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Sunday, August 24, 2008
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Dawn of a new era in national politics?
Every one hundred years or so the Democratic Party holds their national convention in Denver. Welcome to the Mile High City everyone. Be safe. Do the work of the people.
To get you pumped up a bit here's a link to a new Obama music video, American Prayer.
Many across the U.S. are hoping for a move away from the ridiculousness of the past 7+ years. Republicans have proven at the federal and state level that they cannot govern well. Of course, they haven't wanted to govern well. Looting the U.S. Treasury was primary. They were good at that.
Two wars with no end in sight. Unbelievable growth in government. The financing of the whole charade by plunging future generations of Americans into debt. The assault on the environment. The lack of will in responding to climate change. No serious energy policy. Incompetent responses to natural disasters. Torture. Lawlessness. Corruption beyond anything the country has ever seen. We could go on an on.
Senator Obama, the country is depending on you to bring pragmatism and competency back to the oval office. Please follow through on your promise to govern for the middle class. The middle class drove the spectacular success the U.S. enjoyed for so many years.
We're asking the Democrats to set aside the sometimes nasty primary battle. You need to unify, get out the vote and do what you can to elect Barack Obama. Don't let those who are proud to be ignorant spread their lies about Obama, challenge the misinformation every time you hear or see it. Counter their attempts to impugn Senator Obama's character. Negative campaigns are easy to run and they work. Be on guard.
John McCain has shown his willingness to say anything to gain office. His policies are shallow. He is mistaken on most issues. His answer to any international crisis is saber-rattling. Do you want him as Commander-in-chief?
Is it the dawn of a new national politics? We'll let you know on November 5th.
9:02:48 AM 
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Upper Ark scores $296,000 for equipment to manage exchanges
Secretary of Interior, Dirk Kempthorne, has signed on to the Upper Arkansas Water Conservancy District's plan to install telemetry stream gauges and weather stations to help mange exchanges in the basin, according to The Pueblo Chieftain. From the article:
The Upper Arkansas Valley Water Conservancy District received a $296,000 federal grant last week to help install remote measurement equipment at 15 sites. The district plans to install telemetry stream gauges and weather stations at six reservoirs and on nine streams in a two-year, $847,000 effort. The project could save an estimated 1,556 acre-feet of water each year through more accurate flow measure- ments. "It will eliminate conflicts between competing water interests because we'll know what the exchange windows are," said Terry Scanga, Upper Ark general manager.
The grant was announced Thursday by Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne as one of $4.5 million in new Water 2025 Challenge Grants for water conservation projects across the West. The Upper Ark grant was the only one awarded to Colorado water users. "These grants will help quench the West's thirst for water in eight states by providing funds to 15 projects that will improve the efficient use of existing water supplies," Kempthorne said. "The variety of projects includes water conservation, efficiency and water market projects and demonstrates the importance of this Bureau of Reclamation program in looking toward future water needs."[...]
For the Upper Ark district, it will save labor costs as well, since reading the gauges at higher elevations can be difficult when the ground is covered in snow. Gauges and weather stations would be installed at Rainbow, Cottonwood, North Fork, Boss, O'Haver and DeWeese lakes and reservoirs. All but DeWeese Reservoir are above 9,000 feet elevation. North Fork and Boss reservoirs are above 11,000 feet and surrounded by snow most months of the year.
More Coyote Gulch coverage here.
"colorado water"
8:54:43 AM
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Fountain Creek management
Here's a recap of Wednesday's briefing on the Fountain Creek Master Plan by Colorado Springs Utilities to the utilities board, from The Colorado Springs Gazette. From the article:
Fountain Creek just needs to work on its curves. That's one of the recommendations of the Fountain Creek Master Plan, nearly half completed. Wednesday, Carol Baker, watershed planning manager for Colorado Springs Utilities, gave the city's Utilities Board an update on the plan. "It's curvy. When the water goes through a curvy path it slows down," said Baker, showing a photo of a healthy stretch of the creek. "When it slows down, there's less erosion that goes on. There's less contamination." The problem is that only a third of the 44-mile stretch between Colorado Springs and Pueblo is what planners consider "healthy."
The master plan is a joint project between Colorado Springs Utilities and the Lower Arkansas Valley Water Conservancy District, which are splitting the $600,000 cost. Downstream communities have long complained about flooding and poor water quality on Fountain Creek, and officials here sought to give them a greater voice in charting the creek's future. Colorado Springs Utilities has been the target of the anger in Pueblo County because of a series of sewage spills into Fountain Creek.
The Fountain Creek Vision Task Force, a group of 28 entities from across the region, is looking at many of the same issues. Neither project carries the weight of the Army Corps of Engineers, the official floodcontrol agency. The Corps has decided against a dam on Fountain Creek, but it will assist in smaller projects identified by the master plan and the task force...
Planners have identified two spots where they hope to begin demonstration projects, to educate people and get them involved in solutions for the creek. One is in Pueblo County, in Pueblo Springs Ranch, and the other is across Interstate 25 from the World Arena in Colorado Springs. The planners have also helped establish the Fountain Creek Foundation, a nonprofit group that hopes to build an interpretive center on the creek, near the Piñon exit off Interstate 25 north of Pueblo. Baker said the foundation has gotten a commitment for a donation of land, worth $1 million, at the site. Many details of the master plan need to be hammered out, including the cost of the work on the creek and who will pay for it. Since much of the creekside land is privately owned, assistance would have to be made available for property owners, Baker said.
More Coyote Gulch coverage here.
"colorado water"
8:17:11 AM
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Wastewater news
From The Valley Courier: "The Alamosa City Council this week awarded a more than $400,000 bid to local company RMS Utilities to extend city services to the Stockton Addition, a 62-acre area in southwest Alamosa that was annexed a few years ago with the prime objective of correcting its faulty, outdated water and sewer systems. Residents in the 44 homes in that area have been operating with septic systems that were too close to each other and in some cases to their water systems. The bid award this week means that the process to bring city sewer lines to this segment of the community can begin by the end of the year. This contract will bring the lines to the individual property lines but not up to the houses themselves...Koskelin said the city started out in 2001 by planning to address this segment of the community's water system and found severe problems with the sewer systems as well. The water table was too high and the lot sizes too small for the septic systems that existed in that area, he said. Septic systems were too close to wells in some cases, he added."
"colorado water"
8:09:25 AM
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Grand Valley Lake?
From The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel: "Area water purveyors who had been fishing for $500,000 to do a feasibility study for a lake at the base of Grand Mesa in Orchard Mesa have drastically scaled back their dollar and study requests. Instead of doing a full-blown feasibility study for the proposed Grand Valley Lake, a water-storage project that calls for a lake approximately 2,000 acres, water experts are suggesting the county do a fatal-flaws study. The cost of such a study would range between $5,000 and $20,000, Mesa County Commissioner Steve Acquafresca said. "It is a once-over look of the major components of the project concept to identify red flags," he said. The suggestion to do such a study came Tuesday from the Colorado River Water Conservation District during a face-to-face meeting with the county commissioners in which numerous water issues were discussed, said Chris Treese, spokesman for the district. The county had submitted a grant application for $100,000 to the Colorado Water Conservation Board earlier this month to start the larger feasibility study. Acquafresca said the county will now modify it to reflect the funding needs to do a fatal-flaws study for Grand Valley Lake."
More Coyote Gulch coverage here.
"colorado water"
7:59:48 AM
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© Copyright 2009 John Orr.
Last update: 3/14/09; 10:27:26 PM.
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