Will the Fraser River survive the drought and the population increase on the Front Range? Here's an article from the Rocky Mountain News [April 13, 2005, "Fraser River in jeopardy"] detailing some of the long and short range problems for the stream. From the article, "About 60 percent of natural flows in Grand County rivers, including the Fraser, are being diverted by Denver Water and the Northern Colorado Conservancy District, which serves Fort Collins and Greeley, among other municipalities. That figure is expected to grow to 80 percent by 2030. Already, at times during the year, flows in the heavily diverted river are so low that they threaten wastewater treatment. And Winter Park and Fraser face growth limits, town officials say, because they can't guarantee that water will exist to serve new development."
The river was a favorite fishing hole for former President Eisenhower. Of course they stocked the hell out of it when he came to town.
The Rocky is also pointing to their excellent series The Last Drop.
It looks like Gale Norton will decide how the Colorado River Compact states will share the Colorado River this year, according to the Denver Post [April 13, 2005, "Colo. River users at odds over flow"]. From the article, "Upper Basin states such as Colorado want Lake Powell to fill because the lake plays a critical role in providing water for downstream users - especially during dry years. If the lake empties, California, Nevada and Arizona, which have a senior claim on the Colorado River, would be able to take water from the river that Front Range residents now use."
Representative John Salazar is trying to move funding along for the Animas-LaPlata project, according to the Cortez Journal. From the article, "In the proposed federal budget, President Bush set aside $52 million for A-LP in fiscal year 2006. Salazar said there may be an opportunity to get even more money for the project, upward of $100 million, from the Bureau of Reclamation. Rick Ehat, a construction engineer for A-LP who attended the water district seminar, said with current funding work would be completed between 2011 and 2012, but increased funding could mean more efficient production and an earlier finish."
Category: Colorado Water
5:39:40 AM 
|
|
