Aspinall Unit update

From email from Reclamation (Dan Crabtree):

Flows in the Black Canyon and Gunnison Gorge have stabilized at 500 cfs and will remain there until about the first week of December when releases will increase to around 900 – 1000 cfs for higher power demands and to achieve the December 31 Blue Mesa elevation target.

More Aspinall Unit coverage here.

Aspinall Unit: Invasive mussels inspections regime changed for winter operations

From the Montrose Daily Press:

Stevens Creek boat ramp will remain closed to vessel launching and retrieval. Elk Creek and Lake Fork boat ramp hours are 7 a.m. through 5 p.m. Inspections continue at the Elk Creek Marina, rather than at the campground entrance. Vessels that have been slipped or on the water for more than 24 hours must go through a high-risk inspection and possible decontamination, which will take longer than a standard inspection. No motorized or trailered vessel launching or retrieval is allowed outside of the Elk Creek and Lake Fork boat ramps. Only hand-launched water craft may launch outside of these locations and their trailers may not enter the water. Boat decontamination is no longer available at Lake Fork, due to nighttime temperatures that are below freezing, and the potential for water lines and portable decontamination units to freeze. Boats needing decontamination will be sent to Elk Creek. Boaters can prevent the need for decontamination by keeping craft clean, drained and dried of any standing water upon arrival at Blue Mesa Reservoir. Cooler temperatures and reduced staff means decontamination might not be immediately available to vessels with attached adult mussels. Such vessels may be denied access to the lake until they are decontaminated elsewhere. The reservoir and inspection stations remain open until the water at Elk Creek and Lake Fork boat ramps freezes. Hours will again be reduced in late November or early December.

More invasive species coverage here and here.

Aspinall Unit update

From email from Reclamation (Dan Crabtree):

The Uncompahgre Valley Water Users will be discontinuing their diversions through the Gunnison Tunnel within the next two weeks. Those of you who monitor the gage below the Tunnel via the Internet will be seeing some fluctuations as Reclamation reduces releases from Crystal in response. However flows in the Canyon and Gorge will generally remain in the 500 cfs range for the remainder of October and November. (Currently, the release from Crystal Reservoir is 1,300 cfs.) The latest model runs show that December flows are anticipated to be in the 1,400 cfs range in response to higher power demands and to meet the winter elevation target at Blue Mesa. As always, these flows are subject to change as a result of variable hydrologic conditions. Please contact Dan Crabtree at 970-248-0652.

More Aspinall unit coverage here.

Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park turns ten

From the Montrose Daily Press (Kati O’Hare):

“The national park status is very special,” current park Superintendent Connie Rudd said. “What’s important is that the canyon is still the same and that means we’ve done our job.”[...]

Former legislators, along with Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service leaders, discussed their decades-long endeavor involving perseverance and public involvement that gave the canyon its new name.

More Gunnison River Basin coverage here.

Aspinall Unit update

From email from Reclamation (Dan Crabtree):

Crystal releases will be reduced another 150 cfs this afternoon, October 7th, resulting in Gunnison River flows below the Gunnison Tunnel of 500 – 550 cfs. Crystal releases will be further reduced in the coming weeks as the Gunnison Tunnel decreases diversions. However, these changes should not affect overall flows in the Black Canyon or Gunnison Gorge and, barring any unforeseen hydrologic events, we expect conditions to remain fairly constant over the next several weeks.

Aspinall Unit update

From email from Reclamation (Dan Crabtree):

It’s now time to start adjusting releases from the Aspinall Unit for the fall season. Flows from Crystal Reservoir will be reduced by 150 cfs starting at 8:00 a.m. on Friday October 2nd. Flows in the Black Canyon and Gunnison Gorge should then be approximately 680 cfs. Further reductions may be forthcoming in the following weeks. We are anticipating low flows in the Black Canyon and Gunnison Gorge in the 500 cfs range during October and November.

More Aspinall Unit coverage here and here.

Aspinall unit update

From email from Reclamation (Dan Crabtree):

The Uncompahgre Valley Water Users will be making a 100 cfs cut in their tunnel diversions today which will effectively increase the flows in the Gunnison River through the Black Canyon and Gunnison Gorge to just over 800 cfs. The Colorado Division of Wildlife will be on the river next week for their annual fish sampling/inventory so we’ll try to maintain stable flows during that time period. Following next week’s inventory, Crystal releases will be reduced as tunnel demands gradually subside.

More Aspinall Unit coverage here and here.

Aspinall Unit operations meeting summary

From email from Reclamation (Dan Crabtree):

The August 27, 2009 meeting to coordinate Reclamation’s operation of the Aspinall Unit was held at the Blue Mesa Elk Creek Visitor Center. The meeting summary and associated handouts can be found at: http://www.usbr.gov/uc/wcao/water/rsvrs/mtgs/amcurrnt.html

Highlights of the operation meeting include:

April through July inflow to Blue Mesa was 772,000 af which is considered an average wet year. (The May 1 April – July forecasted inflow was 690,000 af.) The 31-year average is 720,000 af. 2008 inflow was 1,006,000 af.

Runoff was early and forecasted inflow increased significantly after May 15.

The Black Canyon water right has been quantified and this year’s average daily spring peak of 6,730 cfs in the Black Canyon exceeded the water right, which varies based on Blue Mesa Reservoir May 1 forecasted inflow. At Delta, flows peaked at 12,500 cfs with no significant problems reported. Flows in critical habitat peaked at 12,900 cfs as measured at Whitewater and there were 13 days above 8,070 cfs (half-bankfull). Endangered fish flow recommendations, based on May 1 forecast, would call for 10 days above 8,070 cfs and a peak of 8,070 cfs.

Ramping rates steeper than planned occurred as flows reached their peak causing safety and fishery concerns.

Blue Mesa filled and summer flows through the Black Canyon finally settled at around 1,000 cfs. Flows will decrease gradually in September to the 600-700 cfs range and then increase in late November and December to around 2,000 cfs for hydropower production.

If you have any suggestions on improving the operation meetings or summaries, please let us know. The next operation meeting will be on Thursday, January 21, 2010 in Montrose; location to be announced later.

More Aspinall Unit coverage here.

Aspinall Unit update

From email from Reclamation (Dan Crabtree):

Crystal Dam has been operating at full powerplant release for most of this spring and summer. Now that Blue Mesa storage space has been regained and because of lower than expected late summer base flows, Reclamation will reduce reservoir releases in order to conserve reservoir storage. In addition, lower releases in the early fall months will provide more optimal flows for river recreation, fish studies scheduled for late September, and for the brown trout spawn which occurs during mid October to mid November. This change will also provide the flexibility needed to provide higher releases for power production during December and January.

Starting today, August 31, releases from Crystal Reservoir will be reduced by 100 cfs each day for the next four days, resulting in Black Canyon – Gunnison Gorge flows of 700 – 800 cfs. An additional flow reduction of 100 cfs could be forthcoming next week depending on conditions, with flows averaging around 600 cfs for September through November. Please reply to this email if you have further questions.

More Aspinall Unit coverage here.

Aspinall Unit operations meeting recap

Here’s a recap of Thursday’s operations meeting, from Katharhynn Heidelberg writing for the Montrose Daily Press. From the article:

Blue Mesa’s inflow for May was forecasted at 690,000 acre feet. The June 1 forecast jumped it to 790,000 af. “A lot of that was the result of precipitation that occurred in late May and also the fact that we got some good runoff in May,” Crabtree said. “We had more runoff in May than average.” BuRec went to higher releases to avoid having to spill Blue Mesa Reservoir. Crabtree said the reservoir came within three inches of spilling over, so releases were increased to gain control. At one point, the reservoir contained only 2,000 spare acre feet of storage. “Considering the size of that lake, that’s not a lot of room,” he said.

BuRec will slowly decrease releases from Crystal over the next few months to allow the Division of Wildlife to conduct its annual fish surveys. Additionally, BuRec wants to have lower flows to encourage brown trout to spawn in deeper water. That way, when the water recedes, there is less chance of the eggs being left high and dry, which could happen if spawning occurs in shallower water. Crabtree said flows will increase in December and January to help meet demands for power production.

Here’s a look at operations last May, from Dave Buchanan writing for the The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. From the article:

…on May 12, the day the Bureau had predicted runoff would peak and Crystal, the last dam in the line, would spill, the expected overflow came much faster and higher than anyone foresaw. So fast, in fact, the Bureau was inundated with complaints about their supposedly poor flow management, particularly from people familiar with the Aspinall Unit operating directives, which limit how fast a flow can increase or decrease (ramp up or ramp down). From 8 a.m. on May 12 to 8 a.m. on May 13, flows in the Gunnison River below Crystal Dam jumped from about 3,500 cubic feet per second to 7,300 cfs, about four times faster than the Aspinall EIS said should happen. That doubling of the flows not only threatened unwitting anglers and other river users, but also sent a glut of water toward Delta, which eventually saw a flow of 12,500 cfs gnaw away at river banks and threaten riverside development.

More Aspinall Unit coverage here.

Aspinall operations meeting August 27

From email from Reclamation (Dan Crabtree):

The August Aspinall Operations Meeting will be held starting at 1:00 p.m. on Thursday August 27th. The meeting location is the Elk Creek Visitors Center at Blue Mesa Reservoir. Reclamation will be discussing past and upcoming operations, planned maintenance activities, status of the draft EIS and more. The Division of Wildlife will be describing trout issues at Blue Mesa Reservoir and in the Gunnison River, and the Park Service and BLM will be giving brief updates regarding the effect of this year’s operation on Gunnison River related resources . This is an opportunity for any interested party to comment on operations and provide input. Please reply to this email or call Dan Crabtree at 970-248-0652 with questions or other agenda items.

More Aspinall Unit coverage here and here.

Blue Mesa Reservoir: Colorado Department of Wildlife to explain lake trout control policy

From The Denver Post (Charlie Meyers):

…area biologist John Alves said…DOW is committed to a strategy of balance: a highly productive kokanee fishery, a good rainbow trout fishery and a viable trophy lake trout fishery. To explain its rationale, and perhaps sprinkle some cold water on the argument, DOW has scheduled a series of public meetings in the region. The first is Aug. 25 at the Grand Junction Doubletree Hotel. Others are Aug. 26 at the Montrose Holiday Inn Express, Aug. 27 at the Gunnison Aspinall-Wilson Center at Western State College and Sept. 2 at the DOW regional office in Colorado Springs. All begin at 7 p.m. DOW will explain how stable water levels in recent years promoted highly successful lake trout reproduction in Big Blue. At the same time, kokanee egg take has tumbled — 5.8 million in 2008 against 8.2 million in 2007. Biologists project the current kokanee population at 200,000. A decade ago, the estimation was 10 million or more.

Montrose: Gunnison Tunnel 100th year celebration

From the Montrose Daily Press:

Celebrating 100 years of water provided by the Gunnison Tunnel, the Uncompahgre Valley Water Users Association invites Montrose, Olathe, and Delta community members, and all Coloradoans, to join in activities culminating with celebrations and ceremonies in Montrose at UVWUA headquarters Saturday, Sept. 26. The water users association celebrated its own centennial in 2002. The federal legislation that established the Bureau of Reclamation in 1902 also authorized the Gunnison Tunnel Project and formation of the UVWUA. Water users association Manager Marc Catlin said the benefits of the tunnel to the Uncompahgre Valley cannot be overstated. “Opening the Gunnison Tunnel and then delivering the water to growers, made this valley green while attracting a thriving population,” Catlin said. According to U.S. Census Bureau data, the populations of both Delta and Montrose counties more than doubled between 1900, when the idea was first developed, and 1910, one year after the tunnel was completed. The data show that the decade from 1900-1910 saw the most significant population growth in the valley.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Aspinall Unit: Crystal Dam spill

From the Denver Post (Mark Jaffe):

Wednesday morning, the flow was about 7,500 cubic feet a second, or about 2 million gallons a minute. The stronger flow is intended to mimic natural spring runoff, removing sediment and algae and helping to break down riffles and whisk away vegetation encroaching on the riverbank, Dale said. “One year’s high flow won’t do it all, but now we can hope for a spring flow most years,” Dale said…

“This has been one of the longest, most complex water-right battles in Colorado,” said Drew Peternell, an attorney for the sportsmen’s group Trout Unlimited. To win that right, the concerns of hydropower agencies, ranchers and farmers — and downstream towns fearful of flooding — had to be addressed. “We were able to reach a consensus that everyone could support,” said Clayton Palmer, an environment specialist with the Western Area Power Authority, which markets electricity from the Aspinall Unit.

More coverage from the Colorado Springs Gazette (R. Scott Rappold):

The largest waterfall in Colorado was here Wednesday, a gushing torrent that plunged 227 feet, surpassing Niagara Falls, swelling the Gunnison River to levels unprecedented in the age of dams and diversions. The misty, rainbowed spectacle, with spray felt two football fields away, was seen by few in the gated recesses of Crystal Dam in the Black Canyon of the Gunnison…

Frank Kugel, manager of the Upper Gunnison River Water Conservancy District, who was in the canyon Wednesday, said he was thrilled to see the water flowing over the dam. “It’s a good thing WAPA (the Western Area Power Administration) isn’t here. They’d be in tears over this,” Kugel said…

After the flow ceases this weekend, [Michael Dale, natural resources manager for Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park] plans to scout the river, gauge the effectiveness of the water purge, see how much debris and vegetation washed away. The agreement calls for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which runs the dam and hydro plant, to release water each spring, in proportion to the availability from snowpack. It will be a long time before the river recovers, and it may never look like it did when Gunnison tried to cross it, but for a few days, at least, it looks more like the mighty river that thwarted Gunnison. “The impacts of the dams were just that, 40 years, and it will be 40 of these flows before it can reverse itself,” Dale said.

Check out the Gazette slide show.

More coverage from the Denver Post (Mark Jaffe):

This week’s release of 16 billion gallons of water through the Black Canyon — designed to mimic the scouring rush of spring runoff — will begin the process of flushing sediment, algae, debris and vegetation. Sediment, riffle pools and reedy box elders have built up in the park since the 1970s, when three dams known as the Aspinall Unit blocked the natural flow of the Gunnison River. “Ultimately, the goal is to restore the Gunnison to a wild, free-flowing river through the canyon,” said Ken Stahlnecker, chief of resource stewardship for the Black Canyon. “It will take time — years.”[...]

In December a decree was filed in Colorado water court outlining how much water would be released to the park each spring, based on snowpack levels. It also protected other users’ water rights. Ranchers who rely on the Gunnison to flood their hay fields in spring kept their water. “The United States recognized our right to ranch,” said Ken Spann, owner of the Y-Bar Ranch near Gunnison. “That was big. If they hadn’t, we’d be going to court.”[...]

The Park Service’s water-rights campaign was launched after a 1982 Colorado Supreme Court ruling that denied Dinosaur National Monument a water right on the Yampa River. The court ruled that because the monument’s mission was to preserve and display fossils, it didn’t need a right that would sustain kayaking. “The court ruled we’d only get enough water for dinosaurs — which isn’t much,” said Chuck Pettee, chief of the service’s water-rights branch. “That was a wake-up call for the Park Service.” While the Park Service already had sought rights for the Black Canyon and Devil’s Hole in Death Valley National Park, it then created a branch to pursue water rights. From Yellowstone in Wyoming to Crater Lake in Oregon, the Park Service has won or is in discussions for water rights. “In the West, and certainly for the nine parks along the Colorado River and its tributaries, water defines and shapes our national parks,” said David Nimkin, regional director of the National Parks Conservation Association, an advocacy group. “Without water, we will slowly lose those parks,” Nimkin said.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Gunnison River: New flow regime in Black Canyon takes effect

From email from Reclamation (Dan Crabtree):

[May 12], a combination of Morrow Point Releases and high side-inflows caused Crystal Reservoir to spill and flows in the Black Canyon and Gunnison Gorge to reach over 7,000 cfs by this morning. Flows at Delta are currently in the 12,000 cfs range. The May 1st forecast for the April through July runoff into Blue Mesa Reservoir is 690,000 ac-ft. consequently, the Black Canyon Water Right calls for a 24 hr peak flow of almost 6,000 cfs (5,864 cfs according to the decree). This flow was achieved starting at about 16:45 May 12th. To insure a 24 hour peak is obtained and to make efficient use of water, Reclamation will start to slowly ramp down releases today. As a result, the spill at Crystal will start to subside and probably be complete by Sunday May 17th. A more detailed schedule is being developed and additional information will be distributed as it becomes available.

More coverage from the Denver Post (Mark Jaffe):

“This is the beginning of repairing and healing the park’s ecosystem,” said Michael Dale, a Park Service hydrologist. Before the federal Bureau of Reclamation began gradually building up the flow last week, the Gunnison River was flowing at about 1,000 cubic feet a second. This morning, the flow was at about 7,500 cubic feet a second. The stronger flow — which is trying to mimic natural spring runoff — will remove sediment and algae, help breakdown riffle pools and whisk away vegetation encroaching on the river bank, Dale said. “One year’s high flow won’t do it all, but now we can hope for a spring flow most years,” Dale said…

“This has been one of the longest, most complex water-right battles in Colorado,” said Drew Peternell, an attorney for the sportsmen’s group Trout Unlimited. To win that right, the concerns of hydropower agencies, ranchers and farmers, and downstream towns fearful of flooding had to be addressed…

The decree filed in January with the Colorado water court guarantees irrigation water, hydropower water and a spring flow to the park based on the size of the snowpack each each year. “No one got everything they wanted, but no one is out of business,” said the Park Service’s Dale.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

Aspinall Unit: Operations meeting

From email from Reclamation (Dan Crabtree):

In response to the beginning of the spring runoff season, Reclamation will be increasing releases from the Aspinall Unit by 300 cfs on Friday April 17. After the change, the total release from Crystal Reservoir will be 1,500 cfs and flow in the Black Canyon and Gunnison Gorge will be about 1,000 cfs.

Please note the Aspinall Operations meeting will held on Thursday April 23rd in Reclamation’s Grand Junction Office beginning at 9:30 a.m. In conjunction with the meeting, the National Weather Service will be holding a Water Supply Meeting beginning at 1:00 p.m. at the same location. Please RSVP Bryon Lawrence at with which meeting you plan to attend to ensure sufficient seating.

Note to Fishermen: Sorry the East Portal Road is not yet open to the public. Still waiting for the basketball-sized rocks to slow their assault on the road.