Thursday, September 14, 2006

Clinton for president? Political Wire: "After reading a long profile of Bill Clinton in the New Yorker, it seems fairly certain he's gearing up for a presidential run by his wife, Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY)." "2008 pres" 6:17:35 PM

Legal Marijuana? Elevated Voices: "The war over the state initiative to decriminalize adult possession of up to one ounce of marijuana is heating up. SAFER Colorado, the proponent of the measure, suffered a defeat in court Wednesday when Denver District Court Judge John McMullen refused to block the description of the measure in the supposedly impartial 'blue book' that will go out to 2 million households. "In a nutshell, opponents of the measure are arguing that the initiative, now known as Amendment 44, would allow adults to give marijuana to juveniles, ages 15 to 17, so long as no money was exchanged... "§ 18-6-701, C.R.S. (2005), 'contributing to the delinquency of a minor,' criminalizes 'induc[ing], aid[ing], or encourag[ing] a child [under the age of eighteen] to violate any federal or state law.' Thus, transferring any amount of marijuana to a minor [defined as an individual under the age of 18] would be illegal. Violation of this provision is a Class 4 Felony. "Passage of Amendment 44 would not change § 18-6-701 C.R.S. "Judge McMullen, in dismissing SAFER's lawsuit over the blue book language, did not agree with the opponents' interpretation. He merely ruled he had no ability to order a change in the wording before the election." "denver 2006" 6:16:37 PM

Ritter or Beauprez for governor? The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel editorial staff has endorsed Bill Ritter for governor. They use the opportunity to take a few more pot shots at Bob Beauprez. "denver 2006" 6:08:00 PM

Ritter for governor? The Montrose Daily Press editorial staff has endorsed Bill Ritter for governor. The write, "With Gov. Bill Owens departing this November, change is coming to Colorado. It is in the hands of voters to make sure it's a change for the better - and they can do that by voting for Bill Ritter. Ritter, a former Denver-area district attorney, has much to recommend him. He's scrappy and, having supported his family as a teenager, knows that hard work is more than just a good sound bite for the campaign trail. He's honest in his personal views concerning abortion, but willing to support the law of the land, Roe v. Wade, over his personal agenda. Ritter supported Referendum C, which temporarily set aside portions of the crippling Taxpayers Bill of Rights so the state could dig itself out of a fiscal hole." "denver 2006" 6:46:05 AM

Colorado River Water Conservation District's annual seminar Grand Junction Daily Sentinel: "The effects of drought on the Colorado River, Lake Powell and Lake Mead are on the agenda Friday at the Colorado River Water Conservation District's annual seminar in Grand Junction... "The seminar, running from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Two Rivers Convention Center, will focus on how the drought and increased demand will affect the seven states in the Colorado River Basin and the water shortages agreement those states signed earlier this year. Lake Powell is half full because of increased water use and drought, a topic former Colorado Department of Natural Resources director Jim Lochhead will tackle during the seminar... "The seminar will feature presentations from Roger K. Patterson, assistant general manager of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California; Larry Dozier, deputy general manager of the Central Arizona Project; Rod Kuharich, director of the Colorado Water Conservation Board; Erik Kuhn, general manager of the Colorado River District and several other speakers. Registration is $35 and includes lunch. For more information, call Staci Jongsma at (970) 945-8522, ext. 210." "colorado water" 6:37:50 AM

State Supremes take up Cherokee water case Colorado Springs Gazette: "The Colorado Supreme Court on Wednesday heard arguments in a water case that will determine whether yards stay green and new rooftops continue to sprout in Cimarron Hills. The high court is expected to rule late this year in the high-stakes dispute between an El Paso County water supplier and the managers of the underground basin from which it pumps... "State District 2 Water Court Judge Dennis Maes in March limited how much water Cherokee can export from the basin. Cherokee appealed to the Supreme Court, claiming Maes improperly interpreted a 1999 agreement among the metro district, the basin's managers and the state water engineer. The court heard from lawyers for Cherokee, Black Squirrel and the state on Wednes- day. 'Cherokee can't just take that water and use it in any amount that they please, in any way that they please and any place that they please,' Black Squirrel lawyer Richard LiPuma told the Supreme Court. Cherokee, Black Squirrel and the Colorado Division of Water Resources agreed in 1999 that Cherokee would use eight wells in the northern part of Black Squirrel's basin to supply water for homes and businesses within the basin and for emergencies. In 1999, Cherokee planned to drill 10 wells in the southern part of the basin and use them to provide water to homes and businesses outside the basin. Cherokee then committed to supplying more water to new subdivisions within its boundaries but outside the basin. Cherokee drilled seven of the 10 wells planned for the southern part of the basin, but the wells did not yield as much as experts predicted, Cherokee lawyer Wayne Schroeder told the Supreme Court... "Cherokee considered the inability to get water from the southern wells to be an 'emergency' that qualified it to use the northern wells to supply out-ofbasin customers, Schroeder said. Black Squirrel disagreed, and Maes in March sided with the basin's managers. 'The word emergency ... does not include massive developments outside the basin,' Maes wrote. Maes in March ordered Cherokee to stop using water from the northern wells to supply out-of-basin customers. That put 2,300 acre-feet off limits to Cherokee, 45 percent of its supply. Cherokee's use of water from the northern wells prevents the basin from meeting agricultural demands for water within the basin, LiPuma told the Supreme Court. 'Exporting' water also hurts the basin because water dumped on lawns outside the basin doesn't soak through the ground and back into the basin, LiPuma added. Cherokee's water supply has dropped to an all-time low because of Maes' ruling and the drought." "colorado water" 6:33:00 AM

Union Park Reservoir really dead this time? Here's the local reaction to the death of the Union Park reservoir project from the Gunnison County Times. They write, "The original water right application that spawned nearly a generation of 'Not One Drop' opposition to trans-basin diversion attempts from the Gunnison Basin is finally, officially, dead. On Monday the Colorado Supreme Court handed down a unanimous ruling dismissing Dave Miller's half-century old plan to construct a reservoir in Union Park. The news was received with a collective sigh of relief locally and across other portions of the Western Slope... "Specifically at issue in this case was a conditional water right [Natural Energy Resources Company] received in 1982 to develop a 350,000 acre-foot reservoir in Union Park, located above the Taylor Park Reservoir and not far from the Continental Divide. The sole purpose of this water right was to produce hydropower via a complex 'pump back' system that would have shuttled water back and forth between the two reservoirs, running it through turbines on its way down. Miller amended this conditional water right in the late 1980s to create a larger, 900,000 acre-foot reservoir with plans to ship water to Front Range municipalities. Rounds of lengthy litigation ensued, including other rounds before the state Supreme Court. The courts continually struck those plans down, but the original hydro power right remained. Until Monday, that is... "Primarily, the Supreme Court ruled that NECO couldn't show that it could gain the necessary permission and permits to use Taylor Park Reservoir as part of the hydro-power plan. "Miller isn't ready to concede his seemingly life-long pursuit to develop a reservoir in Union Park, however. 'We think it's premature to talk about a coffin,' he said. 'This is too good of a project.' His latest plan, dubbed the Central Colorado Project, calls for taking water out of storage in Blue Mesa Reservoir, somehow channeling it to Union Park and then sending it to the growing Front Range cities. He is also adamant that the Gunnison Basin could benefit from additional high-mountain storage to meet growth and drought needs. McClow acknowledges that as long as a 'marketable yield' of Blue Mesa continues to be defined as a substantial pool of water, 'Front Range water providers will pursue acquisition of that water ... and its delivery to their customers.'" More Coyote Gulch coverage here. "colorado water" 6:24:09 AM

Arkansas River basin managment The Arkansas River roundtable has formed a committee to examine growth and the relationship to sustainable water supplies, according to the Pueblo Chieftain. From the article, "A committee to look at growth and mitigation for interbasin water transfers was formed Wednesday by the Arkansas Basin Roundtable. The committee is an outgrowth of Las Animas Mayor Lawrence Sena's comment three months ago that municipal growth should be tied to a city's ability to supply water. Sena said the purpose of the committee has grown following the first meeting of the group in August. 'My original intent was to see if we can limit growth. That's what's hurting this valley,' said Sena, who chairs the new committee. 'The studies that have been done aren't taking into account the effect of water taken from the basin, and they're not looking at those impacts.' "The committee, now given permanent standing by a unanimous vote of the roundtable, will meet again Monday to discuss proposed guidelines for interbasin transfers proposed by Sena. Sena's proposed guidelines include: Demonstration that water is not available in the basin of destination; Implementation of all practicable conservation measures before transfers occur; An analysis, conducted at the expense of water exporters, of environmental, social, cultural, economic and water-quality impacts; The study would be provided to counties where the water would be taken from and the roundtable; Mitigation at the exporter's expense; A call for cities to implement regulations to limit growth and development that worsens water resource shortages; Limiting the ability of water suppliers to sell water if it cannot meet its own water needs without interbasin transfers; Requiring exporters to assume permanent responsibility for revegetation of farmland dried up by transfers... "[Jeris] Danielson said there are many sides to the issues: from the decision by farmers to sell, to the real and pressing needs of cities for water. He said the IBCC has skirted the issue of how much water could be available on the Western Slope and from which basin it could come." "colorado water" 5:59:31 AM

Trout Unlimited: The deal flatly ignored the science Trout unlimited and other groups won a big victory around stream flows in the Gunnison River in the Black Canyon, in federal court yesterday, according to the Rocky Mountain News. From the article, "Former Interior Secretary Gale Norton's decision to let Colorado limit water flows in the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park was illegal and 'nonsensical,' a federal judge ruled Wednesday. U.S. District Court Judge Clarence Brimmer also said the 2003 agreement between Norton and Colorado was 'arbitrary, capricious and an abuse of discretion.' Brimmer's long-awaited decision was hailed by conservation groups as a victory over Bush administration policies they said ignored science. "Gov. Bill Owens and attorneys for the Interior Department hadn't read the decision Wednesday and were unable to comment. In the pact, Norton let Colorado set the year-round minimum flow at 300 cubic feet per second for the Gunnison River within the park. Trout Unlimited, Western Resource Advocates and other conservation groups sued, arguing that 30 years of federal research called for periodic higher flows of 10,000 cfs... "Federal law allowed for a much higher amount, but the lower figure freed up water for future users, potentially including Colorado's Front Range. Brimmer said the agreement on the lower flow, which relinquished significant water rights, was an unlawful disposition of federal property and 'nonsensical.'[...] "Miller, who likened the 2003 deal to the smoke and mirrors employed by the Wizard of Oz, represented several other conservation groups in the lawsuit. Brimmer said Norton's agreement with Colorado violated federal environmental laws and the Interior Department's duty to protect the park. In his 32-page ruling, Brimmer said Norton and the state bypassed federal law requiring an environmental analysis and public input 'in their zeal to reach a resolution.' Norton also illegally took away the duties from the National Park Service, Brimmer said... "Federal researchers found that periodic peak flows of 10,000 cfs or more protect the 3,000-foot-deep canyon by scouring out debris. Without the roaring spring flows, dead foliage, tree limbs and other trash would clog the canyon, researchers said. The high flows protect fish, beaches and vegetation in the gorge." Here's the coverage from the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. They write, "U.S. District Judge Clarence Brimmer scuttled an agreement between state and federal officials and said the National Park Service has the authority to demand enough water to meet the needs of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. Brimmer on Wednesday invalidated an agreement reached in 2003 that guaranteed a minimum of 300 cubic feet per second of water through the canyon, an amount that conservation organizations said was far too little to protect the park's scenic values and its famed trout fishery. The agreement also allowed the federal and state government's to sidestep the thorny issue of primacy over water. Colorado claims control of its water under the state constitution, leaving the federal government to compete against other users for water rights." More Coyote Gulch coverage here. "colorado water" 5:57:07 AM

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