalizing a coalition, Jaeger said. He declined to name participants.

Colorado’s top natural resources officials say they’ve talked with Million and Jaeger. The state’s emerging strategies for meeting projected demand — which include conservation, the re-use of water and rethinking low-density versus high-density growth — assume that importing some water between river basins will be necessary, said Harris Sherman, executive director of the Colorado Department of Natural Resources. “Whether it is a public or a private project, it must incorporate public benefits,” Sherman said. “Sometimes it’s easier to incorporate public benefits with a public project, because the sponsoring entity is the public, and it will be focussed on public benefits. But it’s not impossible for a private project to incorporate a wide variety of public benefits. “

More Flaming Gorge pipeline coverage here and here. Colorado-Wyoming Coalition coverage here.

Peru Creek Basin: Efforts at restoration paint a costly and complicated picture

Many Colorado water watchers were hoping that the restoration work up in the Peru Creek Basin would be a successful demonstration project for good samaritan efforts at mine cleanup. What has been shown is that restoration projects related to past mining activity are complicated and costly. Current estimates for cleaning up the runoff and drainage in the basin is at $20 million. Here’s a report from Bob Berwyn writing for the Summit Daily News. From the article:

That amount includes construction and annual operations and maintenance for as long as 20 years, but it’s still much higher than expected. When Trout Unlimited entered the picture, there was speculation that a treatment plant could be built for under $1 million. “All the work that’s been done up there paints a much more dire picture of what we need to do,” [Trout Unlimited's Liz Russell] said. He said the stakeholders working on the cleanup had also hoped that Congress would have passed some Good Samaritan legislation by now. Such a liability limiting law would have eased the cleanup process by enabling a nonprofit to work on remediation without fear of being pinned with responsibility for the cleanup work forever.

One option that’s not on the table anymore is a Superfund designation for the Pennsylvania Mine. EPA officials previously suggested a Superfund listing would loosen up federal funding for a cleanup. But county officials were not keen on the idea of Superfund status for the mine, preferring to explore alternate options instead.

This summer, some of the research at mine is focused on treating other sources of pollution in the area besides the mine itself. State and federal experts are teaming up to find sites for repositories, where some of the mine waste could be stored in a place where running water can’t get to it. That could help reduce metals-loading into Peru Creek.

The Snake River is showing signs of making a comeback. From the sidebar to the article linked above:

Latest survey shows promising signs of recovery
Trout populations in the Snake River appear to be making a comeback after a surge of pollution two years ago all but wiped out most of the fish. Colorado Division of Wildlife biologists recently surveyed a stretch of the river running through Keystone Resort and found evidence that some rainbow trout survived over the winter.

More Peru Creek Basin coverage here.

Summit County: Ground-breaking ceremony for new Upper Blue Sanitation District North Plant expansion

From the Summit Daily News:

In a special ground-breaking ceremony for the $34 million dollar Upper Blue Sanitation District North Plant expansion recently, district manager Andrew Carlberg detailed the numerous benefits of the expansion to residents of the county and the Upper Blue Basin. Not only will this new facility provide economical sewer service to build out of the Upper Blue Basin, but it will provide economic stimulus as well…It is estimated that at least 75 percent of the work force will be local labor, which equates to 30 new jobs in Summit County. There are also up to 10 local sub- contractors that will be used throughout the duration of the project, ranging from excavators to concrete supply and landscaping. In addition to the infusion of several million dollars into the community, Carlberg also outlined the inter-governmental cooperation that has also benefitted the district and the community. In separate agreements, the district, the Town of Breckenridge and Summit County exchanged sewer tap fees for waiving of development fees and water tap fees. This has saved the residents of the Upper Blue approximately $600,000. The tap fees the town and county have acquired are planned for use in public projects such as affordable housing.

More Coyote Gulch wastewater coverage here.

Pueblo Board of Water Works approves Aurora’s purchase of Columbine Ditch

From The Pueblo Chieftain (Chris Woodka):

Aurora will pay the Pueblo water board $30.48 million for the ditch, located on Fremont Pass 13 miles north of Leadville. The water board will use the money from the sale as part of a $60 million package to buy 5,200 Bessemer Ditch shares, about one-fourth of the total. “This action is critical,” said Tom Autobee, a member of the water board. “It allows us to buy a water right in our backyard in exchange for a transmountain right that’s not reliable.” Without the sale of the ditch, Pueblo water rates would have to increase 25 percent in two years beyond the rate increases currently being considered, said Executive Director Alan Hamel.

More Coyote Gulch Columbine Ditch coverage here and here.

Aurora (along with the Climax molybdenum mine) to buy Columbine Ditch

From The Pueblo Chieftain (Chris Woodka):

Aurora City Council Monday gave the green light for the deal, which would match an offer of $30.48 million from Ginn Development for a private ski resort at Minturn. The council’s action was final because a waiver of reconsideration was included in the initial motion. Pueblo City Council Monday approved the sale on first reading, a requirement under the city charter any time an asset is sold. Council’s final approval will be on the July 27 agenda.

Aurora was able to match the offer because of a clause in a 1997 lease agreement with the Pueblo water board that gave it a right of first refusal if Pueblo sold any of its transmountain water rights. The contract specifies that only water brought into the Arkansas Valley from the Western Slope can be used in the Aurora leases. “Aurora’s concern was that if we sold any of our assets we would not have the ability to supply water for the lease,” said Alan Hamel, executive director of the Pueblo water board. “At the time we had no plans to sell any assets.”[...]

Aurora and Climax formed a partnership called the Fremont Pass Ditch Co., with Aurora controlling two-thirds of the company and holding an option to buy the entire Columbine Ditch in the future, said spokesman Greg Baker. Aurora earlier bid $30.5 million on the Columbine, but wanted to spread out payments over five years. The city reallocated its resources to offer the full amount this year, as Ginn Development had in its bid. “This is high-quality mountain water, and you don’t see that for sale too often,” Baker said. “The fact that it comes into the basin above Twin Lakes makes it perfect for us.” Since the Arkansas River does not flow directly into Twin Lakes – where Aurora removes water from the Arkansas Valley through the Otero Pipeline and Pumping Station – Aurora would have to exchange water from the Columbine Ditch into its accounts. But the exchange opportunities are greater near the headwaters and Aurora has other ways to use the water in the Arkansas Valley, Baker said.

Climax mine, owned by Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc., is located on Fremont Pass and could use the water directly. Last year, the company said it is still revamping the mine with the intention of reopening, but timing could be delayed by a weak economy.

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.

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.

CWCB: Old Dillon reservoir upgrade chasing $1.5 million

From the Summit Daily News (Caitlin Row):

Dillon’s town staff seeks to secure substantial funds from the Colorado Water Conservation Board for a project that will create water reserves for Dillon, Silverthorne and unincorporated Summit County. “We want to nail (the loan) down,” said Devin Granbery, Dillon’s town manager, noting that an emergency ordinance would put the financial agreement into effect right away. The town is moving quickly to access the loan because Granbery said he’s unsure if more money will be available for water projects in the near future.

While Dillon sought a loan to pay for 90 percent of its portion of the expansion, Silverthorne and the county plan to pay for the project with reserved internal funds. Dillon will pay the remainder of its costs through its water fund. In all, Dillon must pay $1.7 million. The total cost estimate for the expansion is $6.3 million, and it will be shared proportionately between the three entities. The project will include reservoir enlargement, associated improvements, wetlands mitigation and rehabilitation of outlets to the reservoir. The U.S. Forest Service is still reviewing the project’s permit application — the reservoir is located on Forest Service land — and project bids could go out later this year if it’s approved. Construction is slated for 2010.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

Summit County: Upper Blue Sanitation District to kick off $27 million expansion

From the Summit Daily News (Robert Allen):

Groundbreaking for Upper Blue Sanitation District’s $27 million expansion project at Farmer’s Korner is expected to occur in the next three weeks, said district manager Andy Carlberg…The contract for the wastewater reclamation facility was awarded to Glacier Construction at $7 million less than the $34 million estimated six months ago. Construction is expected to take less than two-and-a-half years…

The project includes two new buildings totaling 43,000 square feet. It is to be built north of the existing structure at the intersection of Highway 9 and Swan Mountain Road. Plant capacity is to expand from 2 million to 5 million gallons per day. The district will encourage participation of local labor and subcontractors throughout the project, Carlberg said.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

Green Mountain update

From email from Reclamation (Kara Lamb):

Today we saw inflows to Green Mountain Reservoir start to taper off. We have responded in kind, reducing our releases from Green Mountain Dam to the Lower Blue River in 100 cfs increments. By this evening, there should be a flow of about 2250 cfs in the Lower Blue.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.