Coyote Gulch

 



















































































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  Saturday, June 7, 2008


Clinton suspends campaign for Democratic presidential nomination

The Moderate Voice: "Clinton's rousing speech was a professionally crafted in terms of content, masterfully delivered in terms of style, and perfectly calibrated to turn some initial anti-Obama rumblings when she endorsed Obama into cheers for Obama at the end. She tried to shift her supporters over to Obama, arguing that her goals are his goals and are their goals. And the plea for unity was delivered with force and sincerity."

"Clinton once again displayed what we have noted at TMV before: out of all of the candidates who first began running for President in 2007 in either party, she is the one who has most grown as an actual campaigner. And in this speech, she showed that she has also blossomed as a campaign speaker: the speech ranks as one of her most perfectly and sincerely delivered speeches."

Andrew Sullivan: "Senator Clinton did all she needed to do: thanked everyone and unequivocally endorsed and supported Barack Obama. One theme stuck out to me: she essentially said that even though she was careful to avoid ever saying that she was running because she was a woman and that people should vote for her because she is a woman, that's what she believes in private. That's the theme she spoke of most compellingly."

TalkLeft: "I thought she was great. As one of her supporters, I am going to honor her wishes. She could not have been more clear. Sen. Barack Obama is the Democratic nominee. The 18 million people who voted for her should now enthusiastically support Sen. Barack Obama. Even if you thought Hillary was the better candidate for President, she is no longer in the race. That is not going to happen. What matters now is that we put a Democrat back in the White House."

"2008 pres"
2:47:10 PM     


Micro-hydroelectric power
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Our water friend Peter Soeth from Reclamation likes to remind people that hydroelectric is a great supplier of clean energy. Since most of the large scale sites are dammed already people are looking at micro-hydroelectric plants to expand water (and gravity) generated energy. Here's a recap of a recent tour of sites on the West Slope, from The Delta County Independent. From the article:

Delta-Montrose Electric Association led a group of 15 over to the Frying Pan River Monday on May 19 to visit two small hydroelectric installations. The goal was to encourage the installation of small hydroelectric systems in Delta and Montrose counties, according to DMEA board member Ed Marston, who organized it.

The group visited engineer Tom Golec, who lives just above Ruedi Reservoir. Golec started out 18 years ago with a one kilowatt system using water flowing from a spring above his home. Golec said that first system cost less than $10,000, with most of the money going for piping. It is powered by a little less than 50 gallons per minute. That first small system ran his house. "It wouldn't run an Aspen house, but it powered mine." That success was followed by construction of a 25-kilowatt system about a decade ago, costing $65,000, not including his and a partner's time. That system runs year-around using water diverted from Ruedi Creek, and is a cash cow. His power is sold to DMEA's sister co-op, Holy Cross Electric Association, for about 6 cents per kilowatt hour. The 1,000 gallons per minute of flow he diverts into a pipe from Ruedi Creek falls 231 feet to create the power.

Golec's water is clean, coming from a high altitude, and the two systems require little maintenance beyond the occasional cleaning of a trash screen. It is also available year around. Golec, who went on from building his two installations to install other systems as a consultant, said each one is different. The key factors, he said, include how much water is available, when the water runs, how clean it is, what property has to be crossed by pipelines, and how close the turbine is to a power line. "It's good if it's near a power line and if the water is already in a pipe." In general, Golec said, a stream or ditch must have at least 40 feet of vertical fall. Ditches that run only five or six months of the year may not make economic sense. But seasonal flow doesn't always eliminate a site if other factors are favorable. Golec helped add a turbine to the snowmaking system at Snowmass Ski Area. The water was already in pipes. And it has so much fall and so much water that it makes money even though it only runs during the spring run-off. It generates 150,000 kilowatt-hours in six weeks.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

"colorado water"
10:18:36 AM     


Pioneer/Laird surface water litigation
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Here's an update on the Pioneer/Laird litigation from The Yuma Pioneer. From the article:

The Colorado Division of Wildlife (DOW) has withdrawn from litigation involving water rights it owns which supply water to the Wray Fish Hatchery. DOW has identified an alternative water supply option for the Wray State Fish Hatchery, which if implemented should allow the hatchery to continue to produce warm water fish for the next 20-25 years...

In 2005, the Pioneer and Laird Ditches initiated a hearing with the Ground Water Commission (GWC) requesting that the wells be administered pursuant to the prior appropriation doctrine (first in time-first in right) along with the senior surface rights. The DOW believed that joining the GWC proceedings was necessary and appropriate in order to protect the interests of sportsman and local economies throughout the state that depend upon recreational fishing opportunities provided by the Wray State Fish Hatchery. The DOW has also been working on alternative strategies for providing adequate flows to the hatchery that don't rely on shutting any irrigation wells down, a possible outcome if the litigants were successful.

The preferred alternative is a combination of surface water sources and water conservation measures implemented at the hatchery. The surface water sources include pumping water through a pipeline from the North Fork of the Republican River (using existing DOW water rights) to the hatchery, while the conservation measures would include lining the ten un-lined hatchery ponds to minimize leakage. Additionally, the City of Wray has graciously offered the use of some of its wells for augmentation purposes. The DOW expects that collectively these measures should provide the necessary water to the hatchery for a minimum of 20-25 years. The DOW is estimating the cost of this solution to be approximately $6 million. The DOW has agreed to contribute up to $2 million for the pond lining because it believes this is an appropriate conservation action to make the most efficient use of a scarce resource. Senator Jim Isgar (D-Hesperus), Chair of the Senate Agriculture, Natural Resources and Energy Committee; Representative Kathleen Curry (D- Gunnison), chair of the House Agriculture, Livestock and Natural Resources Committee; Senator Greg Brophy (R- Wray); and Representative Cory Gardner (R-Yuma) have agreed to work to secure funding for alternative water sources for the hatchery as part of a broader solution to Republican River water issues.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here, here and here.

"colorado water"
10:07:16 AM     


Southern Delivery System
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Here's a look at water distribution and uses in the Arkansas River Valley from The Pueblo Chieftain. From the article:

There is no question that agriculture is still the major water user in the basin, annually drawing more than 1 million acre-feet - nearly 326 billion gallons - out of a river that produces less than 700,000 acre-feet on average at its highest measured point east of Pueblo. When you add in the diversions by cities, 186,000 acre-feet in a recent year, agriculture represents 85 percent of the valley's water use. The reason farms can divert more water than is apparently in the river is that crops - and people in cities for that matter - don't fully consume the water that's diverted. Return flows from any water user are somebody's supply down the line. The water also has to be in the right place at the right time to be used.

There are plenty of numbers in the Bureau of Reclamation's draft Environmental Impact Statement that describe both current conditions on the Arkansas River and the potential impact of rerouting roughly 50,000 acre-feet per year of the flow through a Southern Delivery System pipeline to Colorado Springs and sending it back down Fountain Creek. The draft EIS does not study the entire Arkansas Valley, but looks at the river from Lake to Bent counties, although the Fort Lyon Canal, which has a headgate near La Junta, extends 110 miles into Prowers County. In that stretch, Reclamation's report estimates crops on 265,000 acres of crops in eight counties annually need 571,000 acre-feet of water. The overwhelming majority of crops are grown as feed for animals. Cataloguing the river from Buena Vista to Las Animas, however, the report reveals that municipalities - Colorado Springs, Aurora, Pueblo, Pueblo West and Canon City - control 42 percent of 1.029 million acre-feet of average annual diversions.

The cities do not actually use all of the water they control, leasing some of it back to farmers. The cities' total includes roughly 125,000 acre-feet of water that is imported into the Arkansas River basin each year and reused to extinction, usually by exchanges or as "gray water" for watering parks and cooling power plants. Colorado Springs, at nearly 400,000 population, is the largest city in the Arkansas River basin and brought Aurora into the basin through their partnership in the 1950s-era Homestake Project, which diverts water from the Eagle River. In the 1970s, Pueblo, Colorado Springs, Pueblo West and Aurora purchased most of the shares in Twin Lakes, a reservoir in Lake County once owned by Crowley County farmers. It brings about 37,000 acre-feet a year from the Roaring Fork basin on the West Slope through a tunnel the farmers contracted for in the 1930s. Twin Lakes is also part of the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project and operated by Reclamation. At that time, Colorado Springs was about one-third its present size, but in a period of rapid growth.

In the 1980s, Aurora bought water rights on the Rocky Ford Ditch in Otero County, and teamed up with Colorado Springs in the purchase of most of the shares in the Colorado Canal, which once watered Crowley County. The draft EIS notes there are still 12,800 irrigated acres in Crowley County, down from about 50,000 in more prosperous times. Much of the water used to irrigate is leased from the cities. In 1987, a court settlement was reached among Pueblo, Colorado Springs and Aurora to settle nine court cases that determined an exchange priority that allowed water from the lower counties to be moved upstream. In 2004, the cities agreed to a program to curtail exchanges in order to protect flows for fish and kayakers in Pueblo. As of last year, the cities curtailed or released nearly 27,000 acre-feet, but recovered 80 percent by recapturing the water downstream and for use in future exchanges. Colorado Springs now exchanges about 22,000 acre-feet annually against Fountain Creek return flows and expects to double that amount in the next 40 years. The city also has tripled its use of exchanges - as high as 18,574 acre-feet in the drought recovery year of 2003 - from Pueblo to Twin Lakes since 1999, according to the draft EIS. The Pueblo flow program is one of 16 exchange restrictions along the Arkansas River, most of them mandatory court decrees.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

"colorado water"
9:46:26 AM     


? for U.S. Senate?
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Mark Udall was hanging out in Leadville this week, according to The Leadville Chronicle. From the article:

U.S. Congressman Mark Udall (D) made a quick trip to Lake County Friday to campaign for the U.S. Senate position up for election this November. He talked about the bill he co-sponsored with Congressman Doug Lamborn (R) to deal with the issues concerning the Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel. There is not just a blocked tunnel, he said, but also a bureaucratic block that is almost worse than the block in the tunnel. The bill will force the Bureau of Reclamation to take responsibility for the tunnel and the water that is backed up behind the block, he said. This bill has made it past the first committee hearing and is moving into the big committee hearing.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

"colorado water"
9:31:46 AM     


Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act
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From The Washington Post: "Senate leaders yesterday abruptly pulled back legislation that would have mandated major cuts in U.S. greenhouse-gas emissions after they came a dozen votes shy of ending a GOP filibuster. Although the bill -- sponsored by Sens. Joseph I. Lieberman (I-Conn.) and John W. Warner (R-Va.) -- enjoyed bipartisan support, the week-long floor debate devolved into partisan bickering over which party was most responsive to the plight of Americans trying to cope with rising gas prices. In a statement after the 48 to 36 vote, Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (Nev.) charged that Republicans were "refusing to address one of the most important issues of our time." He said Democrats "have tried to curb global warming, lower gas prices and invest in renewable energy, but Republicans have squandered each opportunity."

More coverage from The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. From the article:

Colorado's two senators harbor some doubts about the climate-change legislation before the U.S. Senate this week. But Sen. Ken Salazar, a Democrat, says the centerpiece of the legislation, its cap-and-trade provision, is needed to limit carbon emissions that are blamed for global warming. Sen. Wayne Allard, a Republican, said the cap-and-trade aspect poses economic implications that are "simply staggering" and will ultimately kill the measure. Cap and trade refers to setting caps on emissions and allowing companies to pay for or trade rights to emit carbon dioxide beneath the cap. The proposed system is intended to reduce emissions by 70 percent by 2050. That could, "in a very short time, double wholesale rates," said Jim Van Someren of Tri-State Generation and Transmission, a Denver-based electricity cooperative that supplies power to regional co-ops around the state. Tri-State has looked to other power sources but will depend on coal to supply its power for the foreseeable future, Van Someren said. "Clean-coal research is the way to go, instead of tax or cap and trade," he said. The stakes are too high to wait, though, environmental organizations say.

"cc"
9:21:21 AM     


Lawn Lake Flood of 1982
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Here's an article about the historic Fall River Hydroplant from The Estes Park Trail. They write:

Rain starting falling in the early morning hours of July 15, 1982 and unsuspecting campers and hikers had no idea what was coming. High in the Rockies at 11,000 feet, the Lawn Lake dam was weakening by the minute. The dam, only accessible by a six-mile uphill hike, broke at 5:30 a.m. sending 674 acre-feet of water down the Roaring River. The dam at Cascade Lake, built by F.O. Stanley, was soon topped. Water rushed down the Fall River at 18,000 per cubic feet per second picking up debris and momentum heading swiftly toward the hydroplant. "There was enough warning for the plant manager and his daughter to get out of here," said Kate Miller, education curator for the Estes Park Museum, "but [three] people lost their lives at the Aspen Glen Campground and the Lawn Lake Trail." In three hours and 40 minutes, the Lawn Lake Flood of 1982 wiped out the Fall River Hydroplant, now restored as a museum west of Estes Park. The Stanley Power Plant, built by F.O. in 1909 to supply electricity to the Stanley Hotel, had been continuously maintained and utilized until that morning of July 15, 1982. The old machinery chugged on, fulfilling a portion of the electricity needs for the town of Estes Park.

Lawn Lake was a natural lake that covered 16.4 acres. The lake was later manually increased to 48 surface acres with a depth of 35 feet, used to irrigate crops and feed the waters serving the hydroplant. However, maintenance to the Lawn Lake dam was neglected over the years due to its inaccessibility. The morning of the flood, hikers reported a wall of water 25- to 30-feet high coming from the valley above them. The devastation can still be been seen at the Alluvial Fan in Horseshoe Park -- a popular destination in Rocky Mountain National Park. By the time the floodwaters reached the hydroplant, boulders and trees came with it, hitting the structure, demolishing the machinery and carrying debris down the Fall River. The walls of the hydroplant show the water line from the flood and mud on machine gadgets record the historic disaster. The clock on the wall behind Stanley's original 1908 hydro unit shows the last minute the plant operated. The devastation was so complete, the restoration as a working hydroplant proved impossible. Following the flood, national park and conservation groups opposed the reconstruction of the Cascade Lake dam; citing low Fall River water levels would harm plant and aquatic life in the river.

"colorado water"
9:03:59 AM     


Northern Integrated Supply Project
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Fort Morgan asked their rate payers if they'd support higher rates to pay for the Northern Integrated Supply Project. The rate payers by and large agreed, according to The Fort Morgan Times. From the article:

Most Fort Morgan residents would be willing to shoulder an increase in their water rates to pay for future water supplies, according to a survey conducted by the city. Of 353 respondents to the survey, 207 or nearly 59 percent answered yes when asked if they would be willing to have base water rates raised to pay for the Northern Integrated Supply Project. NISP is a water project that would construct two new reservoirs to serve the 15 participating communities and entities, including Fort Morgan and the Morgan County Quality Water District. Of the residents who said they would accept higher city water rates to ensure future supplies, most -- 127, or 61 percent -- said they could handle an increase of $5 per month. Another 24 percent said $10 a month would be acceptable, and 9 percent would agree to $15 a month more. Thirty-four percent answered no to the question of whether they would be willing to see rates rise, while 7 percent did not answer the question.

The best long-term answer, [Fort Morgan Utilities Director Gary Dreessen] says, is NISP. Colorado-Big Thompson water, another water project from which the city currently gets its supply, is limited and getting more scarce, Dreessen said. C-BT water is also subject to quotas, under which the city actually receives only a percentage of the water it holds rights to. The quotas are set by the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District, and even in an average year the city gets just 70 percent of its allotted C-BT water, he said. Fort Morgan has used roughly 4,200 acre-feet of water each year for the last two years, Dreessen said, and the city owns or leases almost 8,000 acre-feet of CB-T water. At a 70 percent quota, however, the city only receives about 5,600 acre-feet. That still leaves about 1,400 acre-feet, but In drought years, the quota can go lower. At a 60 percent quota, the city would only have about 600 acre-feet of cushion, and if the quota dropped to 50 percent the city would be 200 acre-feet short of supplying its needs even for the present. In past drought years, Dreessen said, the C-BT quota has started at 30 percent. That danger of coming up short in a drought, and the need to obtain a reliable water supply for future growth, are the main reasons for supporting NISP, Dreessen said. The city expects to pay $36 million for 3,600 shares -- or acre-feet -- of NISP water. It would have to buy 5,142 units of C-BT water, for $51.4 million, to equal 3,600 acre-feet at a 70 percent quota, Dreessen said. But unlike C-BT water, NISP water not used in a given year can be stored for future use. Fort Morgan would be able to store up to 15,300 acre-feet of water in NISP.

To pay for the NISP project, Fort Morgan will almost certainly have to raise its water rates. The city's Water Advisory Board discussed a draft of proposed new water rates on Thursday and the city council is expected to consider the higher rates soon. The proposal calls for the base water rate to go up by $5.16, from $27.34 to 33.70 a month, for the average residential user. Tap fees for new water users are also expected to rise.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.

"colorado water"
8:48:52 AM     


Black Canyon minimum flows
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It looks like there is a resolution to the conflict and court case over water rights and minimum flows in the Gunnision River through Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, according to The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. From the article:

Ranchers and state, federal and water officials have reached an agreement they say settles the longstanding dispute about how to manage the Gunnison River as it passes through the Black Canyon. The agreement, which remains to be approved by the state Water Court in Montrose, calls for a minimum flow of 300 cubic feet per second in the river through the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. It also calls for the river to be managed to generally reflect the natural rise and fall of the river over the course of a year, with peak flows in the springtime and shoulder flows leading into the lesser flow periods.

The agreement, said Chris Treese of the Colorado River District, represents a compromise all around. "The agreement does represent less water than the National Park Service had applied for -- it was more than the river carried -- and more than the agreement that the state negotiated," Treese said. "It has all the elements of a compromise." The agreement is tied to snowfall and runoff, said Bart Miller, an attorney for Western Resource Advocates, one of seven environmental organizations involved in the case. "It doesn't recreate the natural hydrograph, but it's a lot closer to what we've had for the last 30 years," Miller said.

The city of Delta, downstream from the park and susceptible to flooding from high runoff, also is considered in the settlement, as are the hydropower requirements of the Wayne N. Aspinall Unit, a string of dams and reservoirs above the national park, Miller said. The agreement "appears to protect both Colorado's water interests and its environmental interests," said Harris Sherman, executive director of the Colorado Department of Natural Resources.

More coverage from The Denver Examiner. From the article:

State and federal officials, water users and conservation groups have reached a tentative agreement in a 30-year legal battle over the river that flows through the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park in western Colorado. The agreement was announced Friday after nine months of negotiations to settle a dispute over federal water rights on the Gunnison River. The pact, which must be signed by all the parties and approved by the state water court, is intended to ensure there's enough water flowing through the canyon to maintain wildlife and a healthy ecosystem. "I would say the negotiations were somewhat contentious and it was certainly a long time in coming, but it worked out," said Bart Miller, an attorney for Western Resource Advocates, which represented five of the conservation groups.

More coverage from The Rocky Mountain News. They write:

A 30-year-old dispute over how much water should roar through the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park and how much should go to farmers, power plants and reservoirs is near settlement. The proposed agreement, lauded Friday by environmental groups and the government, is meant to balance nature with the needs of people who depend on the water that flows through the 2,000-foot canyon. "The result is something everyone is buying into," said Bart Miller, an attorney for the environmental group Western Resource Advocates. "It both protects the park and it accommodates, at some level, other existing uses." The settlement, if accepted by a state water court judge, closes a legal fight as mighty as the 2-million-year-old canyon itself - one involving hundreds of parties and dozens of interest groups, from outfitters clamoring for rafting flows to the town of Delta, fretting over threats to buildings in the Gunnison River's floodplain.

The fight over flows in the canyon exploded in 2001, two years after Congress elevated the Black Canyon from a national monument to a national park. That's when scientists at the National Park Service proposed using a water right dating to 1933 to restore the canyon's historic flows. Such a right would have trumped those of many irrigators, power plants and others, giving the canyon's ecological needs first dibs on spring flows that scour debris and offer spawning clues to Gunnison River fish. But new political forces under President Bush and Gov. Bill Owens - then-Interior Secretary Gale Norton and then-Colorado natural resources chief Greg Walcher- pushed the pendulum the other way. They crafted what they described as a compromise that put aside more water for people. But critics said it went too far to the other extreme, and could deprive the canyon of high spring flows entirely. The proposal - lauded by Walcher as a model for parks across the country - galvanized environmentalists, who said the plan would "cut the heart out" of the new national park, depriving the river of its dramatic flows. A lawsuit followed, and in 2006, a federal judge in Wyoming threw out the Norton/Walcher plan, calling it "nonsensical" and an "abuse of discretion." That ruling paved the way for settlement talks.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

"colorado water"
8:22:46 AM     


Energy policy: Nuclear
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Meanwhile, here's a recap of a public meeting this week, held to get input on how best to move the tons of tailings near the Colorado River in Moab, from The Deseret News. From the article:

When it comes to deciding the best way to move uranium tailings away from the Colorado River, most people at a public meeting said they favored taking it by train. The U.S. Energy Department is forming a plan to move 16 million tons of uranium waste 30 miles to a disposal site at Crescent Junction. "There's something about contaminated trucks on the highway that scares people," said Bette Stanton, who has lived in Moab for about 30 years.

The 130-acre tailings site along U.S. 191 leaches contaminants into the Colorado River, which provides water for more than 30 million people...

If the waste is taken away by train, it would probably be one shipment per day with 178 railcars carrying 68 containers in the first three years. Twice as many cars would be used starting in 2012. Before being moved, the tailings would be dried, placed into containers and delivered to a nearby spot to be picked up.

More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

Here's a look at nuclear energy's recently resurrected reputation from The Rocky Mountain News. From the article:

Nuclear power, long in public disfavor because of safety, waste and cost concerns, is muscling its way back into the energy picture. While its return is most prominent internationally - where dozens of countries are seeking nuclear generators as a source of new energy supplies - it's also getting a rethink in Colorado and across the United States. Nationally, worries of pollution from coal-burning power plants are spurring renewed interest. Meanwhile, the nuclear industry has launched a major public relations campaign touting itself as "clean-air energy."[...]

Colorado congressman and U.S. Senate candidate Mark Udall, a Democrat and a longtime champion of renewable energy, says nuclear should be part of the conversation as the country tries to ease off of fossil fuels. His opponent, Republican Bob Schaffer, also supports nuclear power...

...most significantly for Colorado, the state is the nation's third-largest source of radioactive fuel - uranium. And whether or not another nuclear plant is ever built here, Colorado appears to be in for another mining boom as international demand for uranium ramps up. "We're seeing tremendous increases and the beginnings of activity right now," said Jim Burnell, director of the minerals program at the Colorado Geological Survey. A record 10,000 new mining claims were filed on federal lands in the state in 2007, with the bulk of those for uranium, Burnell said. The nuke is back, said Robert Meyer, a Fort Collins-based energy consultant with long experience in the nuclear industry.

Click through and read the whole article. More Coyote Gulch coverage here.

"2008 pres"
8:00:15 AM     


Wilderness designation for Brown's Canyon?
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Here's an editorial in favor of U.S. Senator Ken Salazar's efforts to get wilderness status for Brown's Canyon. From the opinion piece:

Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar has renewed his efforts to protect 20,000 acres of federally owned land in Chaffee County near the Arkansas River by designating it as wilderness. The Post supported previous efforts to protect Browns Canyon, and we urge the rest of the Colorado delegation to support the bill. As Salazar notes, Browns Canyon "boasts some of Colorado's most pristine forests, great hunting and fishing habitat, and draws outdoor enthusiasts from across Colorado and the country during nearly every season." Protecting the site under the 1964 Wilderness Act would complement whitewater recreation on the Arkansas and safeguard water quality by ensuring the pristine nature of one of that river's major watersheds.

"colorado water"
7:48:45 AM     


R.I.P. John W. Keys III
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Here's an obituary for Mr. Keys from Red Orbit. They write:

Dell Keys had the last word Friday at the memorial service for her husband John W. Keys III, a former commissioner of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation who died a week ago in a plane crash. Clutching a folded American flag given to her for his four decades of public service, she thanked the more than 300 people crowded into the Moab Community Church and noted "he'd love everyone being here." "Remember one thing about John," she said. "He left us on a beautiful day, in an absolutely beautiful, beautiful place, doing something he loved to do, and for that we give thanks." Keys had a high-profile job in Washington, D.C., for a few years as the nation's top water manager. Photos in a memorial video showed him on the White House lawn and shaking President Bush's hand. But it was his legendary humility, his friendliness and sense of fairness that family, friends and colleagues honored during the service. His daughters talked about a father who taught them to love nature, running rivers, fishing, hiking and flying. Of a person who sent postcards to family members from his many road trips and who took brief showers to conserve water. "Dad could show you a good time in the air, on the land or in the water," said his daughter, Robin Fisher.

Here's his bio from the Reclamation website.

"colorado water"
7:29:09 AM     


? for President?

Bob Dylan (via The Times Online): "...we've got this guy out there now who is redefining the nature of politics from the ground up...Barack Obama. "He's redefining what a politician is, so we'll have to see how things play out. Am I hopeful? Yes, I'm hopeful that things might change. Some things are going to have to. He added: "You should always take the best from the past, leave the worst back there and go forward into the future."

"2008 pres"
7:16:11 AM     

Climate Change: The earth is a beautifully complex system
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This should make everyone happy. The price tag to deal with climate change and the energy crisis is around $45 trillion, according to Science Blog. From the article:

"The world faces the daunting combination of surging energy demand, rising greenhouse gas emissions and tightening resources. A global energy technology revolution is both necessary and achievable; but it will be a tough challenge", said Nobuo Tanaka, Executive Director of the International Energy Agency (IEA) today in Tokyo, at the launch of the latest edition of Energy technology Perspectives (ETP). The Agency's leading biennial publication responds to the G8 call on the IEA for guidance on how to achieve a clean, clever and competitive energy future...

If governments around the world continue with policies in place to date - the underlying premise in the ETP Baseline scenario to 2050 - CO2 emissions will rise by 130% and oil demand will rise by 70%. This expansion in oil equals five times today's production of Saudi Arabia. "Such growth of oil demand raises major concerns regarding energy supply access and investment needs", said Mr. Tanaka. In the Baseline scenario, the power generation sector accounts for 44% of total global emissions in 2050, followed by industry, transport, the fuel transformation sector and buildings. "We are very far from sustainable development, despite the widespread recognition of the long-term problem. In fact, CO2 emissions growth has accelerated considerably in recent years", Mr. Tanaka said. "Higher oil and gas prices result in a rapid switch to coal. Moreover rapid growth in China and India, both coal-based economies, has also contributed to this deteriorating outlook.""

"cc"
7:13:05 AM     

Ruedi and Green Mountain update
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From email from Reclamation (Kara Lamb): "Both Green Mountain and Ruedi Reservoirs continue their participation in the Upper Colorado River Endangered Species Recovery Program this weekend. As part of the Coordinated Reservoirs operations, the release schedule posted to these e-mail lists earlier this week remain in place. By Sunday morning at 6 a.m., Ruedi will be releasing about 850 cfs. It is going up twice a day in 50 cfs increments. Green Mountain is currently releasing about 1200 cfs to the Lower Blue and will continue at that rate through the weekend."

"colorado water"
7:12:10 AM     



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