Fishing for answers

Colorado Springs Independent By J. ADRIAN STANLEY

Here's the thing: Because CDOT is contributing funds, state law says the Colorado Division of Wildlife must review the plan and ensure the animal environment isn't damaged. So far, the wildlife folks aren't pleased.

Neither is Jack Hunter, president of the Cheyenne Mountain chapter of Trout Unlimited, a nonprofit dedicated to preserving and creating trout habitat. He says the partners ignored his organization's tips on improving the environment for fish.

Under current plans, both Hunter and Division of Wildlife representatives say, water would be too shallow for fish during warm months, while planned small waterfalls would act like barriers to fish. Rocks along the banks would leave nowhere to hide or feed.

The Division of Wildlife and Trout Unlimited argue that changes — such as adding more curves to the creek — could be made without sacrificing the project's other goals. Some ideas might even save money.

http://www.csindy.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A35130

Ouray Council Approves

The Watch

by Beverly Corbell

Feb 04, 2009

OURAY – A decades old water fight with the federal government came to an end for the Ouray City Council Monday when it voted to remove objections to a settlement for reserved water rights at Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.

The fight to protect those rights has been going on “for years and years,” City Manager Patrick Rondinelli said.

“The federal government tried to wipe out all water rights.”

A tentative agreement was reached in June of last year on the amount of water that should flow through the national park and was formally decreed by the Gunnison Water Court on Dec. 31.

The city previously withdrew its opposition to the proposed decree and effectively consented to the settlement, according to Rondinelli, but with the settlement adopted, the action by Ouray City Council Monday night was to ratify withdrawing that opposition, which passed unanimously.

The water fight involved many entities, including the Gunnison River Water Conservancy District, the National Park Service, Bureau of Reclamation, Department of the Interior, Western Area Power Administration, Trout Unlimited, High Country Citizens’ Alliance, and more.

http://www.telluridewatch.com/pages/full_story?page_label=news&id=1893014-Ouray-Council-Approves-br-Water-Deal&article-Ouray-Council-Approves-br-Water-Deal%20=&widget=push&instance=secondary_stories_left_column&open=&

Anglers take a lickin' on Habitat Stamp

By Charlie MeyersThe Denver Post

Posted: 02/04/2009 12:30:00 AM MST

Funny thing about Colorado's Habitat Stamp. Most folks I talk to think it's a swell idea to tack $10 onto the price we pay to fish and hunt and that the stamp should be reauthorized either in this session of the legislature or in the next.

But all this enthusiasm comes with a strange caveat. Hardly anyone likes what happened during the first three years of this fundraising project.

In an effort aimed both at reform and in keeping the stamp alive, an advisory group has arrived at a number of proposals to be codified into a bill that might be introduced in a couple of weeks. Otherwise, the stamp faces a do-or-die legislative firing squad during the 2010 session.

Among other changes up for discussion:

• The stamp would involve a one-time $10 cost, no matter how many licenses are involved.

• A stamp would be required to apply for big-game preference points, a measure to prevent abuse by non-resident hunters.

• A stamp would be required of those who purchase search-and-rescue cards.

• DOW could use stamp funds for maintenance and operation of these newly acquired properties.

• Finally, and foremost, public access would be considered a key element in any property selection.

This last element is of particular interest to an angling community that has paid for more than it has received.

"Our organization isn't looking for special treatment, but we don't want anglers to be put in a disadvantageous position," said David Nickum, executive director of Colorado Trout Unlimited.

http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_11621704

Old data fuels protest of oil, gas lease plans

By Mark Jaffe The Denver Post

Updated: 02/04/2009 01:11:04 AM MST

The proposed Feb. 12 sale of oil and gas leases on more than 81,000 acres of national forest, federal and private land in Colorado has sparked protests from the state, counties and environmental groups.

The sale is the most controversial since the $114 million auction of Roan Plateau leases in August.

That sale is the target of a lawsuit by environmental groups.

One major criticism of the upcoming auction is that forest parcels were chosen based on 1993 information about wildlife in the areas and dated science on how drilling might affect that wildlife.

Environmentalists argue that those older rules fail to reflect new information on species and major changes in oil-and-gas-drilling technology.

Trout Unlimited protested the sale on the grounds that it includes about 60,000 acres of prime cutthroat trout habitat.

"The problem is that just about all the cutthroat trout habitat is in this sale," said Cathy Purves, the group's science adviser.

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_11621716

Drainage project could hit a snag

February 3, 2009 - 9:56 PM

R. SCOTT RAPPOLD

THE GAZETTE

A $3.6 million project to improve drainage on Fountain Creek on the city's west side and keep mine tailings from Gold Hill Mesa out of the water is in jeopardy, caught between competing visions for the creek.

Should the creek be as natural as possible, capable of supporting a healthy fish population, or should it be an urban drainage channel, funneling water downstream as quickly as possible?

City officials say if they can't soon reach a consensus with the Colorado Division of Wildlife, which must issue a permit, the project may not happen.

The local chapter of Trout Unlimited, a conservation group that works to restore waterways, last week issued a news release objecting to the project. The group had been working with the Stormwater Enterprise on its design.

The DOW and Trout Unlimited have asked the city to not grout the boulders in the rip-rap, keep the creek narrower, deeper with more curves and bends, and to remove from the plan some of the cross-creek barriers.

http://www.gazette.com/articles/creek_47415___article.html/project_city.html

Colorado Water Congress 51st Annual Meeting

January 30, 10:51 AM

by John Orr, Colorado Water Examiner

The Colorado Water Congress' 51st Annual Meeting -- that will wind up today at the Hyatt Regency Tech Center -- is titled, "Water Buffaloes in the Mist: On Solid Ground in an Uncertain Time." The breakout sessions run from environmental issues through water law to the economy and infrastructure. 

Here are some highlights from yesterday:

Transition to Green

Panel members for this session were: Drew Peternell, Colorado Trout Unlimited; Becky Long, Colorado Environmental Coalition; Amy Beatie, Colorado Water Trust; and Tom Iseman, The Nature Conservancy.

During the Q&A the panelists were asked about the effects of climate change on their relationship with water providers, industry and consumptive use in general. Long said, "We don't have matching tattoos but we're hanging out a lot more now."

When asked about storage projects Peternell told attendees that TU is not against all storage projects but each has to stand on its own and weigh environmental requirements fairly.

A recent example was the filing by the Pagosa Area Water and Sanitation District for their proposed Dry Gulch Reservoir. Colorado Trout Unlimited filed an objection in water court claiming that the size of the reservoir was not in line with projected growth and that the planning horizon of 100 years was too long.

PAWSD got their decree but the Colorado Supreme Court said no, agreeing with TU.

The BLM and Forest Service are currently reviewing several Colorado stream segments for Wild and Scenic designation. The Colorado River District and others are trying to get support for a program that would manage those river segments as Wild and Scenic without pursuing actual designation.

Peternell said that that type of arrangement is acceptable to TU.

http://www.examiner.com/x-395-Colorado-Water-Examiner~y2009m1d30-Colorado-Water-Congress-51st-Annual-Meeting

PitCo seeks to leave more water in Roaring Fork

by Brent Gardner-Smith, Aspen Daily News Staff Writer

Pitkin County is taking unprecedented steps to keep more water flowing down the Roaring Fork River for environmental purposes.

In November, county voters approved a 0.1 percent sales tax worth $1 million a year to create a “healthy rivers and stream fund” to “secure, create, and augment minimum stream flows.”

“I am not aware of any other Colorado county putting in place a tax similar to what Pitkin County has done,” said Linda Bassi, the chief of the Stream and Lake Protection division of the Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB). Ken Neubecker, the president of Colorado Trout Unlimited, also supported the trust agreement between the CWCB and Pitkin County.

“I do think it’s a good idea to have such a trust, whether it’s with the CWCB or the Colorado Water Trust,” Neubecker said. “We need to have financial vehicles where money can be raised for acquisition of in-stream flow water.“

http://www.aspendailynews.com/section/home/131954

Colorado & Western Water Project Staff Notes

January 2009

Denver Post ran a story on aging dam infrastructure upgrades and on win-win partnership projects that improve both dam safety and fish habitat, with TU and Western Water Project state directors prominently featured. As Laura Ziemer, TU’s Montana Water Project Director, said in the piece, “We’re trying to get out of the fish vs. farmer box.”

http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_11424920

The water court signed the decree for the reserved water right for the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. This brings to an end one of the longest running water fights in Colorado history. The Park Service now owns a recognized and enforceable water right for peak, shoulder and base flows for the Black Canyon.

http://www.gjsentinel.com/hp/content/news/stories/2009/01/11/011209_1a_Black_Canyon_water.html

Colorado Water Project (CWP) has been reviewing and commenting on a bill to be introduced in the 2009 Colorado General Assembly legislative session that would allow small-scale precipitation harvesting on a pilot basis.

http://www.leg.state.co.us/clics/clics2009a/csl.nsf/fsbillcont/7EBE1FD8BEB4A0088725753C0061EF02?Open&file=1129_01.pdf

We are supporting a bill this legislative session that would create a state income tax credit for parties who donate water rights to the CWCB for instream flow use.

http://www.leg.state.co.us/clics/clics2009a/csl.nsf/fsbillcont/42FD0147CD5E7D6E87257537001A2E85?Open&file=1067_01.pdf

The Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB) will hold a hearing in January to establish rules implementing the Instream Flow Rules legislation we passed last legislative session. We have submitted pre-hearing comments.

CWP submitted comments on the Windy Gap Firming Project (WGFP) Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) to the Bureau of Reclamation and the Army Corps of Engineers. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) also reviewed the DEIS and gave the project a rating of “Environmental Objections – Insufficient Information (EO-2)”. This rating signifies that EPA has identified significant environmental impacts that should be avoided in order to adequately protect the environment.

http://www.cotrout.org/Conservation/WindyGapCommentExt/tabid/310/Default.aspx

CWP has been working with the Colorado Division of Wildlife throughout 2008 to develop instream flow recommendations on several stream segments that support populations of either Colorado River or greenback cutthroat trout. These recommendations will be submitted to the CWCB for their consideration. This action will initiate a state process that should result in the CWCB’s appropriation of instream flow water rights on these streams. The CWCB is the only entity in the state of Colorado that can hold an instream flow water right.

CWP and Colorado Trout Unlimited continue to participate in a “Shared Vision Planning” (SVP) process on the North Fork Cache la Poudre River near Ft. Collins, Colorado. The SVP process is intended to facilitate a common understanding of a natural resource system and provide a consensus-based forum for stakeholders to identify tradeoffs and new management options. Our objective is to work within the context of the Halligan-Seaman Water Management Plan to improve environmental stream flows in the North Fork and mainstem Poudre River. http://halligan-seaman.org/page.asp?pgID=48

Unusual alliances give dams upgrades

Conservationists, farmers and governments work together so that everyone benefits.

By Mark Jaffe The Denver Post

Posted: 01/11/2009 12:30:00 AM MST

When the 70-year-old Ruby Reservoir dam in southwestern Montana was seeping and needed a $12 million upgrade, it found an unexpected backer — Trout Unlimited.

Conservation groups such as Trout Unlimited are usually opponents of irrigation dams, which help farmers and block the free flow of rivers.

But in the case of the Ruby dam — and similar projects across the West — conservation groups are helping to finance dam rehabilitation with an environmental component.

In Colorado, the Nature Conservancy helped obtain $13.2 million for the Elkhead Reservoir on the Yampa River. In Idaho, Trout Unlimited obtained a $375,000 grant for conservation measures for a dam project on the Snake River.

"We are trying to get out of the fish vs. farmer box," said Laura Ziemer, director of Trout Unlimited's Montana water project.

http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_11424920

Decree gives park water right

By DAVE BUCHANAN GJ Sentinel Sunday, January 11, 2009

The last day of 2008 also brought the end of Colorado’s longest-running water-rights contest.

On Dec. 31, state water court Judge Stephen Patrick in Montrose signed a decree finalizing a water right for the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.

The decision recognizes a year-round base flow of 300 cubic feet per second along with seasonal peak and shoulder flows, echoing the natural rise and fall of the river, depending on water availability.

“This landmark ruling acknowledges that the Gunnison River offers recreational and natural resource benefits that deserve protection,” said Drew Peternell, director of Trout Unlimited’s Colorado Water Project.

http://www.gjsentinel.com/hp/content/news/stories/2009/01/11/011209_1a_Black_Canyon_water.html