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Monday, April 7, 2008
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Immigration
Denver Business Journal: "The immigrant population of Colorado and other Rocky Mountain states is increasing at nearly twice the rate of the nation as a whole, according to a new report by Colorado College. From 2000 to 2005 the immigrant population of the eight-state Rocky Mountain region grew 27 percent, as compared to a 16 percent immigrant growth rate nationwide, the report said. The figures are for both authorized and illegal immigrants."
"2008 pres"
5:34:47 PM 
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UFCW ballot proposals
Colorado Confidential: "While labor groups have submitted a slew of proposals for the 2008 state ballot countering a 'right-to-work' initiative that would make it harder for unions to organize, businesses associations that have not been involved in the right-to-work push say they are concerned with how labor's proposals will affect small-business owners. Last week Colorado Confidential first reported that the state's United Food and Commercial Workers labor union submitted five ballot proposals covering a wide variety of workplace issues, including safety, health insurance and a standard living wage for Colorado workers. Two in particular have irked business groups. One proposal would require all employers to supply an annual wage or salary increase to account for an increase in the cost of living, as measured by the state's Consumer Price Index. Another would require companies with more than 20 employees to provide medical health care coverage."
Politics West: "Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter is opposed to a ballot measure being pushed by labor unions that would require businesses to give employees annual cost-of-living increases, according to a report by Denver Post reporter Tim Hoover. 'It would be a mandate on employers that does not take into account things that as a business person you have to (consider),' Ritter said this morning on the Mike Rosen Show on KOA. Ritter agreed with characterization of the measure as 'folly.' The governor's comments come as he works to negotiate a truce between labor and business interests pushing competing ballot measures for the November election."
"denver 2008"
5:30:55 PM
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? for President?
New West: "In the Democratic Party's neck-and-neck nomination battle between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, no state is free from the candidates' courtship. This weekend Clinton and Obama brought their political celebrity to Montana, a state with a measly 17 delegates at play in its June 3 primary, the country's last. As Obama said Saturday night, 'Every state counts.' Whether or not that's actually true of Montana in this race to 2,024 delegates is moot: It was an historic two-day stop by the leaders of a resurgent Democratic Party, one of whom may be the next president of the United States, in a state and in a region in the midst of its own Democratic resurgence."
The Moderate Voice: "The latest Gallup Daily tracking poll has Senator Barack Obama 9 points ahead of Senator Hillary Clinton in their bitter battle for the 2008 Democratic Presidential nomination."
"2008 pres"
5:21:48 PM
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UN Bangkok Climate Change Talks
World Meteorological Organization: "The UN Bangkok Climate Change Talks mapped out a work programme that structures negotiations on a long-term international climate change agreement, set to be concluded in Copenhagen by the end of 2009. The meeting also sent a clear signal that the use of market-based mechanisms, such as the Kyoto Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism, should be continued and improved as a way for developed countries to meet emission reduction targets and contribute towards sustainable development."
"cc"
2:06:22 PM
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CU opens new lab to detect pharmaceuticals in the water supply
From The Denver Business Journal: " The University of Colorado on Monday opened a laboratory focused on detecting and treating pharmaceuticals in water. The Center for Environmental Mass Spectrometry, or CEMS, is part of the university's Department of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering. Agilent Technologies Inc. (NYSE: A) of Santa Clara, Calif., is providing the core liquid chromatograph/mass spectrometer (or LC/MS) instrumentation for the lab."
"colorado water"
1:58:41 PM
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? for President?
Political Wire: "A new Public Policy Polling survey in North Carolina shows Sen. Barack Obama with a commanding lead over Sen. Hillary Clinton, 54% to 33%."
"2008 pres"
1:47:12 PM
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War on terror
Andrew Sullivan: "When Rumsfeld professed 'shock' at the techniques revealed at Abu Ghraib, he was expressing 'shock' at interrogation techniques he had already personally examined and approved for use at Gitmo. He was expressing shock after having personally directed one of the architects of the torture regime at Gitmo, Geoffrey Miller, to go to Abu Ghraib to 'Gitmoize' it. He was lying."
"2008 pres"
8:55:06 AM
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Fountain Creek: Water Sentinels
Here's a look at the Sierra Club's Water Sentinel Training last Saturday, from The Pueblo Chieftain. From the article:
Six people took on the environmental challenge of guarding Fountain Creek's water Saturday morning. They voluntarily took the Sierra Club's Water Sentinels training so they can help watch over the river's purity. The six showed up for the volunteers training at the Girl Scouts meeting hall at 21 Montebello Road. It was a much smaller group than the session held July 2006 when 30 volunteers participated, according to organizer Jenny Kedward.
Kedward showed a computer presentation to the volunteers and then the group headed down to the creek to learn by doing. They also learned more about significance of the task they've taken on. "We are standing on the creek and we are standing guard," Kedward said, explaining the Sentinels was started as a way to provide accountability in water purity. A sentinel is a soldier who stands guard, she said. To do that, the testers dipped a small bottle taped to a long pole into the water and collected samples. Some tests can be analyzed on site while tests for E. coli are done in the Colorado State University-Pueblo's water lab...
The group also tries to clean up litter during their water testing outings, but it is impossible to pick up all of the trash, Kedward said. She said it upsets her to see how people dirty the environment. Along with cleaning up the land and water, the group also makes sure clean water is kept clean, according to Kedward. She said their goal is to protect, improve and restore waterways. The Sentinels are given a yearly grant of $5,000 from the National Sierra Club. The Sentinels' Web site refers to the federal Clean Water Act passed in 1972 as the thinking behind its work.
8:45:49 AM
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Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel update
Here's an update on draining the Leadville Mine Pool and the Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel from The Pueblo Chieftain. They write:
Last week, Lake County Commissioner Michael Hickman sent a letter to Gov. Bill Ritter accusing a member of his Cabinet of dragging his feet in addressing Leadville's concerns over a flooded mine drainage tunnel. In that letter, Hickman said that Jim Martin, executive director of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, was spending most of his time looking for excuses rather than taking responsibility for clearing water from the Canterbury Tunnel. That tunnel, which is overflowing with clean water, is just uphill from the Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel that local officials fear could burst and send an estimated 1 billion gallons of water contaminated with zinc and cadmium into the Arkansas River, polluting it for miles...
[Governor] Ritter said Hickman's insistence that the state drill into the Canterbury Tunnel and drain water from it actually may not be the best thing to do, pointing to an EPA report that said the action isn't necessary to eliminate a threat of a blowout from the LMDT. Currently, the EPA already has started pumping contaminated water from the site and the bureau is treating it at a nearby treatment plant. But Ritter said the department has long advocated doing that, and since Lake County commissioners issued a declaration of emergency in February, he and Martin have actively been pushing to get that pumping started, including going to President Bush and the state's congressional delegation.
The governor also said that despite evidence to the contrary, the state continues to look into a possible connection between the Canterbury Tunnel and an imminent blowout of the LMDT. "CDPHE has learned that there is additional conflicting and incomplete information regarding the hydrological connection between the Canterbury Tunnel and the LMDT," Ritter wrote. "Nevertheless, because of the (Lake County) commissioners' concerns, CDPHE is working with experts to identify the analysis that would be needed to be completed to determine whether and to what extent a hydrological connection exists, and perhaps just as important, whether pumping water from the Canterbury Tunnel could result in unintended adverse consequences."[...]
Meanwhile, Martin still is expected to unveil this week the next steps the state and his department will take in addressing the issue, said Evan Dreyer, Ritter's spokesman.
More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.
"colorado water"
8:29:07 AM
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New water commission for Steamboat?
From The Craig Daily Press: "A lack of focus and communication with city staff has led to the dissolution of the Steamboat Springs Water Commission. City officials now are in the process of defining and assembling a new water commission, after the Steamboat Springs City Council definitively said it thought such a group is needed...Big issues the committee faced in its early years included addressing conflicts between the city and Mount Werner Water and Sanitation District. The committee was formally disbanded at a March 31 meeting. It was the first time the committee had met since 2007."
"colorado water"
8:22:51 AM
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Wellington Water Works gets decree
Here's an article dicussing the Wellington Water Works new decree from The Fort Collins Coloradoan. From the article:
A local decision on how oil and water mix when it comes to water rights could have far-reaching ramifications across Colorado. Last month a state water court judge ruled Wellington Water Works, or WWW, has a right to take and use water pumped from deep underground as part of an oil operation north of Wellington. The judge also found Richard Seaworth, a partner in the company, may use produced water to augment well water on his 600-acre farm he wants to convert to domestic use. Final decrees on the matters are expected to be released this month. When they come, Seaworth said, the rulings could help him develop part of his farm and establish a way to sell water to Wellington or other buyers. The ruling could affect how oil companies across the state deal with water generated by their operations, said Steven Bushong, a Boulder water law attorney who represents the company. The decision establishes production water as "new" water that can be used, traded or sold. "Oil companies may start seeing water as an asset instead of a liability," Bushong said. "We're hearing from little oil companies ... as well as big oil companies," he said. "Once you blaze a path people are going to follow it."
The Wellington oil field produces about 160 acre feet of water a year. An acre foot is 325,900 gallons, enough to supply one or two urban households for a year. Seaworth said the annual water yield from the oil field could reach 500 to 600 acre feet. That may not be a lot in the world of water trading, he said, but it would help bolster Wellington's supplies. "This is a local solution for a local problem," he said. Wellington officials said they are interested in Seaworth's water. His property lies north of town and could be connected to Wellington's water facilities with relative ease...
Bringing together a deal for Seaworth's water will depend on several factors, including cost, said Larry Lorentzen, town administrator. Small towns cannot afford to buy into major water projects, such as Glade Reservoir proposed northwest of Fort Collins, he said. "If (Seaworth's) project adds some more water to the area, it will be very important," he said. "It's going to open up a lot of opportunities." Getting to the water court ruling took six years and "more money than I care to think about," Seaworth said. Wellington Operating Co., which runs the oil field and is part of WWW, built a $1.5 million plant to purify water captured from the production process. At least that much money also was spent on legal fees and other expenses, company president Brad Pomeroy said. The company has 35 wells in the 4,700-acre oil field, Pomeroy said. Of those, 15 are operating. State officials have granted a permit for extracting production water on one well. The company will seek permits on the other 14, he said.
More Coyote Gulch coverage here.
"colorado water"
8:11:12 AM
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Long Draw Reservoir update
Here's an update on the U.S. Forest Service's plans for Long Draw Reservoir from The Fort Collins Coloradoan. From the article:
Federal officials are proposing to kill off invasive fish and restock streams with native trout above Long Draw Reservoir and in parts of Rocky Mountain National Park as part of plans to keep the reservoir open. The 10,800-acre-foot reservoir, about 50 miles up the Poudre Canyon, supplies water to Front Range cities and towns. The way it operates was criticized by Trout Unlimited, which in 2004 sued to force changes.
The U.S. Forest Service, upon whose land the reservoir sits, is proposing changes in response to the suit. But the proposal now up for public comment lacks the major request made by Trout Unlimited: Release water during the winter. Forest Service officials in their draft Environmental Impact Statement said releasing winter water requires plowing a long dirt access road that would endanger workers on the icy dam and create the risk that snowmobilers would sneak down the plowed road into the adjacent Rawah Wilderness. "Alternative 3 would have no change to aquatic habitats below the dam but would be of significant benefit to federal and state efforts for restoration of native trout," the Forest Service said of its preferred alternative. "This alternative would not require any change in the current operations of the reservoir."
Instead of looking solely at the water downstream of the reservoir, the Forest Service is considering ways to mitigate the reservoir's impact upstream. The reservoir stores up spring runoff, then releases it during the summer and fall. No water is released in the winter, which means the stream below the dam dries up or freezes. Kenneth Eis, president of Rocky Mountain Flycasters, the local Trout Unlimited chapter, said he and other anglers continue to discuss the situation with the Forest Service and the owners of Long Draw. "We're looking for other alternatives," Eis said. "From our perspective, we don't own the water. The people who own the water get the beneficial use from it."[...]
The Forest Service is expected to make a final decision this summer, after considering public comments. Long Draw was completed in 1929. The reservoir was later enlarged and the dam rebuilt in 1974. The reservoir stores water imported from the Colorado River Basin by the Grand Ditch. It also stores water from La Poudre Pass Creek, a tributary of the Cache la Poudre River. The Forest Service issued a special permit for Long Draw in 1978. The permit expired in 1991 but was extended to 1994. In 1994, following an environmental impact study, the Forest Service issued a plan that allowed Water Supply and Storage to operate Long Draw without providing bypass flows to La Poudre Pass Creek below the dam. Under the 1994 plan, the Greeley-owned Barnes Meadow reservoir releases water to the Poudre in the winter. Trout Unlimited sued, claiming the Forest Service should have required a bypass flow from Long Draw as a condition of use and that not requiring one would harm fish and wildlife in the Poudre basin. A judge in April 2004 reversed the Forest Service's decision and told the agency to rewrite the permit.
"colorado water"
8:04:49 AM
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© Copyright 2009 John Orr.
Last update: 3/14/09; 10:13:00 PM.
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