Monday, April 23, 2007

S. 1116, companion bill H.R. 902 introduced in U.S. Senate From email from U.S. Senator Ken Salazar, "Living in Colorado, we all know how important water is. Each day, more than two million gallons of useable groundwater is wasted, and contaminated beyond use as it is brought to the surface during oil and gas drilling or coal bed methane extraction. That is why I spearheaded a bipartisan bill that could allow the recovery and use of many gallons of 'produced' water every day. In the water-short West, every drop of 'useable' water counts and is needed to irrigate crops, nourish livestock, maintain wildlife habitat, and provide recreational opportunities." Here's the text of S. 1116, the "More Water, More Energy, Less Waste Act of 2007." Category: Colorado Water 6:48:32 AM     Regional Watershed Supply Project Aaron Million was on hand last week for the Yampa / White River Rountable meeting, according to the Craig Daily Press. From the article, "A pipeline from Flaming Gorge Reservoir to Colorado's Front Range is past the proposal stage and the project is moving forward, project developer Aaron Million said Wednesday. 'The Green River runs above average 25 to 30 percent of the time when Colorado's rivers are running below average,' said Million of Fort Collins. 'Water taken out of the reservoir would be charged to Colorado. It would benefit agriculture that is getting decimated on the Front Range.' His words came during the Yampa/White Basin roundtable at the Holiday Inn of Craig... "Million noted that Flaming Gorge Reservoir is larger than all the reservoirs in Colorado combined, and Colorado is allowed access to water as the Green River flows through the northwest part of the state, in an area with nearly no consumptive use. Moffat County rancher T. Wright Dickinson was quick to confront Million on that point of his presentation. 'I must correct your no consumptive use statement,' Dickinson said. 'There is agriculture and there is energy and there are people in Browns Park. Are you willing to meet the future needs of the Green River Basin?' Routt County municipal representative to the roundtable, Dan Craig of Phippsburg, also wanted assurance that any water leaving Colorado would return to the state... "Those and many other questions remain to be addressed about the project, which includes a 400-mile pipeline paralleling Interstate 80 from the reservoir to the Front Range of Colorado. This project, along with the Yampa Pumpback proposal to pump water to the Front Range from a reservoir near Maybell, will be discussed at a meeting of the Upper Colorado River Commission in June." More Coyote Gulch coverage here. Category: Colorado Water 5:50:01 AM     Farmers snap up extra Fort Collins water Farmers snapped up extra water from Fort Collins last week, according to the Fort Collins Coloradoan. From the article, "City officials on Tuesday allocated 8,400 acre-feet of water to farmers who have shares in North Poudre Irrigation Co. on a first-come-first-served basis. The water represented shares Fort Collins owns in the North Poudre system, said Dennis Bode, water resource manager for the city. Without limits on how much could be rented by individual users, most of the water went to major farms in the area, leaving dozens of smaller operations without a chance to get supplemental water for their crops, said Curtis Bridges, who owns 300 acres and farms west of Wellington. Large farming operations in the area had employees waiting in line outside North Poudre's office in Wellington around the clock for days in anticipation of the sale, Bridges said... "The water went to 12 requesters at a rate of $30 an acre-foot, Bode said. Some requesters represented more than one farm. The farmers paid up-front for the water, he said... "North Poudre plans to deliver 2.5 acre-feet per share, down from a typical quota of about 4.5 acre-feet. The company's supplies are expected to be short this year because it borrowed water last summer -- during a prolonged stretch of hot, dry weather in the middle of the growing season -- against this year's supply... "More water might be available because of a recent increase in the distribution quota set by the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District, Bode said. If that happens, North Poudre farmers left out of Tuesday's allocation will be notified and given a shot at the water." Category: Colorado Water 5:37:14 AM

© Copyright 2007 John Orr. Last update: 5/1/07; 9:46:54 AM.