Recreation rights stave off change

APRIL 19, 2006 | Colorado recreation groups continue to stave off agricultural attempts to throw sharp limits around the amount of water which can be held as rights for recreation purposes.
The measure sought by farm interests is Colorado Senate Bill 37, which critics say would givewater right now used for recreation - most notably kayaking - into a limited and secondary status. The measure passed the Senate, but controversy developed over the last couple of months, and the measure appears to be on hold in the House. Efforts at compromise were, however, underway by mid-April. [see the Sterling (CO) Journal-Advocate, April 18]

Water swaps continue apace

APRIL 16, 2006 | The Pueblo Chieftain on April 16 reported on the hot pace of water rights exchanges among Colorado Front Range cities, becoming more intensive even as a string of five court cases continue to narrow the rules of the exchange game. The cities of Colorado Springs, Aurora (east of Denver) and Pueblo have been the major players in these developments, and the seminal agreements now are almost two decades old, having grown from a series of deals struck in 1987.
"Without the exchanges, the only reliable way for Colorado Springs and Aurora to use water rights from farms purchased in the 1980s would have been to build a pipeline from the lower valley," the paper noted. "Two new exchange decrees are being sought by Colorado Springs; one by Aurora with its lease partner, the Highline Canal; and two by the Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District. Pueblo is still deciding whether it will jump into this round with its own filing as well.

Water courts would enter quality arena

MARCH 7, 2006 | A bill circulating in the Colorado Legislature would allow water courts to settle some issues of water quality, as well as traditional elements of water rights. House Bill 1352, floor sponsored by Rep. Buffie McFadyen, D-Pueblo West, would expand the reach of what water court judges could do in setting water quality standards - a major change from past procedure.
The idea has proven controversial: On March 6 the House Committee on Agriculture, Livestock and Natural Resources split 6-5 in ultimately sending the measure to the House floor. [see the Sterling, Colorado, Journal Adovcate, March 7]

Water goes mass media

FEBRUARY 27, 2006 | Colorado's Water: Headwaters of the West made its debut January 9, at a Premiere Party held at 7NEWS. This collaboration between 7NEWS, the Colorado Foundation for Water Education, Denver Water, the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District, Aurora Water, and the City of Boulder offers both online and on-air resources to help viewers learn more about water, watersheds, weather and the environment.
In addition to nightly features by Chief Meteorologist Mike Nelson, you can also go online at www.thedenverchannel.com and click on "Colorado's Water." There, a dynamic new web site allows you to access real-time data such as local stream flows and snowfall information, enter your zip code to discover which watershed you live in, check on local water-related events and activities, and much more.
Thanks to computer-aided satellite imagery, you can also fly through your watershed for a birds-eye view from above. Currently only the South Platte watershed is available to fly through, but the additional watersheds of Colorado will be available soon. Streaming video of Mike Nelson's recent weather and water-related broadcasts are also available. Information in the "Learning Center" is great for school-age kids and adults.
This is an ongoing program documenting the interplay of weather and water issues throughout the year, so be sure to tune in or log on regularly to look for new updates and features.
The Colorado Foundation for Water Education was created in 2002 to promote better understanding of water resources through education and information. It publishes Headwaters magazine and offers leadership trainings, conferences and publications on topics such as water law, water quality and conservation. The Foundation is the only non-advocacy water education organization in the state.
Call Foundation offices at (303)377-4433. or call Karla Brown (303) 377-4433.

Green Mountain deal set

JANUARY 22, 2006 | In the spirit of cooperation and compromise, Federal and Colorado water officials have reached agreement on how to share Green Mountain Reservoir water if releases are constrained by concerns about earth movement around the community of Heeney or by maintenance of the dam.
The settlement was announced December 9, by representatives of the U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Reclamation, the Colorado River Water Conservation District, and the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District.
The agreement represents a collaborative resolution to a lawsuit filed by the Colorado River Water Conservation District and other West Slope water users. The suit contested how Reclamation allocated Green Mountain water releases in 2002 as a precautionary move to ensure that reservoir draw-down did not contribute to the pre-existing landslide.
Reclamation continues to study the ancient earth movement, but has not established what, if any, links exist between reservoir operations and the landslide.
Under the settlement agreement, should reservoir operating limitations affect future water deliveries, the parties agree to carry out water-management measures that include conservation, locating alternative sources of stored water, and, if necessary, sharing any shortages created by operational limitations at Green Mountain Reservoir. Neither the lawsuit nor the agreement addresses water shortages caused by drought.
Reclamation operates Green Mountain Reservoir as part of the federal Colorado-Big Thompson Project (C-BT), for the benefit of the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District and West Slope water users. Parties to the agreement are the U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Reclamation, Colorado River Water Conservation District, Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District, Grand Valley Water Users Association, Orchard Mesa Irrigation District, Grand Valley Irrigation Company, Palisade Irrigation District, Middle Park Water Conservancy District, and the State of Colorado. The Green Mountain Reservoir was built from 1938-1943 by Reclamation, which releases water to the Colorado River when project facilities upstream on the Colorado are diverting water through the Continental Divide to cities and irrigators that are part of the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District.
Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District; Contacts: Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District: Brian Werner, Public Information Officer; (970) 622-2229; Bureau of Reclamation, Great Plains Regional Public Affairs: Mark Andersen; (406) 247-7609; Colorado River Water Conservation District: Jim Pokrandt, Education and Communications; (970) 945-8522.

TAKING ON THE MEXICO CITY FORUM A guest opinion in the Cook County News Herald of Grand Marais, Minnesota, blasted the approach taken at the March Fourth World Water Forum in Mexico City which equated water rights with human rights.
"After the first day of the meeting, however, it became clear that the government and corporate agents were only interested in turning water management into a business opportunity, whereupon the NGOs and activists established an alternative forum intent on identifying access to clean water as a fundamental right . . . If we accept the position that water is a common good, and an inalienable right shared by all people, does that mean that folks in China or France have as much right to Lake Superior’s water as we do?
Perhaps we would be better served if we didn’t use the concept of human rights to justify our control of Lake Superior’s water, but rather, focused on Cibber’s observation that possession is eleven points in the law."