Coyote Gulch

Thursday, January 18, 2007

Immigration
Colorado Confidential: "What does the future hold for immigration laws that were passed last year in the heat of election season? Only time will tell. They have made Colorado home to some of the toughest rules in the country. They've also contributed to consequences that even legislators are admitting to."
"2008 pres"
8:28:56 PM

Watson for City Council?
TakeBackTheHouse (via Squarestate.org): "I am sitting right now behind my desk in Darrell's new campaign HQ at 2841 Colorado Blvd. I am in charge of the day to day running of the campaign, but I am aided in no small part by political veteran Lois Court who knows her way around Denver politics like few others. Lois used to work for Mayor Wellington Webb, and the legacy of the Mayor and of former First Lady Wilma Webb is a major aspect to understanding this district."
"denver 2007"
6:58:46 PM

Climate change
Boston.com: "House Speaker Nancy Pelosi sought on Thursday to create a special committee in an effort to jump-start long-delayed government efforts to deal with global warming and produce a bill by Independence Day."

Thanks to Oliver Willis for the link.
"2008 pres"
6:51:45 PM

Madison for City Council?

Say hello to Carla Madison. She's a candidate for Denver City Council District 8 where Elbra Wedgeworth is term limited.

The website is pretty well done. Navigation is easy. There's a tip jar available for those quick and easy donations. Nice photo in the header graphic. We like the endorsement tab. Supporters can declare their support online. No weblog. No email list. No events page. It's early. Welcome to the election Ms. Madison. We'll be watching.
"denver 2007"
5:54:28 PM

Tough Democrats?
Colorado Confidential: "Colorado politicos are keeping a closer watch on the 2008 U.S. Senate race now that incumbent Sen. Wayne Allard has announced that he will not run for re-election. At the same time, Democrat Bill Ritter today begins his second full week as Colorado's 41st governor. What does Ritter have to do with Allard? Nothing directly, but after having made a successful transition from Denver district attorney to governor with a landslide victory in November, Ritter is the embodiment of the return of a different kind of political opponent for Republicans: The 'tough Democrat.'"
"denver 2008"
7:28:32 AM

Tancredo for president?
Say hello to TeamTancredo.org, Tom Tancredo's website for his potential presidential run. Thanks to Dan Haley for the link.

Captain's Quarters: "One of the more amusing aspects of any presidential campaign is the people who believe they have a chance to win the nomination. This year, we already have one from each party. The Democrats have Chris Dodd, a man so non-descript that even his own constituents have trouble recognizing him. The Republicans now may have its own Don Quixote in Tom Tancredo, who announced the formation of an exploratory committee that will have to include windmills and some heavy-duty tilting."
"2008 pres"
7:25:53 AM

McCain for president?
Political Wire: "The Boston Herald's Brett Arends got an advance look at a new American Research Group poll from New Hampshire that shows Sen. John McCain's popularity among New Hampshire's independent voters 'has collapsed.'...Even more worrying for the McCain campaign is that ARG 'is finding a similar trend in other states polled, including early primary battlegrounds like Iowa and Nevada.'"
"2008 pres"
7:14:13 AM

New treatment plant for Bannis Lewis Ranch area

Colorado Springs has chosen a contractor for a new water treatment facility, according to the Colorado Springs Gazette. From the article, "Colorado Springs Utilities has hired a global leader in water and wastewater projects to build a $100 million sewage treatment plant south of the city to serve the Banning Lewis Ranch on the east side. MWH Americas Inc., based in Broomfield, will design and manage construction of the Clear Spring Regional Water Reclamation Facility. The firm employs 6,100 people in 36 countries on government, corporate and military projects. To be located near the Ray Nixon Power Plant about 20 miles south of Colorado Springs, the plant's first phase will begin operations in 2012 at 8 million gallons a day. The plant will be expanded to 30 million gallons when needed. The plant is being built to comply with the 20,000-acre Banning Lewis Ranch 1988 annexation agreement, which requires the developer to pay for the plant."

Meanwhile the Colorado Department of Local Affairs Municipal Water/Wastewater Enhancement and Treatment Initiative has awarded $2 million up in Routt County, according to the Steamboat Pilot & Today. They write, "More than $2 million has been awarded to three Routt County municipalities to aid pending water or wastewater treatment projects. The projects include replacing a water main in Steamboat, building a new wastewater treatment plant in Oak Creek and building a water line to Hayden's proposed site for a new police station."
"colorado water"
7:06:22 AM

2008 Democratic National Convention

Here's a short update on the 2008 Democratic National Convention from the Rocky Mountain News. From the article, "Now that the jubilation over Denver winning the 2008 Democratic National Convention is subsiding, backers of the effort will shift into high gear to raise $30 million locally to fund the event...

"In a related development, on Wednesday the local stagehands union issued a statement saying it looked forward to resolving labor issues at the Pepsi Center. The stagehands will work during the convention.
"2008 pres"
7:00:44 AM

Quagga mussels in Lake Mead

According to the Las Vegas Sun the infestation of Quagga mussels in Lake Mead seems to be localized to the lake's Boulder Basin area. From the article, "A statement from the National Park Service on Tuesday said divers found no evidence of adult, invasive mussels at Temple Bar, on the Arizona side of Lake Mead, or at the Willow Beach National Fish Hatchery, Cottonwood Cove and Willow Beach marinas on the Arizona side of Lake Mohave, about 12 miles south of Hoover Dam."
"colorado water"
6:48:21 AM

Yampa Straw?

The Northern Colorado Water Conservation District was over in Glenwood Springs yesterday briefing water officials on the proposed Yampa Straw, according to the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. From the article, "To stay out of the crosshairs, Northern commissioned a study by the engineering firm Black & Veatch to look into ways of meeting a projected need of 400,000 acre-feet of water in the South Platte River Basin by 2030. The study says meeting those growth needs would require drying up 133,000 to 226,000 acres of farmland in the South Platte Basin. Rather than dry up farmland, the study said a 500,000-ace-foot reservoir could be constructed on the Yampa below Maybell. A system of pipes, pumps and tunnels could be built for $3.2 billion, or about $11,000 per acre-foot, to deliver the water to the northern Front Range. It would cost about $3.9 billion, or about $13,000 per acre foot, to deliver it to Denver. 'This compares very favorably to cost projections for projects Denver metro water suppliers are considering,' Northern said in a press release about the project. The project would divert about 20 percent of the Yampa River water that now leaves the state, Northern said. 'The one missing item for the West Slope and the River District board is whether there is any kind of mitigation, any compensation for water lost to the West Slope,' [Chris Treese of the Colorado River Water Conservation District] said. 'It is not in the study and was apparently never part of the scope of the study.'"
"colorado water"
6:42:20 AM

Energy production and the effects on water

Here's a report on the goings on in the Colorado River Basin Roundtable, from the Glenwood Springs Post Independent "reg". From the article, "In December, the Colorado River Basin Roundtable considered eight proposals for project money ranging from water availability studies on the Roaring Fork to development of a whitewater kayaking park near Palisade. One of the proposals, which will be submitted to the Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB) for funding, is an assessment of potential water needs for energy development in the northwest corner of the state. 'The big concern as energy develops in the state is where the water will come from,' said Dave Merritt, chief engineer with the Glenwood Springs-based Colorado River Water Conservation District. The Yampa/White River and Colorado River roundtable groups joined forces on the project proposal. The collaboration made sense, given the current levels of oil and gas production within those basins, in Rio Blanco and Garfield counties, as well as expected oil shale development...

"Energy development, whether natural gas, oil shale or coal, will require huge amounts of water. According to the project's grant application, water will be needed for development of the resources, especially for oil shale and electrical generation...

"For the short term, while the research continues on the BLM leases, power will come from existing plants, Birch said. But when the companies go to commercial production, energy requirements will grow exponentially, necessitating on-site coal or natural gas-fired electrical plants. Demands on local towns and cities will also increase with the expected influx of thousands of energy workers. According to the grant application, which cited an estimate by the U.S. Department of Energy's National Technology Laboratory, oil shale will bring in 70,000 new workers to Colorado and Utah where that development is expected to take place."
"colorado water"
6:32:59 AM

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