Although portions of this report are used on occasion in Colorado Central Magazine, we do not publish the full report there, as we do on this website. It is prepared by Steve Glazer of Crested Butte and is distributed early each month via an email list. To subscribe to that list, email to <listserv@lists.sierraclub.org> with SUBSCRIBE RMC-CONS-WATER as the message.
Please note that this is an archive, and some links may no longer function.
Snowpack levels in the mountains outside of Aspen are again below normal, and some state officials think that in-stream flows may not be met this year because those flows are attached to junior water rights, which may not see their allocation, so the Roaring Fork Conservancy is working on a plan to educate locals about how to conserve water. Aspen Times; May 13 <link>
Snowpack on Colorado's Western Slope is melting far faster than usual, with two river basins likely to melt off in near-record time. The status of western Colorado's snow is in marked contrast to conditions in the Denver region, where snowpack in the South Platte River basin stands at 104 percent of average. <link>
Many Colorado farmers are rushing to cash in on the golden promises of ethanol, but if Kansas is successful in its claims for Republican River water that feeds the Yuma aquifer, those farmers could see their dreams reduced to dust. Denver Rocky Mountain News; May 21 <link>
Jefferson County officials are proposing new regulations for new water wells, including that new homes obtain a well yield permit and new subdivisions and rezoning requests would require a hydrogeological report that would provide information on precipitation, recharge, proposed consumption and other issues that impact groundwater. Denver Rocky Mountain News; May 18 <link>
Colorado agency officials questioned Royal Dutch Shell's Colorado mining permit application to conduct oil shale research in Rio Blanco County, saying some aspects of the project could harm groundwater and water rights, but the company said is has protections in place to avoid that. Grand Junction Sentinel; May 24 <link>
Colorado Sens. Ken Salazar and Wayne Allard introduced legislation to provide $6 million in federal funds to update a 60-year-old water delivery system that provides water to farmers, houses and businesses from Jackson Gulch Reservoir. Durango Herald; May 31 <link>
A Bureau of Reclamation report says that the Colorado River will produce 68 percent of its normal flow from Oct. 1, 2006, through the end of September, 2007 below normal for the seventh out of the last eight years. Boulder Daily Camera (AP); May 13 <link>
Almost 70 percent of the 11 states in the western United States are in drought or abnormally dry, and in Arizona 90 percent of the state is in some sort of drought. USA Today; May 21 <link>
A new study done by University of Arizona researchers provides the longest record of Colorado River flows and found that, for 25 consecutive years in the 12th century, river flows in the Colorado River were 15 percent below what is now considered normal. Arizona Republic; May 18 <link>
A Sandia National Laboratory report for the Department of Energy projects up to 60% of non-farm water use in the U.S. could be required for power production, which would hit particularly hard in the Southwest. <link>
One of the themes at a recent water conference in Colorado was that when the Colorado River Compact was first written, it was done so with few interests in mind, but today, the range of interests in Colorado River water is so diverse that many are rethinking the effects of that compact. A look at the 32nd Colorado Water Workshop at Western State College. Aspen Times; May 29 <link>
Several speakers at the Colorado Water Workshop at Western State College last week said that global warming, drought and shrinking water supplies could actually bring the millions of Colorado River water users together to find consensus on water uses. Denver Post; May 30 <link>
The seven states that share Colorado River water sent a plan last week to the Interior Department to manage that water in times of shortages, and since the amount of water has declined since the original pact was signed in 1922, the four states that share what's left over after Arizona, California, Nevada take their guaranteed share will feel the impact the most from the shortages. Las Vegas Review-Journal (AP); May 10 <link> <link>
Unclear water rights, environmental concerns and political opposition has thwarted several plans to pump water from the Western Slope of Colorado to the urban Front Range, but a recent plan to pipe water from the Green River across the state holds more promise. Denver Post; May 13 <link>
Snowmelt and recent rains have filled Santa Fe's municipal reservoirs to 99 percent of capacity as city staff continued releasing a steady flow down the Santa Fe River to prevent water from spilling over the dam. Santa Fe New Mexican <link> <link>
The millionth silvery minnow, a tiny endangered fish that is found only in the Middle Rio Grande from Cochiti Dam to Elephant Butte, was released amid a gathering of dignitaries assembled to witness the release, and officials said that this year farmers and the fish will both have ample water supplies. Albuquerque Journal; May 30 <link>
A district court ruling upheld the state engineer's authority to set water regulations in New Mexico, but found rules put in place by the state engineer in 2004 were partially unconstitutional. Santa Fe New Mexican; May 22 <link>
Northern New Mexico Community College is working on a deal to buy the historic Los Luceros Hacienda property, which comes with an annual water right of 200-acre feet, an important asset with water rights selling for about $25,000 an acre-foot. Santa Fe New Mexican; May 2 <link>
In response to a lawsuit brought by the Center for Biological Diversity, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced it will again consider the Rio Grande cutthroat trout for protection as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act. The Center first petitioned to have the Rio Grande cutthroat trout protected in 1998, and despite the fact that the trout is gone from 99 percent of its historic range and threatened by multiple factors, the Fish and Wildlife Service has steadfastly refused to provide protection. <link>
New Mexican's love their rivers, but the state has precious little water, and a lot of money and effort goes into reengineering our rivers -- in what are called restoration projects -- but the state should instead focus on creating one program to restore the natural hydrological flows of the rivers. Albuquerque Tribune; May 25 <link>
More than three-quarters of the newcomers to Albuquerque come from cities with annual precipitation levels more than double that of Albuquerque, and New Mexico officials should do what it takes to ensure that they realize the consequences of living in an area where annual precipitation ranges from 8 to 12 inches. Albuquerque Tribune; May 30 <link>
The University of Utah was the area's biggest water hog a decade ago, but the school has cut water consumption 15 percent in the last five years and yesterday said it would participate in the state's "Smart Sprinkling" program and continue to act as a leader in water conservation. Salt Lake Tribune; May 10 <link>
Before Utahns shell out the estimated $500 million it will take to build a 160-mile pipeline from Lake Powell to St. George and Cedar City, the residents of Washington, Iron and Kane counties should take a long, hard look at how they use water and develop a conservation plan. Salt Lake Tribune; June 1 <link>
U.S. Sen. Craig Thomas introduced legislation to add 21 segments along 14 rivers and streams in northwest Wyoming to the National Wild and Scenic River System, which would mean 443 total miles of rivers would be protected from dams or other diversions. Casper Star-Tribune; May 4 <link>
Montana's congressional delegation criticized the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation's decision to keep releases from Wyoming's Yellowtail Dam into the Bighorn River at the minimum required to maintain the Montana river's $30 million fishing industry, but federal officials said reduced inflows into the reservoir gave them no choice. Billings Gazette; May 11 <link>
Nearly 14 percent of all coalbed methane wells drilled in Wyoming have produced only water, pumping nearly 39,000-acre-feet of water to date, and with negotiations continuing between state, federal and industry officials about what to do with coalbed methane water, companies are inventorying water-only wells. Casper Star-Tribune; May 6 <link>
Wyoming Attorney General Pat Crank has said that water-quality issues lie with the state Department of Environmental Quality, while water-quantity issues are the responsibility of the state engineer, and that dual authority has caused confusion and frustration among the legislative Coal-Bed Methane Task Force members. Casper Star-Tribune; May 14 <link>
The National Park Service spends about $400,000 a year to remove lake trout from Yellowstone National Park in an effort to improve native cutthroat trout populations, but those efforts aren't working as well as officials hoped. Billings Gazette; May 10 <link>
Cities around the world wrestle with creating and maintaining water delivery systems that minimize the amount of water leaked, but some still suffer loses of 30-40 percent, and Phoenix is working on tightening up its system to better last year's loss of 3.6 percent of the 109 billion gallons in that system. Arizona Republic; May 22 <link>
Arizona lawmakers voted to approve a bipartisan bill to empower counties and cities to place new restrictions on rural developments that lack adequate water supplies. LA Times 5/25 <link>
River water does not intrude into well water, but each minds its own business. That old Chinese proverb can be fighting words to Carson River and Truckee River stakeholders, some of whom want to change how and where water is used and others who want to stop them. Nevada Appeal <link>
An unnatural, man-made environment at Lake Tahoe's Keys has become the breeding ground for not only out-of-control invasive plant life, but for undesirable bottom-feeding fish. Nevada Appeal <link>
On Thursday the Bay Institute, Center for Biological Diversity, and Natural Resources Defense Council sent a 60-day notice letter of intent to sue the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for violating the Endangered Species Act by failing to respond to a March 2006 petition requesting changing the federal listing of the imperiled delta smelt (Hypomesus transpacificus) from a threatened to an endangered species. The groups also sent a letter to the California Fish and Game Commission requesting that it reconsider an emergency state listing of endangered for the delta smelt under the California Endangered Species Act. <link>
The agreement between Wyoming and Montana over allocation of Yellowstone River water is more than 50 years old, but that agreement never quantified the amount of water each state would receive, and as the West gets drier and coalbed methane operations pump out more groundwater, relations between the two states have become more strained, and are now before the U.S. Supreme Court. Billings Gazette; May 21 <link>
Wyoming's attorney general said the Yellowstone River Compact Commission is the best body to resolve the ongoing dispute between Wyoming and Montana over water resources, but Montana officials have decided to take the matter up to the U.S. Supreme Court. Billings Gazette; May 20 <link>
Seven consecutive years of drought have changed the water picture for Wyoming and Montana, and the Wyoming state climatologist and the Wyoming area manager for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation both said residents of both states must change the way they use water. Another in a series. Billings Gazette; May 21 <link>
The Forest Service has OKed a plan by Wyoming to try cloud-seeding above federal wilderness areas in the state to create more precipitation without a formal permit or environmental impact statement, because Forest Service officials say the state isn't actually setting foot on the federal land. Billings Gazette (AP); May 28 <link>
Snowpack levels in the Yellowstone River drainage have fallen from below average to well below average in just a week, and state officials are worried that flows could bottom out in July, which historically occurs in August, affecting water rights, irrigation, wildlife and recreation. Billings Gazette; May 15 <link>
The Center for Biological Diversity, Western Watersheds Project, Dr. Pat Munday and former Montana fishing guide George Wuerthner officially notified the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service May 15th that they will sue over an April 24, 2007 decision that the Montana fluvial arctic grayling no longer warrants protection as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act. Rather than concluding Montana grayling are recovered and secure, the agency instead decided that extinction of the Montana population, which is the last in the lower 48 states, is insignificant. <link>
The Montana field organizer with the Endangered Species Coalition and a fisheries biologist with the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks led a group of people to view a fish ladder created on Rattlesnake Creek near Missoula that has helped boost the number of bull trout, an endangered species, as part of the national Endangered Species Day celebration. Missoulian; May 21 <link>
Missoula County planners, in conjunction with the Clark Fork River Coalition, developed a variety of proposals meant to control growth along the Montana county's rivers and streams, and they believed there was widespread support for such regulations meant to protect water quality, but at a series of public meetings on the proposals, the opposition has been quite vocal. Missoulian; May 7 <link>
Fort Belknap's Gros Ventre and Assiniboine tribes and the Montana Reserved Water Rights Compact Commission are negotiating a settlement of the tribes' federal reserved water rights, which would need a $240 million appropriation from Congress to complete, and may result in the transfer of some land, including a popular recreation area called the Grinnell Notch. Great Falls Tribune; May 21 <link>
Three years after the landmark $193 million water rights settlement was reached between the Nez Perce tribe, Idaho and the federal government, officials signed off on the deal; the agreement will take effect after it is published in the Federal Register. Idaho Statesman (AP); May 2 <link>
Idaho Water Director Dave Tuthill said that 33,000 acres of farmland in Idaho's Magic Valley will go dry unless more than 600 groundwater pumpers can come up with the water needed to satisfy water calls from Blue Lakes Trout Farm and Clear Springs Foods' Snake River Farm. Twin Falls Times-News; May 6 <link>
About a dozen Magic Valley communities hold junior groundwater rights, and if the Idaho water director was facing being forced to shut down groundwater users on May 14, meaning most of those towns would not have water for any other use other than culinary, meaning residents would not be able to water lawns nor could the towns water parkland. Twin Falls Times-News; May 6 <link>
Magic Valley irrigators have filed a lawsuit in Idaho District Court to keep the state from shutting down their irrigation wells on May 14 as threatened. Twin Falls Times-News; May 8 <link>
An Idaho district judge said that Idaho Water Resources Department Director David Tuthill can't turn off groundwater pumps used by junior water rights holders as he threatened to do on May 14th if senior rights holders don't receive all of their allotted water. Idaho Statesman; May 9 <link>
Idaho water officials and more than 750 groundwater users reached a deal to provide enough water for seven senior water rights holders and avoid having the users' pumps shut off. Twin Falls Times-News; May 24 <link>
Idaho's largest utility has taken the state to court over minimum flows in the Snake River set by the 1984 Swan Falls Agreement. Twin Falls Times-News; May 21 <link>
The Coeur d'Alene Tribe recently removed several signs and markers in the St. Joe River that were put in place by Benewah County along the river's mouth into Lake Coeur d'Alene, claiming the river is the tribe's to manage and that the new markings are Coast Guard-approved, but local boaters and county officials say otherwise. Coeur d'Alene Press; May 29 <link>
The north rim of the Snake River Canyon is Idaho's deepest geologic wonder, which makes it a perfect spot for the irresponsible masses to make their annual spring trek to toss appliances, grass-clippings and other household trash into the canyon, and it's time that those scofflaws are caught and fined enough to make taking their trash to the dump a cheaper decision. Twin Falls Times-News; May 3 <link>
The Idaho Department of Lands claims title to stream beds and banks to the high-water mark, and the Land Board has a long-time policy of relinquishing claims on lands adjacent to dried up channels of waterways in exchange for a 25-foot public-use easement, but the Land Board will reconsider that policy after a developer questioned it. Idaho Statesman; 5/8 <link> <link>
The Shoshone and Northern Paiute Indians who live on the remote Duck Valley Indian Reservation used federal funds to build Lake Billy Shaw, a lake that now holds world-class rainbow trout, and the tribes hope to fatten up their bottom line by attracting well-heeled anglers. Casper Star-Tribune (AP); May 21 <link>
Idaho fish and game officials said that a January outbreak of ichthyophthirius multifilis (white spot disease or Ich) killed 250,000 rainbow trout at the agency's hatchery in Nampa, the second outbreak of the disease in as many years, and agency officials said they are considering a number of options to keep the disease at bay. Idaho Statesman (AP); May 8 <link>
Some farmers and business owners who rely on the four lower Snake River hydroelectric dams, which critics say impede salmon populations, are starting to have a change of heart and advocating for those dams to be removed and replaced by wind farms and a regional rail line to move products. New York Times; May 13 <link>
Members of environmental groups and Native American tribes plan to ask the shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway, the parent company of PacifiCorp, which does business in Utah as Rocky Mountain Power, to remove the four Klamath River dams owned by PacifiCorp. Salt Lake Tribune; May 2 <link>
More than 200 chefs from 33 states are pressing an initiative before Congress to restore river habitat and tear down hydroelectric dams that have decimated wild salmon habitat in the Pacific Northwest. Los Angeles Times; May 8 <link>
Environmentalists and biologists say that the removal of two aging hydroelectric dams on Washington's Elwha River, slated to be done in 2012, could provide a model for the removal of other dams on other rivers in the Northwest. USA Today; May 3 <link>
A $3.5 million study of the Spokane Valley-Rathdrum Prairie aquifer found that the sole source of drinking water for a half million people in eastern Washington and northern Idaho was not being drained faster than it was being recharged, meaning a slowdown isn't necessary. Coeur d'Alene Press; May 9 <link>
Storms that have swept across Texas in recent weeks have brought much-needed rain, helping to alleviate drought conditions, officials said Thursday. "I can't think of a place in Texas that's not in a better place than it was last year," said Travis Miller, who works in the soil and crop science department of the Texas Cooperative Extension. Dallas Morning News <link>
Lake Okeechobee was expected to drop to its lowest level on record, threatening a key source of water for nearly 5 million people and the Everglades during South Florida's worst known drought. <link>
Environment Minister Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio said the state of emergency had been declared as a precautionary measure. It came a day after neighboring France imposed water rationing in several of its regions. Farmers have been fretting as Italy's largest river, the Po which accounts for about a third of the country's agricultural output, has dried up in recent months. <link>
Water shortages facing Australia's drought-hit prime agricultural area might be worse than expected as river towns braced for unprecedented restrictions on water use. <link>
China's Three Gorges Dam, the world's largest hydropower project, is retaining huge amounts of sediment and nutrients and causing significant erosion in the downstream reaches of the Yangtze River, researchers have found. The Yangtze river is a lifeline for tens of millions of people. Officials have stepped up efforts to protect the Yangtze river valley, reinforcing 1,404 miles of riverbanks, dredging 3165 miles of river bed and improving 2,833 reservoirs. <link> <link>
With close to 70 seminars and nine workshops scheduled, this year's World Water Week aims to top expectations once again. A record number of participants - 2400 from some 130 countries - are expected to explore a wide variety of exciting themes and topics at the Stockholm City Conference Centre August 12-18, 2007. <link>
The Clean Water Restoration Act could drop the word "navigable" from the 1972 Clean Water Act, and define waters of the United States as anything from prairie potholes to ocean tides. Reuters <link>
In the first year following the completion of the cleanup at the Rocky Flats nuclear weapons plant in Colorado, officials say they have found few surprises, except for elevated levels of uranium at one surface-water station and at a groundwater monitoring station. Boulder Daily Camera; May 10 <link>
CSU has been awarded a contract from the Water Environment Research Foundation in a first-of-its-kind study to develop planning tools for municipalities to determine the best way to protect urban waterways from pollution due to stormwater runoff. Water World <link>
Los Alamos National Laboratories officials said data from a new monitoring well they are drilling won't be available until August, but said the new well is part of an ongoing effort to track the movement of a plume of hexavalent chromium contamination in a regional aquifer. Santa Fe New Mexican; May 3 <link>
The Utah Watershed Restoration Initiative is managed by the Utah Department of Natural Resources and Utah Partners for Conservation and Development and has spent about $11 million on more than 900 projects completed or under way to stop soil erosion, create wildlife habitat, improve grazing conditions and ensure that runoff doesn't evaporate. Deseret News; May 29 <link>
At a meeting of the Wyoming Coalbed Methane Task Force, State Engineer Patrick Tyrrell offered the board four options for managing water discharged during coalbed methane operations, including limiting discharges in some drainages and issuing permits on a water-to-gas ratio that justifies water releases based on volume of gas produced. Casper Star-Tribune; May 31 <link>
Arizona Snowbowl filed an appeal with the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals asking the court to reconsider its March ruling banning snowmaking on the San Francisco Peaks based largely on the fact that the site is culturally significant to many Native American tribes, and the Department of Justice and the U.S. Forest Service are expected to appeal the decision today. Arizona Daily Sun; June 1 <link>
The Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation ruled that a natural gas company could not transport water produced during coalbed methane operations into Wyoming, but did give the company a permit to use 3,800 acre-feet of water a year for irrigation or other "beneficial uses." Billings Gazette (AP); June 1 <link>
Alberta Environment officials said that, over the past 18 months, they'd investigated 61 reports that coalbed methane operations had polluted groundwater wells in the central region of the province, but could find no link between the contamination and CBM wells, a statement residents dispute. Edmonton Journal; May 2 <link>
The cost of installing a graywater recycling system -- which allows residents to use water from showers, sinks and washing machines to flush toilets or irrigate gardens -- has forced some residents to install their own systems, and both legal and illegal systems are on the rise in arid parts of the West. New York Times; May 31 <link>
America's increased use of pesticides and nitrates, which end up in surface water and have a seasonal pattern, has been linked to the nation's growing rate of premature births, which also follows a similar seasonal pattern. <link>
A report released online details the results of an experiment begun in 2001 by a team of Canadian and U.S. scientists who added just enough synthetic estrogen used in human birth control pills to equal that in water discharged from water treatment plants into a lake in Northwest Ontario, and found that male fish quickly began producing eggs and soon became indistinguishable from female fish. Toronto Globe and Mail; May 22 <link>
Drought-stricken Beijing will divert up to 400 million cubic metres of water a year from neighbouring Hebei province in a bid to safeguard water supplies for the Olympic Games. Kindred Times <link> <link>
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