Coyote Gulch

 



















































































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  Saturday, December 8, 2007


Energy policy: Oil and gas
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Make sure you buy the Rocky starting Monday. They're running a series on Colorado as a national sacrifice zone and the energy boom across the state. They write:

On Monday a 24-page section will focus on what has happened to the money that's been flowing into government coffers for decades from oil and gas drilling and what we can learn from what other states have done.

On Tuesday, a 24-page section will explore the environmental impacts of the boom, what's known and what we don't know.

On Wednesday, a 20-page section will chronicle how rural communities awash in prosperity from the boom also are experiencing labor and housing shortages and other social ills.

On Thursday, a 20-page section will explain the various proposals before the legislature and will share a cautionary tale of how Colorado's policies were formed decades ago in a session much like the one that begins in January. Thursday's section concludes with Gov. Bill Ritter and other state politicians, industry and environmental leaders debating the way ahead.

"2008 pres"
10:07:50 AM     


Climate change: The earth is a beautifully complex system
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Environment Colorado's new report When it Rains, It Pours: Global Warming and the Rising Frequency of Extreme Precipitation in the United States [pdf] is stirring up conversation and controversy. Here's a report from The Telluride Watch. They write:

Scientists have said for years that global warming was "loading the dice" when it comes to increasing the frequency of severe storms, and a new Environment Colorado report makes it clear that Colorado and the Mountain West is already experiencing extreme downpours and heavy snowstorms much more frequently. Specifically, the new report found that storms with heavy rainfall or snow are up 30 percent in Colorado and 25 percent across the Mountain West compared to 60 years ago. "At the rate we're going, what was once the storm of the decade will soon seem like just another downpour," said Keith Hay, energy advocate at Environment Colorado. Hay pointed to the rainstorm that hit Denver in March of 2003 as an illustration of what more extreme rainstorms could mean for the region. That storm dumped over five inches on the area. "More frequent downpours, fueled by global warming, will hurt Colorado's water quality and leave Colorado even more vulnerable to dangerous flooding in years to come," said Hay.

The new Environment Colorado report...examines trends in the frequency of large rain and snow events across the continental United States from 1948 to 2006. Using data from 3,000 weather stations and a methodology originally developed by scientists at the National Climatic Data Center and the Illinois State Water Survey, the report identifies storms with the greatest 24-hour precipitation totals at each weather station, and analyzes when those storms occurred. Nationally, the report shows that storms with extreme precipitation have increased in frequency by 24 percent across the continental United States since 1948. At the state level, 40 states show a significant trend toward more frequent storms with extreme precipitation, while only one state, Oregon, shows a significant decline.

Key findings for the Mountain West and Colorado include: storms with extreme precipitation increased in frequency by 25 percent in Mountain West from 1948 to 2006; Colorado experienced a 30 percent increase in extreme rainstorms during the period studied; Grand Junction shows a significant increase in the frequency of large storms with heavy precipitation, roughly estimated to be a 53 percent increase over the nearly 60-year period...

According to the most recent science, the United States must reduce its total global warming emissions by at least 15 percent by 2020 and by at least 80 percent by 2050 in order to prevent the worst effects of global warming. "Steep reductions in global warming pollution are challenging but achievable," noted Hay, "and we already have the energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies we need to get started." The U.S. Senate Environment & Public Works Committee is expected to vote on amendments to the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act of 2007 (S. 2191), a global warming bill introduced by Senators Lieberman (I-CT) and Warner (R-VA). While recognizing the important efforts of the bill's supporters on this critical issue, Environment Colorado said that the legislation must be significantly strengthened to address the challenge of global warming. Specifically, the bill's current pollution reduction targets fall short of what the science says is necessary to avoid the worst effects of global warming, and the bill gives away far too many subsidies to dirty and dangerous energy sources.

Readers will of course be surprised that dissenting opinions about the report are popping up already. Here's an article about the report from The Fort Collins Coloradoan. They write:

While a new study by a state environmental group says extreme storms in Colorado are on the rise due to increasingly warmer temperatures, a state climatologist and another climate expert doubt the validity of the study's methods...

Nolan Doesken, state climatologist and Colorado State University senior research associate, said precipitation is hard to predict and can vary depending on the time period the change is measured. "Had they done the same study from 1900 to 2006 instead of 1948 to 2006 they would have gotten some noticeably different results," Doesken said. "You really need the longest period of record possible for any study like this." With or without climate change, precipitation is extremely variable and hard to measure, Doesken said. "It makes it seem like we didn't use to have big storms, now we do," Doesken said. "We've been having big storms since the 1800s." Doesken said, although he believes there is cause for concern with climate change, the study might be somewhat exaggerated.

The study also claims increased precipitation with extreme storms could cause flooding and pollution of water ways. Based on past research, there is no evidence of increased flooding, said Roger Pielke Jr., director of the University of Colorado's Center for Science and Technology Policy Research and an associate professor of environmental studies. "There is no sign of increasing flood damages, even without considering the effects of population growth and development," Pielke wrote in an e-mail to the Coloradoan. Hay said that, although no one storm can be tied to global warming, it's clear the trend will be increased periods of dryness and extreme weather events, and something should be done about it sooner rather than later. "The carbon we have put up there is going to stay there," Hay said. "Acting urgently and aggressively now to address global warming will put us on a path that will hopefully lead to a decrease in extreme storms."


9:42:43 AM     

Orchard City adopts drought rules
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Orchard City has adopted a new ordinance aimed at drought mitigation, according to The Delta County Independent. From the article:

The Orchard City Town Board of Trustees, acting at its Nov. 14 meeting, unanimously adopted ordinance 2007-12 establishing "a drought mitigation policy to deal with critical water supply shortages or other emergency water supply conditions." The ordinance is intended to apply to the town's treated domestic water utility and supplies. The ordinance provides for the imposition of mandatory water use restrictions in times of water supply emergency; provides for mandatory water conservation measures in emergency situations; establishes a procedure for implementing water conservation measures; establishes criteria for the prohibited wasting of treated water; and, establishes the assessment of penalties for violations of the ordinance's provisions.

Mandatory water conservation measures and/or use restrictions will be imposed whenever either or both of the following circumstances occur: Daily demand on the town's water supply system for water service exceeds, or is anticipated to exceed, 95 percent of the system's water treatment capacity; The towns raw water supply or water treatment facilities are unable to satisfy daily water use demand, or anticipated water use demand, by reason of drought, mechanical or infrastructure failure, or natural or man-made catastrophe.

"colorado water"
9:14:41 AM     


Costs of water going up (as usual)
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Colorado Mountain College is being charged $171,000 in tap fees by the town of Rifle according The Rifle Citizen Telegram. From the article:

Doris Dewton and other officials from Colorado Mountain College were not happy when they left Rifle City Hall on Monday night. Colorado Mountain College was appealing the calculations used by the city to assess a nearly $171,000 tap fee for the new Colorado Mountain College West Garfield Campus in south Rifle...

College officials say students are there for about nine hours a week, during off-peak water usage hours, versus schools and colleges with full-time students. The city calculated the tap fee amount in May 2007 and although Colorado Mountain College officials didn't like it, they paid the fee anyway prior to their September opening. The city charged the college a tap fee for 16 Equivalent Residential Units, which college officials thought was too much. "We think they didn't apply the factors correctly," Dewton said. "But we needed to open the school so we paid it." According to city staff, however, the fees were in line with the city's tap fee schedule that is currently in place. After hearing testimony from both college officials and city staff, the hearing board entertained a motion to approve the tap fee levied by the city, which was approved 5-2. Council members Jennifer Sanborn and Jeanette Thompson dissented.

From The Delta County Independent, "[Crawford's] accountant, Pete Blair, has suggested raising the base water rate by $3.50 to pay for water tests required by the federal government. Currently water users pay a base rate of $13.90. If the increase is approved at the Dec. 12 town council meeting, the base rate for 2008 would be $17.40. The last increase in water prices was in 2001. The town has previously borrowed from the general fund and put it in the water fund. Those amounts have to be paid back to the general fund. Crawford water users receive 20,000 gallons a month included in their base rate. Gabby George, public works director, said Crawford has the second lowest cost for water users in the state. Sewer rates will remain the same in 2008, but the mayor said they too will probably need to be raised in 2009. Sewer users pay $18.50. With water and sewer, Crawford users will pay $36 a month in 2008, if the water increase is approved."

"colorado water"
8:58:58 AM     


Sterling: Dissolved organic carbon and unintended consequences
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Here's an in-depth look at unintended consequences and water treatment from The Sterling Journal Advocate. From the article:

Here is another lesson in unintended consequences. During the late 1960s and 1970s, environmental activists and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) worked hard to reduce the acid rain problem that was common in the northern hemisphere. Their work has proven successful. Now the University College London and the EPA are investigating the changes in water quality that resulted from the reduction of acid rain. Clear streams and lakes of the 1970s are stained brown in the 2000s. The brown color, caused by increased levels of dissolved organic carbon, is a return to more natural conditions. This change resulted from reductions of sulfur and nitrogen oxides released into the atmosphere from industrial plants. The research is published in the November 2007 issue of the journal Nature. They gathered the data during the 1990-to-2004 period. The study is billed as the main source of high quality, long-term information about the condition of our headwaters...

The new problem is that water treatment facilities are facing an increasing difficult and expensive task to remove the brown color from the water supply. Dissolved organic carbon and chlorine used for disinfection of water results in the formation of trihalomethanes, haloacetic acids, and increased concentrations of metals such as aluminum and mercury. Perhaps you noticed the problem with Sterling's water supply when you got your last bill. A flyer indicated that the allowable level of trihalomethanes was exceeded during the past year. The problem is directly attributable to the lower standard now in effect. The EPA changed the standard from 100 ppb (parts per billion) to 80 ppb. They knew full well that the change would force many small communities into expensive water treatment changes to meet the standard...

The chemistry of trihalomethanes production from dissolved organic carbon is not simple. The quantity of dissolved organic carbon, pH, temperature, and chlorine concentration changes the output of trihalomethanes molecules. The nature of the dissolved organic carbon is suspected as a significant determinant of the production of trihalomethanes. Cyclic or ring compounds, called aromatics by organic chemists, predispose the production of trihalomethanes. These compounds are more commonly formed in anaerobic (submerged or waterlogged) conditions. The EPA 2006 Edition of the Drinking Water Standards and Health Advisories classifies the four trihalomethane compounds as either likely to cause cancer or likely to cause cancer above a specified dose, but not below that dose in humans. How they arrive at these classifications is a very involved and lengthy series of tests and calculations modified by a safety factor of at least 100. If you have ever attended one of these sessions, you would appreciate the term soporific...

How the city of Sterling reacts to this problem will require study and evaluation of the choices of treatment available and budget constraints. Homeowners with their own water supply can provide a safer water supply for themselves by incorporating ozonation and UV light treatment into their water supply plumbing. A local chicken processing plant incorporated these into their water supply to meet the organic rules and health standards for their water supply with minimal expense and notable success. Alternate chemical treatments are available to municipal water supply facilities using ammonia and chloramine to disinfect the source water. Large ozonation and UV systems are also available to municipal water supply facilities. Creating a central water supply out of Sterling's scattered groundwater sources is an expensive proposition.

"colorado water"
8:52:06 AM     


Central Colorado Water Conservancy District assessments going up 400%
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The Central Colorado Water Conservancy District Groundwater Management Subdistrict assessments are going up 400% according to The Greeley Tribune "reg". From the article:

The current assessment of $2.80 per acre foot of water will go up to $12 starting in 2008. The assessment increase, only the fourth since 1982, is due to higher prices for leasing water said Tom Cech, the district's director at its annual GMS fall water users meeting Thursday at the Tri Pointe Events Center in Evans. The meeting drew about 150 people.

Cech said the cost of leasing water has increased from $20 an acre foot for the district about 20 years ago to between $70 and $80 for current lease agreements. Some water, he added, is leased for as much as $300 an acre foot...The increase [in] assessments is expected to result in an additional $600,000 in revenue which will be used to lease water and help with water replacement plans for wells within the subdistrict. There are about 1,000 irrigation wells within the subdistrict. The 220 wells in the district's water augmentation subdistrict are not effected by the increase.

The good news, Cech said, is that the mill levy on a $20 million bond for water purchases approved by district voters four years ago will be decreased from 2.5 mills to .5 mills next year. And this past spring was good to farmers within the district because there was seven weeks of "free" water on the river from mountain runoff and spring storms. The district stretches from Brighton along the South Platte River to Wiggins. A free river means water right owners are not calling for water making it available to anyone who can use it. Since irrigation well owners along the river were limited, or not allowed to pump, many farmers were able to take advantage of the river water. Even then, an estimated 60,000 acre feet of water that could have been used crossed the state line into Nebraska. But Randy Ray, operations manager for the district, said Central was able use 11,000 acre feet either as storage or in its recharge projects over what has been available for the past few years, noting "we were able to operate in the black all year."

"colorado water"
8:41:47 AM     


Round Mountain Water and Sanitation District hires chief executive officer
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From The Wet Mountain Tribune, "Round Mountain Water and Sanitation District has a new chief executive officer. Late last week, the RMW board of directors hired Joshua Cichocki of Fort Garland to serve at manager of the district. He replaces longtime district manager Bud Piquette who is retiring effective Jan. 7."

"colorado water"
8:31:19 AM     


Great Outdoors Colorado Legacy Grants
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Here's a report about the prospects of the recent Great Outdoors Colorado legacy grants on the Wet Mountain Valley from The Wet Mountain Tribune. From the article:

Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) has approved a legacy grant to extend the San Isabel Land Protection Trust's Wet Mountain Valley Ranchland Preservation Program to the southern end of the Wet Mountain Valley. The GOCO board approved full funding for the $2 million project on Monday, Dec. 3. San Isabel staff members Brian Riley and Kevin League submitted the $2 million project proposal to GOCO this past summer. Members of the GOCO Board of Directors and staff visited the project area in early October.

The Land Trust still needs to raise an additional $750,000 to complete GOCO's matching funds requirements. It is anticipated that matching funding will be provided by several organizations, including the Colorado Conservation Trust and the Trust for Public Land. The GOCO funds will be utilized to purchase the development rights on the Music Meadows Ranch, owned by the W.F. Parker family. The 3,800-acre working ranch is located below Music Pass, at the headwaters of Grape Creek. In addition to Grape Creek, Music Pass Creek and Crystal Falls Creek also traverse the property. Approximately 600 acres are prime irrigated and subirrigated agricultural land.

Currently the ranch supports an active and commercially viable summer yearling cattle operation. The property contains a mixture of open irrigated meadows, native rangeland, riparian areas and forestland, providing exceptional habitat for numerous types of wildlife, including elk, black bear, mule deer, pronghorn and mountain lion. The conservation easement on this ranch will be completed by the end of 2008.

In addition to protecting Music Meadows Ranch, Phase II of the WMVRPP will include several donated conservation easements. In 2007, an easement was completed on the 960-acre Livengood Ranch, located on the southern boundary of the Wet Mountain Valley. The Land Trust anticipates that the momentum generated by this project will lead to the future protection of an additional 10,000 to 15,000 acres of ranchland on the southern valley floor.

The Wet Mountain Valley Ranchland Preservation Program began in the late 1990s to protect threatened agricultural heritage, important wildlife habitat and impressive scenic vistas. The original project was spearheaded by the Trust for Public Land, who worked with the San Isabel Land Protection Trust, the Colorado Cattleman's Agricultural Land Trust, the Colorado Conservation Trust and the Sonoran Institute to complete the project. By the end of 2007, Phase I will result in conservation easements on more than 7,000 contiguous acres in the northern Wet Mountain Valley. Furthermore, the San Isabel Land Protection Trust has protected an additional 2,700 acres in the area not originally designated as part of the project.

Here's some coverage of GOCo grants in southwestern Colorado from The Cortez Journal. From the article:

Almost $4.4 million in lottery money is headed to Southwest Colorado to pay for land conservation along the San Juan Skyway. The ranch is part of the land conservancy program. An additional $4.2 million will pay for protection of two ranches on the Upper San Juan River in Archuleta and Mineral counties...

The San Juan Skyway grant will go to several local conservation organizations to continue their land preservation program along the 236-mile loop. The grants will focus on three areas: the Mancos River valley, including the Thompson Park area in La Plata County; the Dolores River between Dolores and Rico, and the stretch of land between Ouray and Ridgway, said Nina Williams of the Montezuma Land Conservancy. Three years ago, the groups received a $5.7 million GOCO grant and used it to preserve about 2,500 acres. This year's grant will pay for conservation easements on another 1,331 acres on seven working ranches with riverside habitats...

The Archuleta County grant will go to a new program, one of the six new "Legacy Projects" established this year, said GOCO Chairwoman Norma Anderson. "We are very excited to be able to help start six new efforts, all centered around one of the state's most valuable assets -- rivers," Anderson said. The other new projects are in the Front Range, the San Luis Valley and Pitkin County. Also, Pagosa Springs will get $200,000 for improvements to its sports complex trail and parking area.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

"colorado water"
8:27:37 AM     


Evergreen and Genesse dam safety
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Coyote Gulch is embarrassed to report that we missed the completion of the Genesee Dam. The dam had strong opposition back in 2005 and 2006. Here's an article about dam safety along Bear Creek and the Evergreen and Genesee Dam from YourHub.com. From the article:

Residents of Bear Creek Canyon can breathe easier about the safety of the Genesee and Evergreen dams, according to officials from the State Engineer's Office. Speaking to a community meeting at the Morrison Town Hall November 29, the engineers said that chance of either dam failing and creating a catastrophic flood is "infinitesimally small."

The newly-completed Genesee structure was bitterly opposed by many canyon residents, some still skeptical that the integrity of the 103' dam could be trusted. Concern has also grown about whether the Evergreen dam, now 80 years old, remains safe by modern standards. The three top dam safety officials in the state - Deputy State Engineer Jack Byers, Dam Safety Chief Mark Haynes, and Dam Design Reviewer Paul Perri - brought a convincing message of the precautions taken to assure that the dams are safe.

Genesee Dam, they explained, is of "roller-compacted concrete" construction. "No RCC dam has ever failed in the U.S.," said Byers of this state-of-the-art technique. Although labeled a "high-hazard dam" in engineering terms, this doesn't mean it is high-risk, only that the highest safety standards are mandated. Extensive design reviews, tests and inspections were conducted to make sure it has the capacity to handle all worst-case scenarios, including the (low) risk of earthquakes. Genesee is an "off-stream" reservoir in a small side canyon, designed to store about 100 acre-feet of water pumped up from Bear Creek (it is now full). With a catchment basin of only .6 of a square mile, it has only tiny natural flows. Even with the most torrential rainfalls conceivable, it has more than adequate spillway capacity to relieve stress. Mr. Byers put a strong personal point on it by saying "I could build my own home below that dam and feel my kids were perfectly safe." For those concerned about the dam's ugly and unfinished look, it will be covered by native rock excavated from the site sometime next spring, after a mandatory 6-month period to inspect the dam face for any potential problems.

Evergreen Dam, a reinforced concrete structure built in 1927, is 41' high and impounds 669 acre-feet of water, several times the capacity of Genesee. Although the odds of failure rise as such dams age, they are still miniscule. Evergreen Dam was well built and is annually inspected, according to the engineers, and shows no signs of weakening. Unlike some states where inspections are lagging, Colorado's dam safety program is considered the best in the nation.

"colorado water"
8:12:45 AM     


Colorado to investigate conservation easement appraisers along with certain tax credit investment funds
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The investigation of conservation easements by the state of Colorado is touching Huerfano County, according to The Pueblo Chieftain. From the article:

At least 15 conservation easements involving more than 500 acres in Huerfano County are included in a statewide probe into possible misuse of the state's easement program. The state's Division of Real Estate has issued 30 subpoenas to property owners and land trusts around the state - primarily in the Denver-Fort Collins area - but none have been served to anyone in Southern Colorado. Still, the state probe into the appraisal of conservation easements, which are designed to protect agricultural land from development, does involve several tracts of land in Southern Colorado.

The Huerfano County easements were all donated to the Arvada-based Noah Land Conservation, which also has several easements elsewhere on the Front Range and the Eastern Plains. That trust has been served subpoenas under that name and its new one, Colorado Natural Land Trust, said Erin Toll, Real Estate division director...

Jill Ozarski, executive director of the Colorado Coalition of Land Trusts, said she and her group's 55 members worry the problem could scare landowners away from the program for fear of unknowingly getting involved in what could lead to criminal or civil litigation. She said none of her group's members has been issued subpoenas in the probe. Noah Land Conservation is not a member of the coalition. "If they're right, and there really are people abusing the program, we are absolutely behind the state 100 percent," Ozarski said. "There's a lot of people doing easements all the time and it does exactly what it's supposed to do. It's a really important estate planning tool for folks who want to preserve their land." One of those members, Chris West, director for the Colorado Cattlemen's Agricultural Land Trust, said that while the investigation into conservation easements has been a big topic of conversation with ranchers, he doesn't think it has caused people to shy away from donating their land...

The bulk of the Huerfano easements involve 12 tracts totaling 434.16 acres in what used to be known as the Los Leones Ranch. One of the tracts is owned by Sharon Cairns Mann, and seven others are owned by limited liability companies with such names as Tract 19 LLC. All of those list their legal address as Savant Publishing Inc., 300 County Road 330, in Walsenburg, of which Mann is president. Additionally, Stanley K. Mann is listed as the attorney-in-fact on three other easements. Neither Mann could be reached for comment.

State officials learned about the Huerfano easements last summer, when Toll and her office filed an emergency license suspension case against Loveland appraiser Julie O'Gorman, who had appraised several, if not all, of the Leones tracts. In its complaint against O'Gorman, the division said she inflated the value of at least one of the tracts. It said she based the value of the tract, in part, on the possibility that the nearby city of Walsenburg was looking into annexing it. But Walsenburg City Councilwoman Cathy Pineda, who also is administrative assistant to the city administrator, said she didn't recall the ranch ever being considered for annexation. She said that in 2002, however, someone did come before the council with development plans for the area, asking for access to city water...

On Thursday, O'Gorman reached a settlement with the division that will allow her to continue to work as a licensed appraiser for the next few years, but she must work under the guidance of a certified general appraiser. That certified appraiser is required to review her work and report her progress four times a year to the Colorado Board of Real Estate Appraisers. She also is required to pay a $25,000 fine, $15,000 of which was suspended unless O'Gorman violates the terms of the agreement. Neither O'Gorman nor her attorney could be reached for comment. Paul Greer, president of the trust that holds the Huerfano easements, said his non-profit trust, which began as a mentoring program for juveniles, has been caught in the middle of an investigation he knows little about...

Greer said not only does his trust have nothing to do with hiring appraisers, but it doesn't receive any tax credits, both of which are the focus of the state probe. Noah also holds easements in at least one other Southern Colorado county, but it's unclear if those properties are part of the investigation. The subpoenas also ask Noah for information on easements it owns in Otero, Prowers and Las Animas counties. Deed filings in the Otero County Recorder's Office show that it holds five easements totaling 256.41 acres. Information on Noah easements in Las Animas and Prowers counties were not available.

More coverage of conservation easement abuse from The Rocky Mountain News. From the article:

Colorado is seeking repayment of $15 million of tax credits granted as part of an innovative incentive program to save endangered lands. And that amount is likely to grow as part of a massive audit the Colorado Department of Revenue has undertaken to determine whether the tax credits were overvalued or were claimed on lands that weren't endangered. The Revenue Department's investigation, one of the largest it has ever undertaken, is looking at more than 10,000 tax returns claiming the credits since 2001. During that time, more than $274 million of conservation credits were claimed from Colorado's treasury alone.

The Internal Revenue Service and the state's divisions of real estate and security also are investigating the credits, the people who received them and the appraisers who valued the land...

The state is now protecting land faster than it's being developed, according to the Colorado Conservation Trust. About 170,000 acres of private lands were protected in each of the past two years, while 90,000 acres were developed, the trust reported...

For example, a rancher sells an easement to a nonprofit land trust or a city or county for less than its value. This reduces the cost to the land trust or government agency, which agrees to maintain the easement and make sure its use is consistent with its conservation purpose. Because the rancher didn't take full payment for the land, the difference is considered a charitable donation that qualifies for a tax credit. When the deal is complete, the rancher can sell the credit, usually for about 80 cents on the dollar, if his income isn't large enough to make use of the full tax credit.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

"colorado water"
7:58:37 AM     


Energy policy: Nuclear
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Here's a look at Powertech's proposed uranium mine in Weld County from the Loveland Daily Reporter-Herald. From the article:

A proposed Weld County uranium mine would not contaminate the environment or subject residents to adverse health effects, a Powertech official said Friday. "We're being very careful," James Bonner, vice president of exploration for Powertech Uranium Corp., told the Loveland Kiwanis Club. "We're proving the science before we get in, and we will continually prove that science after we're there."[...]

The company plans to use a process called in-situ mining, which involves pumping treated water into uranium-laced deposits to dissolve the mineral so the uranium can be pumped to the surface. The uranium is then removed from the water, and the water is returned to the area. The process, which was tried in Weld County in the 1970s and has also been done in Wyoming and Texas, is less intrusive and more benign than traditional hard-rock mining, Bonner said. But Powertech's plans have drawn sharp criticism from politicians, residents, the Larimer County Medical Society and the Fort Collins City Council, among others...

The company is collecting data on groundwater flows, weather, air quality, vegetation, wildlife and other information, which will help the company restore the area to its natural state when it finishes mining, Bonner said. During the mining process, though, the water in the area will be safe to drink, and the company will have monitoring wells installed for state regulatory officials to check, he said. Bonner also pointed to epidemiology studies that have shown uranium mining and milling activities have not had an adverse effect on the health of nearby residents. "They're not finding an increase in cancer," he said...

The uranium mine would also provide an economic boost, funneling about $2 million in severance taxes to the state over 10 years and creating an additional 100 jobs that have an average salary of $65,000 a year, Bonner said. The mining process may take about a year and a half, Bonner estimated, but the whole project, including restoration, should take 12 to 15 years to complete.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

"2008 pres"
7:45:18 AM     



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