May 6, 2008 - Northern Colorado Business Report "Two bills to protect the state's groundwater from potential uranium mining contamination and strengthen the public's right to know about prospecting activities were passed by the Colorado General Assembly on May 5 and now await Gov. Bill Ritter's signature to become law..."
State ponders purchase of Blue Mesa water
May 15, 2008
Will Shoemaker
Times Staff Writer
http://www.gunnisontimes.com/index.php?content=C_news&newsid=5550
WSJ: Sewer to Spigot: Recycled Water
The Wall Street Journal
By ANJALI ATHAVALEY
May 15, 2008; Page D1
A growing number of cities and counties grappling with water shortages are turning to a solution that may be tough for some homeowners to stomach: purifying wastewater so that residents can drink it....
PAWSD fees stir debate
Pagosa Springs Sun
When another man questioned why PAWSD growth projections and anticipated Dry Gulch Reservoir costs were so much higher than those of the town or state, Schmidt explained that state growth projections over the past decade were off by 40 percent. He also discounted the accuracy of town and state reservoir studies, claiming they considered only the cost of building a new dam and not a related treatment plant and delivery systems.
Pagosa Realtor Mike Heraty asked why the PAWSD board seems unable to justify costs connected to developing Dry Gulch. He continued, by suggesting PAWSD “went around voters” while borrowing $11.2 million to buy land for the future impoundment.
As Wessels took offense to Heraty’s comments, then attempted to explain how voters will yet decide the eventual size and total cost of the reservoir, Heraty illustrated his frustration by leaving the room.
Denver Water Board extends olive branch to West Slope
By Tonya BinaSky-Hi Daily News May 8, 2008
Denver Water may be owning up to the impacts its water diversions have had on Grand County water sources.
At the State of the River meeting hosted by the Colorado River District in Granby on Tuesday, Denver Water Manager Chips Barry commented the water supplier is working to “mitigate the past” as it takes care of the future.
The statement comes as Denver Water seeks to develop 18,000 acre-feet per year of new water to Denver users by developing a Moffat collection system.
http://www.skyhidailynews.com/article/20080508/NEWS/630773938
DENTRY: Nature lovers ride to rescue
The Rocky
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
A cavalry made up of sportsmen, conservation groups and San Luis Valley residents have charged to the rescue of public lands along the upper Rio Grande just days before those lands were to be sacrificed to energy development.
Sportsmen's groups joining the battle included Trout Unlimited, Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, the Colorado Wildlife Federation and the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. The latter described the protests as "a blistering wave of criticism."
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/may/07/dentry-nature-lovers-ride-to-rescue/
Dils gets top award from river forum
By CHRIS WOODKATHE PUEBLO CHIEFTAIN
WESTCLIFFE - Newly minted Colorado Water Conservation Board member Reed Dils was honored by Arkansas Valley water users Wednesday for his years of work on water and conservation issues.
Dils was elected by the Arkansas Basin Roundtable as its recreational representative in late 2005, was a founding member of Collegiate Peaks Anglers Chapter of Trout Unlimited and represented his own and other river rafting companies when whitewater experiences were a fledgling industry for the Arkansas River. In the mid-1980s, he was involved in the formation of the Arkansas River Headwaters Recreation Area, and subsequently helped to develop the voluntary flow program for the Upper Arkansas River in 1990.
Especially this year, the Gunnison River deserves a spring cleaning
GJ Sentinel Guest Column from TU's Colorado Water Project Director, Drew Peternell: This spring, for the first time in more than a decade, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation has an opportunity to provide the Gunnison River with a large flushing flow like those that occurred periodically prior to the construction of Blue Mesa, Morrow Point and Crystal reservoirs.
Thanks to the most significant snowpack in the Gunnison Basin in years, the bureau — the agency that manages the Aspinall Unit, as the three reservoirs are known — should have ample water to release a large flushing flow this spring to re-create more natural conditions downstream in the Gunnison River.
http://www.gjsentinel.com/search/content/news/opinion/stories/2008/05/04/050408_Peternell_col.html
DOW to sample fish in Parachute Creek
Phillip YatesGlenwood Springs correspondent Aspen, CO Colorado April 30, 2008
Ken Neubecker, president of Colorado Trout Unlimited, said the DOW's efforts to sample the fish population in Parachute Creek was a good idea, especially in light of sediment allegations raised by the Colorado Attorney General.
Bringing back trout
“Man, while trying to meet his own basic needs of food and water, has devastated that river,” said Chuck Howard, a member of St. Vrain Anglers. “Slowly, over time, you change the character.”
So when Boulder County began making progress in negotiations with private landowners that promised future access to the long-restricted area, St. Vrain Anglers — a local chapter of the angling and activist group Trout Unlimited — decided to take action.
http://www.timescall.com/outdoors/outdoors-story.asp?ID=8190
