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Thursday, June 15, 2006
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It's a sign of the times. Irrigation ditches along the South Platte River are being shut down early this year, according to the Sterling Journal Advocate. They write, "The Pawnee Ditch north of the airport, which went out of service on Monday, was the latest to be shut down, Frank said. He noted that Charlie Sutter, manager of the Pawnee, said this June 12 shutdown was a week earlier than the ditch was closed during the 2002 drought, and that year it remained shut down for 48 days. 'This is serious,' Frank said. 'I don't know what those farmers are going to do.' He added that the Putnam and Weldon Valley ditches are next in line to be shut down. These are all direct flow ditches along the river and the order in which they are shut down is based on the priority system of 'first in time, first in right.' Ditches with the earliest court filing dates are allowed to run the longest. Frank did report that Bijou Ditch would be dumping 20 acre feet of water a day into Prewitt Reservoir for the next two weeks, and this should help some."
Category: Colorado Water
6:11:57 AM 
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Thornton is imposing mandatory watering restrictions, according to the CBS4Denver.com. From the article, "Nearly 50,000 more homes and businesses in Thornton will soon be on mandatory watering restrictions. Thornton's water supply is down considerably because of high demand and this spring's drought-like conditions. The city's reservoirs are so low that the city is asking customers to cut back on lawn watering by 30 percent...Starting July 1, mandatory restrictions will go into effect. Lawn watering is allowed no more than 3 times per week and no watering is allowed between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m."
Category: Colorado Water
6:05:23 AM
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Unbridled growth is one of the biggest pressures on agricultural water of course. Farmers and others are hinting that it can't go on in Colorado, according to the Pueblo Chieftain.
From the article, "Las Animas Mayor Lawrence Sena wants to limit urban growth to the ability of cities to supply water for expansion. Sena made the suggestion Wednesday at the Arkansas Basin Roundtable, asking that it be incorporated into the charter of the Interbasin Compact Committee. The Roundtable took no action on the matter. Vice-chairman Jonathan Fox asked Sena to make the request in writing to Alan Hamel or Jeris Danielson, Arkansas basin representatives on the IBCC. Sena said he intends to make that recommendation. 'There's no mention of limiting growth in the charter,' Sena said. 'I think that's one of the big problems. Colorado Springs and Aurora could not have grown without water from the valley.' Water taken out of communities also limits their ability to grow, Sena said. 'When it comes down to it, if we lose our water, we lose our future,' Sena said. 'You can't deny farmers the right to sell it, but isn't there a way to slow it down?'[...]
"Brown said there is an abundance of water in the Western Slope basins, but much of it is at the state line, rather than in the mountains which supply transmountain supplies for the Front Range. Those mountain areas are growing and facing their own local shortages. Future needs will also occur in new areas, Brown said. Elbert County, located northeast of El Paso County with a population of 22,000, is projected to have one of the fastest growth rates in the basin, but has only limited groundwater resources, Brown said."
Here's the link to the Colorado State University Drought Resources website.
Category: Colorado Water
5:50:57 AM
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The Pueblo Chieftain has an update on the drought gripping Southern Colorado. From the article, "Almost on cue, the sun beat down and winds whipped the parched prairie on Emmett Seal's Avondale ranch Wednesday as farmers gathered to discuss the effects of the drought. A small group that included some state and federal agriculture officials as well as irrigated and dryland farmers gathered at the request of State Sen. Ken Kester, R-Las Animas. Kester said he and others will ask Gov. Bill Owens to declare a drought emergency for the Southern Colorado as hot, dry conditions worsen the farm outlook. Rainfall is about half of average in the region, while high temperatures accelerated snowmelt and runoff. Kester used the opportunity to speak out against allowing any more urban water purchases and leases. 'I can't imagine what it's going to look like,' Kester said. 'The whole valley is going to look like Crowley County if this continues. We can't continue as a state to grow by 1 million people every 10 years. We've got to slow it down and not let them take the water off the land.'[...]
"Irrigated farms have seen large early runs, but will probably have to cut back as supplies are expected to dwindle later this summer, said Tom Rusler, who raises pinto beans, onions, wheat, corn and peppers at Avondale."
"Prices for commodities like wheat and hay are higher than they've been in years, Rusler said. But that's only because production throughout the state has decreased so much. On his own farm, about 20 percent of the land is in 'preventive planting,' which preserves the soil but produces no revenue. He said the regional drought in other states is having ripples in Colorado. For instance, onion sets planted at his farm are harvested from farms in Avondale, Ariz. 'Those onions went all winter without water. The yields were pretty low,' Rusler said...
"Bessemer Ditch water quality and delivery is superior to other ditches in the Arkansas Valley, Rusler said. Salinity increases as the river flows east and flows are lost as it moves down a river increasing choked with tamarisk. The poor conditions further downstream were confirmed by Leroy Brase, whose family has farmed on the Fort Lyon Ditch near Lamar for more than 50 years. He said this drought is worse than past decades, because the dry years have not been punctuated by above-average years."
Category: Colorado Water
5:41:57 AM
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© Copyright
2006
John Orr.
Last update:
12/29/06; 11:48:10 AM.
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