Friday, June 2, 2006

Dust bowl? - pray for rain Here's an article from the Sterling Journal Advocate about the potential for eastern Colorado to return to dust bowl conditions. From the article, "Randy Buhler, agronomy agent with the Logan County Colorado State University Cooperative Extension, said the local wheat crop is in critical condition. Buhler said the Colorado Emergency Committee - which he is a member of - met last week and designated June 12 as a critical date. If the county has enough rain by then, area farmers will produce a small and damaged wheat crop. If enough rain does not come, there will not be a wheat crop. Buhler said 3 to 4 inches of rain is needed over the next two weeks to ensure the week crop's survival. The wheat is surviving off a small amount of water a day, trying to bloom and produce grain, Buhler said. But when that water runs out, the wheat will start aborting kernels. Eventually farmers will be left with no wheat yield before the plant goes completely dry, he said. Buhler said area wheat already suffered freeze damage from a frost earlier in the season. Those crops won't produce wheat. Once the remaining crops turn brown, they will not rejuvenate." "colorado water" 7:20:17 AM

The Colorado pikeminnow wins one for a change In-stream residents of the Colorado River Basin stand to benefit from coordinated releases of water from some of the dams in the basin, according to the Nature Conservancy. From the article, "Water managers in the Upper Colorado River Basin turned the valves to enhance the spring snowmelt peak and provide habitat for the native fish such as the Colorado pikeminnow and humpback chub. These fish evolved in the Colorado River more than three million years ago, during the Pleistocene Era, and only live in the big rivers of the Colorado basin... "The water releases surge through the Colorado's major tributary streams, like the Blue River, the Williams Fork, and the Roaring Fork, and converge at the Colorado River in Grand Junction to create flows greater than 18,000 cfs. (Without the coordinated releases, the river would have peaked at a much lower flow.) High flows help the fish by scouring out sediment and flooding back waters, creating conditions that native fish need to spawn and survive. Fast water also favors the native fish over the predatory bass and other non-natives that evolved in slow-moving lakes and rivers... "Established over a decade ago as part of the Upper Colorado River Basin Endangered Fish Recovery Program, the Coordinated Reservoir Operations Team synchronizes reservoir releases to help enhance peak flows. In years when snowpack is at or above average, some portion of this water bounty can be passed on to the Colorado River fish. This year is only the third time in the last decade that conditions have allowed for a coordinated reservoir release. 'As water issues continue to dominate state concerns, this season's victory is an especially sweet reminder that working together, we can balance the needs of both people and wildlife in Colorado,' said Charles Bedford, the state director for The Nature Conservancy in Colorado. The Nature Conservancy and Western Resource Advocates were quick to note that other challenges to the fish, such as nonnative bass predation, remained a problem. Coordinated reservoir operations are only one of many actions that the collaborative, multi-stakeholder Recovery Program undertakes for the benefit of the native fish. The Program restores bottomland habitat in river corridors, changes the operation of federal reservoirs to provide needed flows for fish, and builds fish screens and ladders. The Recovery Program includes an array of federal and state agencies, water and power users, and conservation interests, led by The Nature Conservancy and Western Resource Advocates, working to recover native fish while providing for human uses of water." "colorado water" 7:12:41 AM

Elkhead reservoir expansion Coloradoans realize that the expansion of already existing dams is one way to help develop sustainable water supplies for the future. Here's a story from the Craig Daily Press about one project at the Elkhead reservoir. From the article, "By this time next year, outdoor enthusiasts likely will be enjoying Elkhead Reservoir's resources again. The project is on schedule to open next summer, officials said during a media tour Thursday of the $27 million expansion project. The reservoir closed in December 2004. The reasons for expanding Elkhead Reservoir are as varied as the uses for an acre-foot of water, said Ray Tenney, engineer for the Colorado River Water Conservation District. They include saving endangered fish, providing recreational opportunities and storing water for future use downstream. The project that was 14 years in the planning is now in its last year of construction. The reservoir, which straddles the Moffat County-Routt County line, will almost double in size when it fills to capacity, possibly by next summer. The original dam, built in 1974, will rise from a height of 80 feet to 105 feet. Water storage will increase by 11,750 acre-feet. An acre-foot is about 326,000 gallons of water, enough to supply two average households for a year... "The tall concrete tower with various inlets is one of the first things visitors notice at the construction site. It connects to a tunnel that is 6 feet in diameter and 510 feet long that can drain the reservoir to levels below what was previously possible in case of emergencies or extreme drought. Also nearing completion is the new spillway, a sloping concrete ramp that can handle 28,000 cubic feet per second of water in a high runoff situation. Unlike the old structure, the new spillway is away from the dam to reduce any chance of erosion to the dam by water cascading down the spillway. Workers drilled hundreds of holes in the dam and filled them with grout to prevent any water from seeping through the dam. The spillway has numerous blocks of concrete at the bottom of the ramp to dissipate the energy of the moving water before it enters Elkhead River below the dam... "Fish such as the Colorado pikeminnow, bonytail, razorback sucker and the humpback chub will benefit most from the expansion, Tenney said. In a project funded by the Upper Colorado Endangered Fish Recovery Program through the federal Bureau of Reclamation, 5,000 acre-feet of water contained in the new reservoir will be allocated to protect endangered fish... "Spring runoff in 2007 should fill the reservoir once again, and construction on campgrounds and boat ramps can be completed. Water being let out of the reservoir will be adjusted by city of Craig Water Department workers. They will release water as required by leases downstream, including those of the Craig Station power plant and the fish recovery program. The city of Craig will gain access to 3,300 acre-feet of its leased water because the tower will have lower intakes than the structure it replaced. City of Craig Public Works Director Bill Earley said that 3,300 acre-feet will fill the city's water needs until the population reaches nearly 30,000, many years from now." "colorado water" 7:02:38 AM

Southern Delivery System Here's an article from the Colorado Springs Business Journal with background on the proposed Southern Delivery System. From the article, "The 1980s and 1990s were not good years for 'water buffalos' - the nickname given to the powerful, tough-minded men who conceive and direct major water projects. The Denver Water Board saw its plans for a massive dam on the Platte River near Deckers killed by the Environmental Protection Agency, while Colorado Springs was forced to abandon the Homestake II project in the Holy Cross Wilderness. In both cases, ad hoc coalitions of landowners, environmentalists and recreational interests opposed the projects. Dismayed, the water buffalos adapted to the new realities. As a retired senior utilities manager remarked recently: 'OK, we realized that we probably couldn't do transmountain diversions any time in the future - we'd have go to other alternatives. And that's why we went to Pueblo Reservoir and SDS - no environmental problems, no wetland problems, everybody's a winner ... at least, we thought so.' "SDS - the Southern Delivery System - seemed to be the solution to political bickering about new water projects. No new reservoirs, no transbasin diversions, no intrusion into wilderness areas, no environmental concerns to fight - just a pipeline running from Pueblo Reservoir to Colorado Springs. Thanks to a court decision in 1986, Colorado Springs was able to acquire extensive rights on the Arkansas, through exchange. SDS would enable the city to develop these rights in a cooperative way, partnering with other entities. Fountain, Security and Pueblo West would all benefit - and Pueblo would be guaranteed recreational flows for its downtown water park. SDS would cost nearly a billion dollars. And it would be expensive to operate - millions annually in pumping costs alone. But, most importantly, it could be built. Who could oppose a modest expansion of the reservoir, an unobtrusive intake on the dam face and a buried pipeline across the prairie?... "[Pueblo Chieftain editor/publisher Bob Rawlings] asserts that wastewater/stormwater discharges into the Fountain have caused downstream erosion, and have polluted the creek. Rawlings hasn't confined his opposition to writing newspaper editorials. Last year, in a stunning political coup, Colorado Springs lost control of the Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District. Lobbyist and longtime Rawlings ally Wally Stealy was elected board president, defeating retired Colorado Springs Utilities water chief Ed Bailey. The water district administers the federal Fryingpan-Arkansas project, of which the Pueblo Reservoir is a part. Absent the conservancy's support, SDS could face more hurdles... "But Rawlings asserts that he doesn't necessarily want to stop SDS - just make it better. His proposal: build a flood control dam on Fountain Creek to control stormwater and sewage spills. In addition, he wants Colorado Springs to recycle its wastewater, rather than sending it down the Fountain to exchange for water from Pueblo Reservoir. Then, and only then, should the city think about building SDS... "So what happens if Rawlings and his allies manage to kill SDS? One of those options, championed by developer Mark Morley, would involve diverting water from the Arkansas near Florence and transporting it north via a pipeline running alongside Highway 115." "colorado water" 6:45:11 AM

Colorado a national sacrifice zone? Rocky Mountain News: "More than 300 people showed up at Grand Junction's City Hall on Thursday morning to show their support and criticism of oil shale. About two dozen wore white T-shirts bearing a yellow diamond shape and the message: Go Slow on Oil Shale... "Organized by Sens. Ken Salazar, D-Colo.; Pete Domenici, R-N.M.; and Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, the hearing was an opportunity for the local community as well as state and local officials to voice their concerns as the government urges energy companies to extract oil from unconventional sources, including shale formations... "...Salazar sounded a warning bell. 'Before we take big steps forward with oil shale, we must answer several questions that are of vital concern to western Colorado,' Salazar said, adding that land and water use and economic feasibility of oil-shale development must be addressed. 'We must protect Colorado's water rights and gain a better understanding of the amounts of water that will be consumed to produce oil from shale and to restore the disturbed lands, Salazar said." More coverage from the Deseret News. They write, "A company says it can produce oil from shale mined from Utah within two or three years, at a cost of about $40 per barrel, and that notion has leaders in Washington, D.C., interested in ways to make it happen. Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, on Thursday visited sites south of Vernal where shale could be mined and processed... "It's estimated that Utah has more oil in shale deposits than there is oil in Saudi Arabia, according to John Baardson, chief executive officer of Oil Tech partner BAARD Energy. And throughout Utah, Colorado and Wyoming, an estimated 1 trillion barrels of oil are locked in shale, compared with about 700 billion barrels of untapped oil in the entire Middle East, he said... "Another worry is over the environmental impact that the mining and processing of shale will have on the area. Baardson said those environmental effects could be mitigated. No water is used in heating shale over 900 degrees to extract oil, and the process actually produces water. Once the oil is extracted, the byproduct could be used to fill in old mine pits or sent to coal-fired power plants to be used in a process that would reduce sulfur emissions, he said. The resulting coal ash could then be used in cement mix or as a gravel substitute, Baardson added." Here's another story about the meetings from the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. From the article, "Northwestern Colorado plays a key role in supplying natural resources for the nation, but that's no reason to make the area a national sacrifice zone, Mesa County Commissioner Craig Meis told members of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee at a field hearing on oil shale in Grand Junction. Meis encouraged coastal states to put forth their own contributions to the nation's hunger for energy, adding that visitors to Colorado, like visitors to Florida and California, don't take trips to see oil rigs. Last month, representatives from Florida and California joined to defeat a House measure that would have allowed more drilling in federal waters starting three miles off the coast. Representatives argued the drilling would harm beaches and tourism. Meis said Thursday that oil shale, in combination with the already staggering amounts of existing natural gas drilling in Colorado, could be too much for the state, which is also home to a thriving tourism industry." "colorado water" 6:19:04 AM

© Copyright 2009 John Orr. Last update: 3/14/09; 8:15:58 PM.