A report from Protect the Flows pegs the Colorado River recreation industry at $26 billion and a quarter of a million jobs

From the Colorado Independent (Scot Kersgaard):

The study — commissioned by Protect The Flows and performed by Southwick Associates — only looked at the money spent by residents of the six-state Colorado River Basin. It did not consider money spent by people from outside these states.

The study contends that nearly 80,000 Coloradans owe their livelihood to the river and that river-related retail sales alone generate more income than agricultural production in Colorado.

Of the six states studied, which included Arizona, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada and New Mexico, Colorado was by far the leader in terms of jobs generated and money spent. Direct spending in the region amounts to just over $17 billion a year, with just under $6.4 billion of that spent in Colorado. California was left out of the study because by the time the river reaches California it has lost most of its recreational value.

More Colorado River basin coverage here.

A report from Protect the Flows pegs the Colorado River recreation industry at $26 billion and a quarter of a million jobs

Thanks to U.S. Senator Mark Udall for the link. Here’s the report from Udall’s Scribd page.

From The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel (Matthew Berger):

The study, commissioned by Protect the Flows, a coalition of recreation and tourism businesses, also found that the river produces $26 billion in economic output, generated primarily by the recreation and tourism industries. By far the largest share of that total, $9.6 billion, occurs in Colorado.

The 234,000 jobs that the study, through surveys and economic modelling, found the river supports would place it ahead of companies like General Motors, Boeing and Disney. “That’s a pretty conservative number,” noted Protect the Flows’ Molly Mugglestone. “These are direct jobs we’re talking about.” They do not include the less direct economic benefits the river provides to farmers, ranchers, cities and power companies, nor to river users in Mexico. In order to ensure the river continues to be able to support those jobs, a summit of business and government leaders met Friday in Denver to discuss the report’s findings.

“You don’t have to spend much time around rivers to understand their importance,” said Sen. Mark Udall, D-Boulder. “The cynics might scoff at nonconsumptive uses…but it’s tough to know the value of something until it’s gone,” he said, referring to water that is left in rivers rather than withdrawn for irrigation or other consumptive uses.

More coverage from Catharine Tsai writing for the Associated Press via The Denver Post. From the article:

Southwick Associates Inc. developed the report by first conducting a telephone survey of people in all Colorado River basin states except California from Jan. 24 to Feb. 12 to estimate how many people hike, fish, raft, camp, picnic or otherwise play on the river system and how often. President Rob Southwick said California was excluded because only a small part of the state uses the river for recreation. Then, researchers matched the survey results with data on spending on travel and equipment for outdoor activities to estimate economic impacts. The study estimates that business activity from recreation focused on the river system supports about 234,000 jobs in Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming and generates more than $1.6 billion in federal taxes annually and $1.6 billion in state and local tax revenues.

The figure of $17 billion in direct spending from river recreation would likely be higher if visits from outside the region were included, said Sarah Sidwell, manager of Tag-A-Long Expeditions in Moab, Utah. Sidwell said 40 percent of customers for her rafting and off-road business are international. “Our stake in this is huge,” Sidwell said of keeping the river system healthy. “We need to have a flowing river in order for me to have a job and 100 part-time employees to have jobs.”

Rhett Bain, owner of Reel Deal Anglers in Jackson, Wyo., said a seasonal guide for his business earns about $30,000 in 90 days including tips.

More Colorado River basin coverage here.

Snowpack/drought/runoff news: Upper Colorado River basin drops to 25% of average, South Platte = 37%

Click on the thumbnail graphics for the current statewide snowpack map and the Basin High/Low graph for the South Platte Basin (the basins that millions of Coloradans depend on) from the Natural Resources Conservation Service. The storm last week kept the South Platte about 1 inch of SWE above 2002 and moved the Upper Colorado River basin to the 2002 line. Keep doing your rain dances.

From The Denver Post (Kyle Wagner):

Colorado’s reservoirs are at normal levels, according to Denver Water, and state rivers are running at or below normal flows for this time of year. That means rafting, particularly for first-timers and families, could be just right.

“Here’s the thing that people forget,” says David Costlow, executive director of the Colorado River Outfitters Association. “Low season doesn’t mean no water. That snow still comes down that defined ditch. It might not ever get to the super-wild stage, but there’s water, and it flows. It will still be at an acceptable level for people to get out there and have a great time.”

Costlow says that despite rumors outside the industry, concerns that this season will be a repeat of the severe drought of 2002 are unlikely. “I make a point of keeping in contact with what I call the ‘water buffaloes,’ you know, Denver Water, CWC (Colorado Water Congress), to see what their take is. Well, it’s gonna be low, yes, but it’s not going to be 2002.”[...]

Outfitters on the Arkansas River are in especially good shape, Costlow says, because they’re on a voluntary flow-management program that allows for a dam release of water from the reservoirs upstream. “That water’s always there when they need it,” he explains. “Like last year, it wasn’t needed really until right at the end. This year, they’ll probably need it earlier.”

From The Aspen Times (Janet Urquhart):

Flows out of Ruedi increase seasonally on May 1, according to Kara Lamb, spokeswoman for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. The agency began increasing the release Monday, anticipating a hike in flows into the Fryingpan below the dam from 45 cubic feet per second to 80 cfs by the end of the day. Another increase Tuesday is expected to bring the flow on the lower Fryingpan to 110 cfs, which is typical for this time of year, according to Lamb.

In a normal spring, runoff from melting snow coming into the reservoir, located east of Basalt, would peak in late May or early June, she said. Next week, the bureau will have a better idea of what to expect this spring, after the latest data have been analyzed, but it’s a good bet flows coming into Ruedi won’t match the surge experienced last year…

The bureau expects Ruedi and the other reservoirs in the Fryingpan-Arkansas transmountain diversion system, as well as reservoirs in the Colorado-Big Thompson Project, to fill up this spring, according to Lamb. Both projects transfer water from Colorado’s Western Slope to the Front Range. The reservoirs started out in good shape because last year was a strong one for water collection, Lamb said…

Among Western Slope reservoirs that send water west instead of east, however, both Taylor Park and Blue Mesa reservoirs are expected to reach only 80 to 85 percent of capacity, according to Dan Crabtree, water management group chief for the bureau’s Grand Junction office. Other, smaller reservoirs, including Paonia, Ridgway and Silverjack, are all expected to fill up, he said…

…in the Roaring Fork River Basin on Monday, the snowpack was down to 19 percent of average, according to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, or NRCS. The SNOTEL measuring site on Independence Pass, located southeast of Aspen at 10,600 feet in elevation, was holding 4 inches of snow Monday, down from 7 inches Sunday. Snow at the measuring site is likely to be gone by Tuesday, said Mage Skordahl, assistant snow survey supervisor for the NRCS in Denver. That doesn’t mean snow has disappeared from the pass, but that it’s melted off the SNOTEL measuring station, she said.

Updated streamflow forecasts will soon be available, according to Skordahl, but projections based solely on snowpack put the flow into Ruedi Reservoir at 55 percent of average from April through July, she said. The Roaring Fork River flow at Glenwood Springs is expected to be at 45 percent of average for the same period.

IBCC: Gunnison Basin Roundtable non-consumptive needs workshop, May 3

Click here for the agenda.

Reclamation’s Colorado River Supply and Demand Study update: ‘Protect the Flows’ goes to Washington

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

[Sarah] Sidwell’s Tag-A-Long Expeditions is one of 370 businesses that are part of the Protect the Flows coalition, which is offering up options to be weighed in the Colorado River Supply and Demand Study. The study is part of an exhaustive effort by the Bureau of Reclamation examining current and future imbalances in the Colorado River system over the next 50 years and ways to restore balance. After an evaluation period anticipated to last through June, the study will provide a road map of strategies that can be undertaken to help ensure the river system remains a viable water resource for the next 50 years…

The group said historical data complied by the U.S. Geological Survey with its streamflow monitoring system should be relied on extensively for determining a practical calculation of how much water actually exists in the system — not what is predicted through widely-varying snowpack seasons. “There is actual empirical evidence that shows how much water we can expect to have in the river,” Sidwell said.

The coalition was in Washington, D.C., earlier this year to present its ideas, which include establishing guidelines for new “water-smart” landscape designs, encouraging pool cover usage and providing incentives to farmers for incorporating more water-efficient irrigation technologies.

More Colorado River basin coverage here.

State of the Rockies Project: Will and Zak release a new video — ‘A Paddler’s Perspective on the Colorado River Delta’

Here’s the link to the video. Will and Zak paddled from the headwaters of the Green River to the Colorado River Delta as researchers for Colorado College’s State of the Rockies Project.

More Colorado River Basin coverage here.

Montrose: BLM’s Regional Advisory Council to meet March 7-8, Upper Colorado fee hikes on the agenda

From the Summit County Citizens Voice (Bob Berwyn):

At issue is a Bureau of Land Management proposal to up the daily fees at the Pumphouse and Radium sites from $3 to $5 per vehicle, as well as a small hike for commercial users, who make up the bulk of the use at the sites, from $1 to $1.25 per day.

“The river is popular because it’s affordable,” said Dave Costlow, executive director of the Colorado River Outfitters Association, explaining that a half-day run down the relatively gentle waters of the reach costs about $45 per person. “If you have a family of five, it all adds up,” Costlow said, describing it as a 25 percent increase that will be passed on to consumers. The BLM already gets 3 percent of every ticket sold, he added…

The increase is one of the agenda items at a March 7-8 meeting of the agency’s regional Resource Advisory Council in Montrose. The statewide Resource Advisory Council will also meet in Montrose (March 6-8) to consider other matters.

The additional fees at the Colorado River sites would boost the BLM’s revenue for the two sites by about $27,000, helping to boost services and possibly add new boating facilities. Additional road repair will help ease access to popular spots, and the BLM also plans to add a new storage facility and publish a new guide to the Upper Colorado.

More Colorado River basin coverage here.

The Northwest Colorado Council of Governments has released a report about the importance of water to Colorado’s headwaters counties

From The Aspen Times (Scott Condon):

Pitkin County provides an estimated annual average of nearly 99,000 acre-feet via transmountain diversions to the Eastern Slope, according to the study, “Water and Its Relationship to the Economies of the Headwater Counties.” To put that amount into perspective, Ruedi Reservoir holds slightly more than 100,000 acre-feet. Among the headwater counties along the spine of Colorado’s Rocky Mountains, only Grand County loses more than Pitkin County through diversions. It supplies 307,500 acre-feet annually. Summit and Eagle counties are well behind Pitkin County in water diverted to the Eastern Slope. Gunnison and Routt counties are virtually untapped.

The mountain counties don’t want to suffer environmental or economic consequences from future diversions. An association that lobbies on their behalf, the Northwest Colorado Council of Governments, commissioned the study to show how vital adequate water supplies are not only to the mountain communities but also to the entire state…

The study isn’t intended to pit the mountain headwater counties against the Eastern Plains, said author Jean Townsend of the Denver firm Coley/Forest Inc. The headwater counties are simply saying, “There’s an economic impact to us, too,” she said. Pitkin County and the other headwater areas depend on streamflows for fishing, camping and boating activities. Townsend also noted that Aspen has a worldwide appeal. Its economy is built partially on real estate sales and service to second-homeowners. About 47 percent of homes in Pitkin County are owned by out-of-state residents…

A second message is that Colorado’s economy as a whole is dependent on a healthy mountain environment. The mountains not only draw people to the state and support a strong tourism industry, they also make Denver and the rest of the Front Range more attractive for businesses.

More transmountain/transbasin diversions coverage here.

Protect the Flows hopes to galvanize business interests the are dependent on wet water in the Colorado River

From the Summit Daily News (Janice Kurbjun):

[Zeke Hersh], the owner of Frisco’s Blue River Anglers joined a contingent of six who voiced the message of Protect the Flows, a brand-new, grassroots organization dedicated to raising awareness of water supply and related jobs in the Colorado River system — from the headwaters to the delta. The group represented river-related business interests from Colorado, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and Nevada, Hersh said, adding that the group isn’t just gaining traction by sitting with legislators and leaders in the nation’s environmental governance. It’s also building a broader base, growing from 170 companies to 370 companies involved in the effort from its start in summer 2011 to today.

The goal in going to D.C. was to urge the Department of the Interior and legislators to consider plans that will employ smart, common-sense strategies to keep the Colorado River flowing when they finalize the Bureau of Reclamation’s Colorado River Basin Supply & Demand Study this summer.

Now that the “Options and Strategies Phase” of the Colorado River Supply and Demand Study is closed, submitted proposals will be considered and evaluated through June 2012. Upon completion, the study will define current and future imbalances in water supply and demand in the Colorado River Basin over the next 50 years, and will provide adaptation and mitigation strategies to resolve those imbalances…

As an angler, a guide, and a mountain biker who likes to cruise Moab, Utah and cool off afterwards in the lazy Colorado River that flows through town, Hersh said he can help provide valuable, first-hand insight into the river’s impact throughout the West. It goes far beyond drinking water needs and agricultural impact, he said. The message of Protect the Flows is that more than 800,000 jobs in the West (107,000 and more than $10 billion into the Colorado’s economy alone) come directly from the river, and those people must be considered when the fate of the water supply is considered…

While in DC, the business leaders asked the Department of Interior to implement a plan that will improve urban conservation, improve agricultural efficiency and provide options for existing water storage that will allow for keeping more water in the river. The coalition touts these measures as a way to balance supply and demand to continue to serve the 36 million who rely on the waterway for drinking water and protect the 800,000 river-related tourism and recreation jobs across the seven Colorado River Basin states.

“Department of Interior’s keen leadership is the key to ensuring that the Colorado River Basin Study results in solutions that will benefit all parties,” said Sarah Sidwell, sales director for Tag-A-Long Expeditions in Moab, Utah and member of the Moab Area Chamber of Commerce…

In D.C., they presented some viable ideas for handling the plethora of water issues facing the West, including the extremely difficult task of reworking the complicated water law. Water banks are first on the list, Hersh said. Initiated in Arizona, it allows those holding water rights to override the “use it or lose it” rule of thumb in years of excess flows. These folks can use what they need, and bank the rest for credit later. In the meantime, someone else can buy or borrow the water…

“Jobs are very important right now. We do not want to lose one job,” Hersh said … as we decide how to manage the water in the Colorado River and its tributaries.

More Colorado River basin coverage here.

Whitewater park for Longmont?

Here’s the release from the City of Longmont (Bill Powell):

The City of Longmont’s Concept Paper, the initial step in a full grant application to Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO), has been approved to move to the final application step. It was one of 21 concept papers that were approved for this next step in the grant process by GOCO.

The City is planning a 65 acre river based district park along the banks of the St Vrain River within the Pavlakis Open Space in the heart of Longmont. The park will feature various amenities including a whitewater park on the St Vrain creek. The project is slated to begin design in early 2012.

The City is looking for partners from the community to assist in the grant process. Project partners are critically important in the final approval for grant funding. Partners would ideally provide financial participation. Support of any amount would be welcome!

More coverage from the Longmont Times-Call (Pierrette J. Shields) via the Boulder Daily Camera. From the article:

City planners hope to nab $500,000 in grant funds from Great Outdoors Colorado for a $3.1-million, 65-acre district park along the St. Vrain Greenway between Main and Martin streets south of the D-Barn. Planned amenities include a white-water course with five drops, a fishing pond, pond observation deck, river overlooks and habitat improvements along the greenway on the Pavlakis Open Space property…

Similar white-water courses are available in Lyons and Boulder, but Fitzgerald said Longmont’s more moderate course likely will be more family friendly because of lower water levels through the city.

Lower Dolores Boating Advocates will hold a public discussion of boating issues and possible changes below McPhee on November 30

From the Cortez Journal:

Everyone who rafts, kayaks and canoes on the lower Dolores River is invited to a presentation by Nathan Fey from American Whitewater at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 30, at the Dolores River Brewery, 100 S. Fourth St. Fey will lead a discussion about the ongoing negotiations with water managers about releases from McPhee dam. All whitewater boating enthusiasts are encouraged to attend to learn more about possible changes for the Dolores River. The event is sponsored by the Lower Dolores Boating Advocates. For more information, contact Jay Loschert at 799-1475.

More whitewater coverage here.

Eagle County officials hope to open more river access on the Colorado River between State Bridge and Dotsero

From the Vail Daily (Derek Franz):

“If we could get a boat ramp every eight or 10 miles (below State Bridge), that could spread the people out,” Treu said. “Right now, that stretch of river is too long and slow to appeal to many users. With the public access that’s currently available, there are no half-day floats — the trips are very long days.”

That’s why Eagle County has been working on some land deals that would gain public access to points along the Colorado River. Two of the deals have closed, and others are still being worked out…

Eagle County recently started the process to get “in-stream flow protection” and senior water rights to the isolated stretch of the Colorado. In this case, an in-stream flow protection would protect fish habitat by guaranteeing a minimum water flow. Other such protections also have been made for recreational rights, such as whitewater parks. “(The section from State Bridge to Dotsero) is the only section (of the Colorado) that doesn’t have in-stream flow protection,” Treu said. “If this section of river is not utilized, it will seem more acceptable for Denver to claim it.”[...]

“By getting in-stream flow protection, getting more people on that stretch and getting senior water rights, we will have a three-pronged attack,” Treu said. The claims are currently being processed in the Colorado water courts. A ruling isn’t expected anytime soon, however, because the state’s water rights are complex and the courts are slow.

More Colorado River basin coverage here.

Delta County: Three county commissioners, reps from the BLM the Town of Hotchkiss and conservationists hold meeting to discuss the Gunnison River as a recreation corridor through the county

From The Delta County Independent (Hank Lohmeyer):

The Hartland Dam Reconstruction project has ignited a blaze of local enthusiasm for a long stretch of recreational river. Excitement for the idea was running high last Thursday during a meeting of about 15 people who see river recreation as the next big thing. Represented at the session were the county (three commissioners, planning, and administration), the City of Delta (community development, parks, recreation), the Bureau of Land Management (Gunnison Gorge NCA manager), Town of Hotchkiss, Trout Unlimited, and the NFRIA Conservation Center of Paonia. The group’s idea is to complete a “concept paper” in two weeks that will outline a vision of a river recreation corridor through Delta County. The paper could lead to a planning grant from GOCO…

[County Commissioner Olen Lund] pointed out that there’s a lot of private ownership along the banks of the river, and private owners aren’t always receptive to river floaters and their sometimes inconsiderate ways. A county-sponsored public meeting of river corridor property owners took place in 2006 at the Bill Heddles Recreation Center. That meeting resulted in a deluge of opposition from landowners against promoting river recreation in the county. The meeting fairly stifled any broad discussion of the concept, until now.

Now, with the Hartland Dam reconstruction project connecting the river to boaters above and below Delta, and with the availability of GOCO money for comprehensive river corridor planning, the Gunnison River recreation idea has re-emerged.

More Gunnison River basin coverage here and here.

The City of Montrose is hoping that Montrose County will pitch in some dough for a whitewater park on the Uncompahre River

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

“We have a lot of requests this year, but we can put it in with the other requests in preparing for our budget season,” Commissioner David White said.

City officials are seeking the county’s help to build a proposed white water park on the river. White said he was leery about allocating the money to the white water park after the county just recently completed it fairgrounds master plan, which includes several capital improvement projects…

Although the park is projected to cost between $600,000 to $900,000, Erickson said the annual economic benefits the area would realize would be far greater.

More whitewater coverage here.

Whitewater: Two standup paddlers traverse 225 miles of the Grand Canyon including the major rapids

From Stand Up Paddle Surfing Magazine (Son of the Sea):

Whitewater expert Seth Warren and surf artist Drew Brophy rode standup paddleboards (SUPS) down 225 miles of the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. The previous record was set by Hawaiian Archie Kalepa, who logged 187 miles in 2009.

On May 14, 2011, Brophy and Warren began their 16 day excursion at Lee’s Ferry, Arizona, navigating more than 125 rapids, with 42 major rapids rated between 5 and 10g on the Grand Canyon scale of 1 to 10g. They standup paddleboarded about fourteen miles each day. Their expedition ended at Diamond Creek, Arizona. Adding to the challenge of riding over rapids on stand-up paddleboards was the unusually high river water level. According to experts, the Colorado River was running at its highest level in thirty years.

The most challenging rapids they encountered included the infamous Lava, Hermit, Granite and Crystal Rapids. By day eight of the trip, their time on the river allowed enough experience to become skilled enough to stick it to the end of most of the 6 or 7 class rapids. But any class higher than 7 often landed the paddleboarders into the 42 degree waters. Brophy says, “There’s just no easy button. It’s amazing, the power of that water.”

More whitewater coverage here.

Runoff news: Horsetooth Reservoir is almost full

From the Fort Collins Coloradoan (Bobby Magill):

“Everybody’s just jazzed,” said Glen Werth, owner of Inlet Bay Marina on Horsetooth Reservoir. “The water levels are fabulous. Our rental business is fantastic. We have a lot of big boats, big groups.”

Brimming with water, Horsetooth Reservoir is expected to completely fill this week for the first time since 2004. “We do think Horsetooth is going to continue to rise,” said U.S. Bureau of Reclamation spokeswoman Kara Lamb. “We’re going to get pretty close to full.”

On Friday, Horsetooth Reservoir’s surface elevation was 5,425.25 feet above sea level, lower than its peak in 2010, when it hit 5,427 feet, said Brian Werner, spokesman for the Northern Colorado Water Conservation District. Horsetooth Reservoir’s full pool level is 5,430 feet. “By the end of next week, we will have Horsetooth full,” Werner said Friday.

The reservoirs are full here mostly because of the long, sustained runoff season from an abnormally large snowpack in the mountains. Werner said Northern Water’s forecasters say this year’s robust runoff is a “once-in-a-lifetime” event. “We’re smiling,” Werner said. “This is almost an ideal runoff year. We talk about this all the time and it never happens.” The runoff from the mountain snowmelt is expected to extend into August, which is nearly unheard of, he said.

Recent rains mean irrigators haven’t had to take water from the reservoir, allowing it to continue to rise. The Bureau of Reclamation has stopped taking water deliveries from the Colorado River through the Adams Tunnel, Lamb said.

More Colorado-Big Thompson Project coverage here.

From the Glenwood Springs Post Independent (Janice Kurbjin):

A sustained high water season on rivers in and around Summit County is coming to a close, and that means less juggling for local outfitters. “It was a challenge, for sure,” Arkansas Valley Adventures owner Duke Bradford said. AVA, like other companies, transferred trips based on flows to put ages and abilities on appropriate stretches. Someone who booked a Brown’s Canyon trip in the Arkansas River Valley may have gotten short notice that they’d now be running the more consistent Blue River, though it still ran quickly, about an hour north in Silverthorne…

“If you came to run whitewater, it’ll go down as one of the best whitewater seasons ever,” Bradford said, explaining that cooler temperatures helped sustain what many thought would be a sharp, severe spike in flows. Then, when the snowpack expired, rain and downstream water calls came. The high water lasted about six weeks…,/p>

Performance Tours and AVA have been back on the Numbers and Royal Gorge for about five days. And other trips are mostly back to normal minimum ages, with the exception of a still-high Clear Creek.

FIBArk Festival recap: Flying Ligers win raft rodeo

From The Mountain Mail (Kevin Hoffman):

A panel of judges chose the best rafts loosely based on spectator reaction and criteria such as biggest flip and most creative pirating attempt. The Ligers were steered by Boulder residents Gary Lacy, Spencer Lacy and Shane Sigle along with Mark Poindexter of Austin, Texas. The crew had several passengers throughout the tournament, but Spencer Lacy won the crowd’s attention with several flips off the raft into the wave…

In second place the Black Sheep, a Raft Masters guide known as B.L., captained his boat solo. Two unidentified men steering a green craft aptly called the Leprechaun took third place in the event.

Click through for a photo of the event.

More whitewater coverage here.

Runoff/snowpack news: Water providers in the lower basin states are all smiles for a change

From the Albuquerque Journal (John Fleck):

Parched New Mexico won’t see much of that water [ed. northern Rocky Mountain snowpack] directly. Most of it fell to the north of the watersheds that feed the San Juan and Rio Grande, New Mexico’s two largest rivers. But we will nevertheless benefit in important ways, [Estevan López, head of the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission] said, as the extra water from this year’s snowpack buys time to work on long-term problems in the Colorado Basin.

The problem for the past decade has been drought on the river system that supplies a significant amount of the water supplies used by seven Western states, including New Mexico. For us, the San Juan River, a tributary, supplies drinking water to Albuquerque and Santa Fe via the San Juan-Chama project. The San Juan also supplies water to meet the Navajo Nation’s water rights, as well as irrigating farms in the state’s northeastern corner.

The question lingering throughout the conference is how reliable that supply might be in the long run, for us as well as the six other U.S. states and Mexico that also rely on the Southwest’s largest river system. And if the Colorado gets less reliable – if, in the long run, it has less water to offer even as we keep growing and trying to use more of it – who will take the hit? Whose share of the limited resource will be reduced? A new federal study released in conjunction with the conference forecast that the Colorado could have 9 percent less water on average by 2050 as a result of climate change, with persistent drought growing more common…

And that is where the real benefit to New Mexico in the giant snowpack lies, López said. “This big snowpack in the basin has bought us some time to work on those issues.”

From The Denver Post (Analisa Romano):

Michael Lewis, who manages water data at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Water Science Center in Lakewood, said cooler temperatures over the weekend have resulted in a steadily melting snowpack instead of a dramatic peak, as was expected last week. Snowpack is still about 239 percent of the average for this time of year, which means rivers could flow at higher levels into the first week of July or longer in some areas, Lewis said…

Meanwhile, restrictions on inner tubes and air mattresses will remain in place for the Colorado River until June 24, and the Yampa and Poudre rivers until early July, officials said. Because of less dramatic water flow this week, Clear Creek and Boulder Creek do not have any restrictions in place.

From the Associated Press (Cristina Silva):

The [Lower Basin states] can thank the heavy and, in some cases, unprecedented snowpack in Wyoming, Utah and Colorado. The ripe June sun is sending snowmelt into the Colorado River, its tributaries and Lake Mead, the nation’s largest reservoir located outside Las Vegas. “This is obviously really welcome, great news,” said Jeffrey Kightlinger, CEO of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, which serves 19 million people. “It’s been a godsend.”

The water comes at a crucial time for the Southwest. After 10 years of receding water levels that threatened a regional water shortage, this year’s melting snows are expected to grow Lake Mead, the chief source of water for the three states and Mexico, by 40 feet or more. The jubilation in California, Arizona and Nevada is not a case of wishing neighbors ill, only the reality of nature’s polarizing impact in the water-poor West. Brutal, prolonged winters in the north produce robust, life-giving water flows in the south…

Roughly 96 percent of Mead’s water comes from melted snow in the upper Colorado River basin states: Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Wyoming. By November 2010, the water in the reservoir had fallen to 1,081 elevation feet, a historic low and a mere six feet above the point that would trigger a large reduction of Arizona and Nevada’s share of the Colorado River. If that trend had continued, Arizona and Nevada could have had to begin water rationing this year. That outlook changed during late winter as snowstorms blanketed Western mountains from the Rockies to the Sierra Nevada. By June, there was more cumulative snow than ever in the upper basin states that feed into the Colorado River, said Kevin Werner, a hydrologist for the National Weather Service’s Colorado Basin River Forecast Center. As a result, Lake Mead is expected to grow to up to 1,126 feet by December. At full stage, the lake registers at more than 1,200 elevation feet. For public water utilities, the engorged river will buy officials more time to plan for the possibility of a future without Lake Mead, a nightmarish prospect across the Southwest. Some researchers believe long-term drought, climate change and an ever increasing demand for water could leave the lake dry by 2021.

Yampa River Festival recap: The sun showed up off and on on Saturday

From Steamboat Today ( Luke Graham):

The Yampa River Festival featured a bit of everything Saturday. The day began off the water with 5- and 1-kilometer running races. There was a stand-up paddleboard race at Fetcher Pond, the cult-like raft race, the crowd-pleasing Crazy River Dog contest, an inner tube rodeo, and finally the kayak rodeo, where vintage crafts were the main show. The raft race, which began at Fetcher Pond and ended at the D-Hole in front of the Depot Art Center, featured competitor of all stripes. There were serious rafters, first-timers and people dressed in only their underwear…

The stand-up paddleboard race was a new event. Todd Givnish, who organized it, said he wasn’t expecting much. But by 12:45 p.m., people already were lining up to give the burgeoning sport of paddleboarding a try…

As one of the only events on the calm waters of Fetcher Pond, the paddleboard event brought out newbies and experienced paddlers for a timed race. Racers had to paddle the length of the pond and navigate around designated markers…

The Paddling Life Pro Invitational starts at 11 a.m. Monday with an extreme kayak race on Class IV-V Fish Creek followed by kayak rodeos at the D-Hole from noon to 5 p.m.

More Yampa River basin coverage here.

Runoff news: Garfield County is starting to prepare for possible runoff flooding

From the Glenwood Springs Post Independent (John Colson):

Most officials contacted for this story now predict that peak runoff, which normally would be happening in late May, will not arrive until the latter part of June. “The water’s peak should have been about a week ago,” said Tanny McGinnis, spokeswoman for the Garfield County Sheriff’s Office. Now she expects it to fall in the middle of June…

She said free sandbags are available at the county’s road and bridge facility near the Garfield County Regional Airport, where they were delivered a week ago…

In general, however, she said the county is expecting to get some warning from its neighboring counties upriver once the snow begins to melt in earnest. “The high water will hit Routt County and Eagle County before it gets to us,” she predicted. “We’ll have several hours of notice, at least.” The confluence of the Roaring Fork and Colorado rivers, she said, “are the areas they’re really keeping an eye on right now,” because the confluence area has been known to flood in the past…

Estimates of the snowpack in the mountains above the Roaring Fork and Colorado River valleys range as high as 400 percent of normal, according to recent news reports. But such numbers can be deceptive, according to Mike Gillespie, snow survey supervisor for the U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service in Colorado. He explained that the “percent of normal” statistics relate to comparisons of the current snow depth to the average depth of the snow at a certain point in time. But as time passes, the average historical snow depth decreases sharply, so that in a year such as this one, the percent of normal increases to really high values simply because it’s being compared to a much lower number that is more typical for late May. But, he said, “That’s still a lot of water, a lot of snow.”

From the Summit County Citizens Voice:

“In spring, creeks and streams can be particularly dangerous as flows are often higher and faster than they are during the summer months and the water temperature is just above freezing,” said county emergency manager Joel Cochran…

“The rivers are deceptively dangerous this time of year,” said Sheriff John Minor. “During spring runoff, there is an incredible amount of debris in the water, and some of it is just under the surface” he said.

From the National Weather Service via the Cortez Journal:

Spring snow melt has caused high flows on many rivers and creeks in western Colorado and eastern Utah. However, cooler weather this spring has delayed the snow melt and kept copious amounts of snow at higher elevations especially in northwest and west central Colorado, as well as in northeast Utah. Therefore, river flows have not yet peaked. At higher flows, river banks can quickly become saturated and unstable. Caution is urged near waterways, as river banks can erode or collapse unexpectedly. Do not let children play near high flowing rivers, creeks, and canals.

From the Sky-Hi Daily News (Reid Armstrong):

The weather should start clearing Monday as the jet stream dips down over California, causing it to bow above Colorado, pulling warm dry conditions into the mountains, according to the Weather Service’s La Niña guru Mike Baker. Grand County could see temperatures start to warm up pretty fast with nighttime temperatures remaining above freezing for most of the week, Baker said. This is good if you’re a river raft guide, but maybe not so great if you’re a town manager worried about flooding…

As La Niña weakens in coming weeks, the jet stream should begin moving north, Baker said, leaving Colorado out of its path.

From the Loveland Reporter-Herald (Pamela Dickman):

“We’re looking at all-time-high flows,” said Brian Werner, spokesman for Northern Water. “Our minimum (estimate) would be an all-time record.” That means plenty of water for farmers and residents, the danger of possible flooding and both highs and lows for outdoor recreation…

Water and safety officials are worried about flooding if record snowpack disappears quickly, along with rain runoff. The snowpack is at 254 percent of average for this time of year, when snow typically already is melting…

Both Carter Lake and Horsetooth Reservoir will be full by the end of June.

From the Fort Collins Coloradoan (Bobby Magill):

The Poudre River is expected to remain low for most of the next week with almost no risk of flooding, but after that, all bets are off. “The next few days are fine because the temperatures are going to remain cool,” said hydrologist Treste Huse of the National Weather Service in Boulder.

From the Vail Daily (Scott N. Miller):

“If we can get through the Fourth of July we’ll be really pleased,” said Lisa Reeder, operations manager for Eagle-based Timberline Tours. “This year we’re pretty much guaranteed to get there, and we could see good water on the Eagle until Aug. 1.”

From the Cañon City Daily Record (Carie Canterbury):

The Natural Resources Conservation Service reported May 1, snowpack statewide was 135 percent of average, the highest since 1995, and the snowpack in the Colorado River basin was 151 percent of average, the highest since 1993…

John Van Oort, district 14 and 15 water commissioner for the Colorado Division of Water Resources, said the snowpack started to make its way downhill a couple of weeks ago, but stopped because it turned cold again. He said only Mother Nature knows when the frigid water will make its way down to the Arkansas River.

From the Fort Collins Coloradoan (Pat Ferrier):

Snowpack near the top of Poudre Canyon is more than 2½ times greater than last year when water ran higher and faster than it had in almost two decades…

A delayed, steady runoff – like manna from heaven – can sustain a rafting season well into August, and sometimes until Labor Day, said Pat Legel, owner of A Wanderlust Adventure, celebrating its 30th year of rafting the Poudre. Current conditions are similar to 1995 when spring was cool and rain fell 60 out of 61 days, Legel said…

Whitewater news: Still waiting for runoff

From The Denver Post (Jason Blevins):

That record-breaking snowpack — with the Colorado, Yampa and White river basins nearing 200 percent of their 30-year average and several others near 150 percent — harbors both a blessing and a curse for Colorado’s commercial rafting outfitters, who last year hosted more than 507,000 paddlers. When the weather warms, that initial surge of cascading snowmelt will certainly close stretches of steep and swollen rivers for commercial rafting and elevate the difficulty of traditionally mellower stretches. But that same bountiful snowpack also promises raging rafting deep into summer…

The last time the Eagle River ran deep into summer, in 2008 with the Colorado River Basin 146 percent of average in early June, the upper portion of the river hosted more than 4,300 commercial rafters. Last year, with a sudden early surge stealing all the flows and whittling the Colorado River basin to 57 percent of average in early June, the upper Eagle saw fewer than 1,100 commercial rafters.

More whitewater news here.

Whitewater news: Big year forecast for the Colorado River and the Green River

From BigTravelNews.info:

This spring / summer promises to be one of the top 10 best high water years on record for the Colorado River System in Utah and Arizona, reports Brian Merrill, CEO of Western River Expeditions http://www.westernriver.com/ that 50 years ago helped pioneer the sport of river rafting on white waters of the West.

“It’s possibly the best water year ever on Utah’s Green River in our half century of river running,” Merrill said. He noted that for raft enthusiasts and whitewater adrenaline junkies “2011 is THE year to book a river trip through Westwater or Cataract Canyons of the Colorado River or Gray and Desolation Canyons on the Green.” Also, the Bureau of Reclamation is releasing extra flow from Glen Canyon Dam which means higher water through the Grand Canyon this year. (The water release strategy is an effort to increase the level of Lake Mead.)

Merrill anticipated that high water would continue through late July this year; ordinarily it tapers off at the end of June. The public may monitor Colorado and Green River drainages on a daily basis by going to: http://www.cbrfc.noaa.gov/rec/rec.php.

More whitewater coverage here.

Rafters gearing up for what could be an ‘epic’ rafting season

From the Aspen Daily News (Dorothy M. Atkins):

The cold temperatures and large amounts of precipitation that have been plaguing Aspenites through the off-season have assured many rafters that the Roaring Fork River will have plenty of snowpack to pull from to maintain river flow well into the summer…

The Fork is fueled by snowmelt from snowpack located up Independence Pass. The gauging station located on Independence Pass is reporting 21.6 inches, — 159 percent of average snowpack — according to the Roaring Fork Conservancy…

This year with more snowpack and colder temperatures, the hope is that the Fork will remain navigable through August…

“I hate to say I have any expectations, because who knows what will happen,” said raft guide Casey Vandenbroek. “I would be so stoked to be on Slaughterhouse until mid August, and I feel like we have enough snow if we just get a nice steady melt.”

A nice steady melt is what everyone is hoping for this year.

From The Greeley Tribune (Dan England):

This season, boaters expect water levels may even surpass that 1983 record of just under 6,000 cubic feet per second. Those are water levels that bring elation from experienced boaters, concern from law enforcement and rescue personnel and a mix of the two from rafting companies…

The only thing for certain is the water should be higher than it’s been in years, and it will probably be a few weeks before boaters really see it. Even if it does warm up in a hurry, said Bell, a kayaker and atmospheric scientist, it takes a while to start the melt with such a deep snowpack, which could mean a peak later in June.

More whitewater coverage here.

Buena Vista: PaddleFest May 27 — 29

From The Mountain Mail:

Hosted by Colorado Kayak Supply, the weekend celebrates the start of the summer paddling season. Additional events include water education, fun competitions, the Buena Vista Pro/Am Rodeo, beer gardens, live music, and movie premieres. Water events include free stand up paddle board and kayak demonstrations, competitions for youths and adults, and high caliber educational on-water courses. Competitions and river demonstrations will be at South Main Square. Flat water paddling events will use the town lake in McPhelemy Park…

More information is at www.ckspaddlefest.com.

More whitewater coverage here.

Runoff news: There’s a 50% chance that the peak could be 80,000 cfs in Cataract Canyon this year

From PRLog.org:

The latest projection from the Colorado Basin River Forecast Center in Salt Lake City, Utah has projected the Colorado River in Cataract Canyon to have a 50% chance of peaking at over 80,000 cfs (cubic feet per second). Since 1985 the Colorado River has only reached 80,000 cfs one time. That happened on June 19, 1995 when the Colorado River peaked at 80,700 cfs.