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Thursday, March 15, 2007
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New West is pointing to a new book from the Rick Bass, Platte River. From the article, "This month the University of Nebraska Press released a paperback edition of Platte River, a collection of three long stories by Rick Bass that was originally published in 1994. Platte River was Bass' second published book of fiction, and though it doesn't measure up to some of his more recent work, there are intimations of the formidable writer that Bass would become, particularly in the title novella, the story of an ex-NFL athlete who lives in the Montana woods with a longtime girlfriend who is in the process of leaving him."
Looks like a must read.
Category: Colorado Water
6:01:28 PM 
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Water News Weekly: "Within weeks, testing for the presence of a chemical used to make Teflon that's been found in the blood of Ohio and West Virginia residents will start extending to hundreds and perhaps thousands of isolated wells. As soon as its plan for the project is approved, DuPont Inc. will send letters to about 3,000 homes in southern Washington County and across the Ohio River outside Parkersburg, W.Va., to ask if they are served by a well instead of municipal systems, which are already being treated. If it's a well, the company will send trained samplers to collect samples to test for ammonium perfluorooctanoate, also known as PFOA and C8. 'It's a very large undertaking,' said Karen Johnson, chief of the groundwater and enforcement branch for Region 3 of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 'It's going to take months.' As the result of a class-action lawsuit claiming the DuPont plant contaminated water supplies, Wilmington, Del.-based DuPont agreed to install permanent filters to remove C8 in treatment plants in six Ohio and West Virginia municipal water districts near its Washington Works Plant in Parkersburg."
Category: Colorado Water
5:53:28 PM
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Here's a report on the proposed use of potato slurry to help with the cleanup of the Summitville mine from the Pueblo Chieftain. From the article, "The Rio Grande Interbasin Roundtable on Tuesday refused to commit to any financial support for a water treatment project using potato slurry at the Summitville Gold Mine site. Joe Harrington, vice president of Alexco Resource US Corps, who created the technology that uses slurry from organic carbon sources such as potatoes to treat water laden with heavy metals, presented an informational program to the roundtable and made a pitch for group's support to secure federal funds for the project. Harrington and his older brother, James, made a similar proposal to Rio Grande County commissioners two years ago when they represented a company called ARCADIS. Harrington said the patented technology has worked elsewhere with great success and has been the recipient of environmental awards.
"The Harringtons propose to yearly use an estimated 100 potato trucks of cull potatoes for the slurry that would be used to filter runoff at Summitville. The project would provide jobs in the San Luis Valley and pump millions of dollars into the economy, Harrington said. The pilot project would cost approximately $900,000, but in order for federal funds to be used, there must be a state match of $1 for every $9 federal dollars, Harrington said. Although both Colorado and the Environmental Protection Agency have agreed with the proposed technology, Colorado does not have the matching money, Harrington said...
"In the early 1990s, there was a massive fish kill in the Alamosa River and Terrace Reservoir because of the heavy metals -- including copper, iron, manganese, zinc, aluminum and cadmium -- and acid contamination from the Summitville Mine along the entire length of the river. On Dec. 1, 1992, Galactic Resources, the mine's operator, notified the state of Colorado of its intent to declare bankruptcy and abandon the Summitville mine effective that Dec. 16. Within hours, the state asked for emergency response assistance from the Environmental Protection Agency. On Dec. 16, 1992, the EPA Region VIII Emergency Response Branch assumed control of the site and began water treatment plant modifications to treat cyanide-contaminated leachate and acid mine drainage from numerous sources at the site. To date, more than $180 million has been spent on cleanup."
Category: Colorado Water
6:13:46 AM
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HB 07-1341 [pdf], Concerning the Colorado Oil and Gas Commission, and, In Connection Therewith, Directing the Commission to Foster Oil and Gas Development Consisten with the Protection of the Environment, Wildlife Resources, and Public Health, Safety, and Welfare, passed out of committee yesterday, according to the Colorado Springs Gazette. From the article, "A House committee endorsed a proposal Wednesday to reconfigure the state's oil and gas conservation commission. House Bill 1341 would expand the panel[base ']s membership from seven to nine members, decreasing the influence of industry representatives. It would also redefine the commission's mission, emphasizing that protection of the environment, including wildlife, is an objective of its regulatory activities. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Kathleen Curry, D-Gunnison, is a key component of Gov. Bill Ritter's agenda to reduce the environmental and health impacts of oil and gas drilling on the Western Slope...
"Department of Natural Resources Director Harris Sherman said the proposed change to the commission's makeup is essential in addressing the public's concern that oil and gas drilling is harmful to people, wildlife, air, land and water. 'Right or wrong, there is a perception by many that the oil and gas industry is regulating itself,' Sherman said. If enacted into law, the bill would reduce the number of oil and gas industry representatives on the board from five to three and add an owner of mineral royalties, an expert in wildlife and environmental issues, and representatives of local government and agriculture."
Meanwhile the Rocky Mountain News is reporting the the Oil and Gas Industry plans to oppose HB 07-1341. From the article, "Colorado's $13 billion oil and gas industry has taken on Gov. Bill Ritter and his administration by backing out of a deal to reform energy regulation. The industry is taking a stand against House Bill 1341, shifting from its initial decision to remain neutral. The bill seeks to increase the size and composition of the board of the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission...
"The bill causes many concerns, said Stan Dempsey of the Colorado Petroleum Association, which is opposing the bill. The industry is concerned because the bill calls for a dramatic overhaul of the regulatory body. It increases the board size to nine from seven and allows other state agency heads to vote on oil and gas matters...
"Reform bill details: House Bill 1341 increases the size of the commission to nine from seven members but reduces the number of board members with industry background to three from five; The new board would include a local government official, an expert in soil conservation, an owner of both land and mineral rights, and the executive directors of the departments of natural resources and public health and environment or their designees; The bill also changes the definition of waste to include public health, safety, wildlife and environment the commission must consider before determining how much resource can be recovered."
Category: Colorado Water
6:06:57 AM
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Here's an opinion piece about the Glade Reservoir piece of NISP, written by Don Magnuson, from the Fort Collins Coloradoan. He writes, "A recent guest column by George Wallace raised questions regarding the proposed Northern Integrated Supply Project's benefit to agriculture. While I value Wallace's opinion, I disagree with his conclusions. The water supply project is good for agriculture, and in fact, presents the most viable local, long-term solution to protect our agricultural heritage. As a farmer under the Larimer & Weld Irrigation Co., I can assure Wallace that NISP will not harm farmers in Northern Colorado. No canal company is being forced to participate in NISP. The project has made successful progress because the participating parties understand the regional benefit it brings to both urban and rural residents. I agree with Wallace that agricultural-municipal water sharing is an asset to the Poudre Basin we should fully explore, but it's easier said than done. Practically speaking, it won't come close to meeting the region's entire future water needs. To my knowledge, no basin in the state of Colorado has a history of cooperation like that in the Cache La Poudre River Basin. It is the collaboration of cities and towns and canal companies and farmers that has made the Cache La Poudre River Basin the shining example of how water users can work together for the benefit of all. In fact, that is why the basin was recognized as a National Water Heritage Area in 1996 - because it illustrates the finest example of a working river in the western United States. NISP will continue that legacy.
"NISP is an innovative partnership between agricultural and municipal water users. Of the 40,000 acre-feet of water the project will provide, almost two-thirds comes from a water-sharing agreement with agriculture in Larimer and Weld counties. In exchange for providing a portion of their current supplies to fill Glade Reservoir, the irrigators will receive an equivalent amount of water from the South Platte River. Other benefits may include financial incentives, ditch and canal upgrades, and assistance replacing aging infrastructure - such as will occur with Wallace's ditch company, North Poudre...
"What happens if we do not build storage projects such as Glade Reservoir? The inevitable growth will increase the drying up of agricultural lands as the No. 1 means of acquiring water. That is the reality of the situation, a reality that is bad for the region as a whole, not just agriculture."
5:56:53 AM
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© Copyright
2007
John Orr.
Last update:
4/1/07; 9:46:23 AM.
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