The problem from which all others stem, including the changing fish communities, and the reason Powell is so low in the first place is the climate-change-driven supply-demand imbalance, Schmidt said.
Category: Water
Our water desk, staffed by Heather Sackett, produces the most authoritative reporting available on Roaring Fork and upper Colorado river basin water policy and politics.
Posted inWater
Early peak runoff for Western Slope rivers
For several locations — the Roaring Fork at Glenwood, the Crystal, the San Miguel and the Colorado at Cameo — the peak came so early that it was outside the window of what’s considered normal.
Posted inWater
Pitkin County agrees to fund ditch piping project
But to complete the final 3,600 feet, the ditch company is turning to public sources of money because they say the project will have the public benefit of keeping between 0.5 and 1 additional cubic feet per second of water in Hunter Creek.
Posted inWater
Marble quarry must build bridge, culvert and improve stream for Clean Water Act violation
The mining company said the Army Corps required them to choose compensatory mitigation that was “in-kind” to the impacts on Yule Creek and as close as possible to the affected area.
Posted inWater
Stream management planning watered down by agriculture
That divisiveness reveals the tension between traditional water users like agricultural producers, who take water out of the rivers, and recreational and environmental water advocates, whose goal is to keep water in the river.
Posted inWater
Lawmakers suspend attempt at legislative fix for water speculation
Still, the threat from out-of-state, urban interests loomed large at Thursday’s hearing.
Posted inWater
Spring runoff forecast looks better than last two years
But even though things on the whole are better than the previous two years, the lingering effects of drought means reservoirs are depleted and may take several seasons to rebound.
Posted inWater
Glenwood Springs secures water right for whitewater parks
Cities have long dictated water policy, even as river recreation represents a growing segment of the state’s economy.
Posted inWater
Ruedi Reservoir at lowest level in two decades
Something that may influence if and how Ruedi fills this year is a phenomenon called the “April hole.”
Posted inWater
Lake Powell to dip below target elevation
As this angered some in Colorado, and the amount of water is proving to be the proverbial drop in the bucket, questions of the impact of the releases and were they worth it generate debate.