But there has been a recognition in recent months by some Upper Basin officials that their states will have to participate in some kind of future conservation program — SCPP or otherwise — on a river whose flows have declined over the past two decades due to drought and climate change.
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
Colorado has big dreams to use more water from the Colorado River. But will planned reservoirs ever be built?
In the era of historic drought, climate change and crashing reservoir levels, where users already see shortages in dry years, some say this amount of water for new development simply does not exist.
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River District talks water for the Roaring Fork at BOCC work session
Where the River District stands on the health of the Roaring Fork is relevant to another important water discussion: the River District’s plan to purchase the Shoshone water rights.
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Water managers deadlocked on Colorado River
The two basins have not moved any closer to a consensus during their nine-month-long standoff.
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River District asks for $40 million in federal funding for Shoshone water rights
A better estimate of historic use, the River District says, should be based on flows at the Dotsero gauge upstream of the plant’s diversion from the river, a calculation they call the “administrative flow.”
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Officials say water conservation program harmed Grand Valley irrigators
Norris said that GVIC’s system of nearly 100 miles of canals that serve about 40,000 acres between Palisade and Mack needs all of its water to function properly and that reducing the call harms all of the company’s water users.
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Extended Shoshone hydro plant outages add urgency to water rights campaign
When the Shoshone plant is offline, the instream flow right would be activated to continue pulling water downstream, making ShOP obsolete and solidifying a critical water right for the Western Slope.
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Groups continue working on Crystal River protections
Subcommittee members said better understanding how that would play out in the Crystal River basin will require more work.
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Lincoln Creek workgroup has decisions to make
The memo encouraged the workgroup to look into either acquiring the Ruby Mine, which is located just upstream from the mineralized tributary, or developing a working relationship with the current owner so that the mine could be used to improve water quality.
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Feds rule that next round of drought relief funding won’t cover tribes’ unused water
Forbearance underscores the tension between the basin’s need to live with less water and the tribes’ need to benefit from their water rights.