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Governor's Conference on Managing Drought and Climate Risk: Day 2
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Graphic: Coyote Gulch archives
Droughts past, droughts present and droughts in the future. That was the theme for the second day of the Governor's Conference on Managing Drought and Climate Risk. Droughts are like economic recessions -- you don't know that you're in one until it's well on its way.
Colorado first drafted a drought plan in 1981 and has updated it several times since, most recently after the 2002 drought that caught many water providers scarily short of enough storage to get through the year. Readers may remember Denver Water's enforcement people making enemies across town, all the lawns burning up and Aurora scrambling to get some water on the open market when Aurora Reservoir was nearly drained.
According to State Engineer, Dick Wolfe, the next update of the state's drought plan is due in 2010. The updated plan will include information on projected population growth -- Coloradans are expected to double by 2050 -- and the effects of climate change. They also plan to roll up local drought plans into the state plan for completeness.
More storage is on the table as a long-term solution. Of course the old east-west schism between the rainy side of Colorado and the Front Range influences the views on storage. Should it be built on the eastern side where the people are or on the west slope with pipelines back over the mountains? Should any additional transmountain diversions be allowed?
Conservationists, fisherman, whitewater boaters and environmentalists would prefer to leave the water in the rivers for the recreation benefits and riparian health. The Colorado River Compact also looms. Any new appropriations will be lower in priority than the compact so there is the potential for interrupted service.
Groundwater storage was discussed yesterday. Colorado has a few good sites for alluvial recharge but state water law complicates the priority. Irrigators and water providers along the major streams would love to have more water replaced in the alluvial aquifers, they just want their priority protected when water is pumped out.
The Pueblo Chieftain listed four types of drought, "meteorological, agricultural, hydrologic and socioeconomic. A meteorological drought could mean a poor winter snowpack or no rain in summer. In agriculture, drought can mean the lack of rain at the right time for crops or poor soil moisture. Hydrological drought means lower water tables, depleted reservoirs and the effects on land use. The socioeconomic impacts occur as communities cope with lower crop yields, reduced recreation activities or other effects on the local economies."
The report from the Western Water Assessment that was distributed this week predicts that precipitation patterns will stay pretty much the same for Colorado. So expect more droughts -- some of them very long -- as that has been the pattern for thousands of years. Get rid of some of the turf in your yard. Shower with your steady.
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