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Weekly water roundup: Colorado River, Biofuel plant in Ignacio, Colorado River Compact
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Photo: Colorado River District via Coyote Gulch archives
Here's a look back at the week in water:
USFS considers parts of the Colorado River and Deep Creek for Wild and Scenic designation
Portions of the Colorado River through Glenwood Canyon and parts of a Colorado tributary -- Deep Creek -- are under consideration by the U.S. Forest Service for inclusion in the nation's system of Wild and Scenic rivers. According to the website:
It is hereby declared to be the policy of the United States that certain selected rivers of the Nation which, with their immediate environments, possess outstandingly remarkable scenic, recreational, geologic, fish and wildlife, historic, cultural or other similar values, shall be preserved in free-flowing condition, and that they and their immediate environments shall be protected for the benefit and enjoyment of present and future generations. The Congress declares that the established national policy of dams and other construction at appropriate sections of the rivers of the United States needs to be complemented by a policy that would preserve other selected rivers or sections thereof in their free-flowing condition to protect the water quality of such rivers and to fulfill other vital national conservation purposes.
Once a stream is designated the only activities permitted in that stretch are those that would improve water quality and the preservation of the natural environment. Development cannot reduce stream flows nor reduce water quality.
The Colorado River District is looking for alternatives to a Wild and Scenic designation as it may preclude any development upstream of Glenwood Canyon and in some cases it may effect current management of stream flows in the basin, creating, if you will, new requirements on the managers of the river. Wild and Scenic ties the hands of managers.
Colorado's only Wild and Scenic river is the Cache La Poudre above Fort Collins. The proposed Glade Reservoir was a compromise where water suppliers in Northern Colorado gave up a mainstem reservoir on the Poudre in exchange for the proposed Glade Reservoir. Glade is now under attack from those that feel it would dry up the river through Fort Collins.
Opponents of a Wild and Scenic designation can cite opposition to Glade as reason to reject the designation and the compromises it would entail.
Drift
Get your carpool together and head up the hill to Siverthorne Tuesday for the Summit County Trout Unlimited's fundraiser screening of the fly-fishing film Drift. Proceeds go to the Colorado Water Trust. Here's the lowdown from email:
When: Tuesday, November 18th, doors open at 6pm, film starts at 7pm
Where: Silverthorne Pavilion, Silverthorne, Colorado, next door to Cutthroat Anglers
How much: $10 gets you choice seating for the hottest, new fly fishing film, a cold brew, and other cool schwag! First 75 attendees receive a Fishpond Piopod.
Colorado River Compact
Last week the Las Vegas Sun caught up with Pat Mulroy and Kay Brothers from the Southern Nevada Water Authority on the subject of renegotiating the Colorado River Compact. As it turns out they're trying to move on from Nevada's anger over being shorted by the compact. There is no reason to pursue a renegotiation in their view.
They feel that a renegotiation might leave the lower compact states with less water. This is mainly due to the fact that the compact allocates 15 million acre feet a year but the river rarely produces that much water and most river watchers expect volumes to drop in the future. The original figure was arrived at during very wet times on the river.
They also realize that the environment did not have a seat at the table during the compact negotiations. Any renegotiation would have to take into consideration river and riparian health.
RGWCD groundwater management Subdistrict #1 trial
Down in Alamosa the trial over the management plan for the Rio Grande Water Conservation District's Special Improvement District #1 wrapped up last week. Closing arguments have been set for December 16th by District 3 Water Court Judge O. John Kuenhold.
The management plan seeks to reduce groundwater irrigation north of the Rio Grande in the "Closed Basin" area of the San Luis Valley by 40,000 acres. Surface water irrigators have been curtailed -- so that Colorado can stay within the requirements of the Rio Grande Compact -- while groundwater sprinklers were not.
The primary purpose of the plan is to avoid mandatory shutdowns of wells. In 2007 the state engineer shutdown over 400 wells in the South Platte River Basin for lack of permanent augmentation water.
Objectors to the plan say that it will not adequately compensate them for their past curtailments. They're also worried that the plan will exempt participants from future requirements under the compact that may effect the surface irrigators.
Biofuel from algae
Solix Biofuels announced plans to build a plant to generate biofuel from algae down on the Southern Ute Reservation. The plant will be located in a coalbed methane gas field and use the produced water that is usually re-injected back into the coal seams.
The algae require nutrients, carbon dioxide and sunlight to grow. Sources for CO2 include the pipeline running through the area that moves CO2 from McElmo Canyon to the oil fields of West Texas and Eastern New Mexico. The McElmo dome is the "Saudi Arabia" of CO2 according to operator Kinder-Morgan.
New fish ladder on McGinn Ditch
Boulder Open Space and Boulder Mountain Parks are going to build a fish ladder in the McGinn ditch to allow fish to move from Valmont and Baseline Reservoirs all the way to Eldorado Springs.
Wheat Ridge looking for stormwater plan B
On November 4th voters in Wheat Ridge turned down the city's request for funds to upgrade the stormwater system. Most cities in the area have formed a stormwater enterprise to deal with the problem.
On election day voters in Colorado Springs rejected former El Paso County Commissioner Douglas Bruce's initiative attempt to pretty much eliminate the stormwater enterprise the city set up a couple of years ago.
