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. ROMCOE BOARD SUPPORTS HANSEN CRITIQUE OF WESTWIOE WATER STUDY PLAN At its August 4 meeting, the Board of Directors of ROMCQE passed a resolution ellpressing its general approval of the Western U.S. Water Plifn Study in its draft form. The resolution also stdted that the Board is Concerned that the Weslwide Study Plan does not consider non-development as a possible alterna- tive, ilnd that it does not consider whether water develo~nt Should or should not be used as a lever for generating population gro...th and economic de- velopment in the West. The basis for the Board resolution was a critical review of the Study Plan written by Roger Hansen, Executive Director of ROMCOE. In il letter to Ellis Armstrong. COIlJllissioner of the Bureilu of Recl,Mliltion, ROHCOE President Ken IoIright con~eyed the Board resolution and urged Annstrong to consider the criticism raised by Hi::l'lser:. Iru> Hansen critique blames the Colorado Ri~er Basin Project Act for the lack of envirorvoental emphasis in the ~estwide Study Plan. The Con- gressional mandate for the Plan was to "pro~ide a program for the further comprehensi~e development of tne water resources of the Colorado River Basin and for the provision of additional and adequate water supplies." According to Hansen. five years ago the Westwide Study Plan would not have contained the emphasis on environmental matters that it does today. Nonetheless, he feels that the Plan could be impro~ed environmentally by lmplementcltlon of 23 specifiC recommendations. Among them are: (1) clmendment of the Central Arizona Project Act to ~Ke it consistent with broader socid1 dnd environmental Objectives of water resource planning rather than just econooic develop- ment; (2) amendment of the Western United States Water Plan so that 11s objecti~es are more evenly balanced between economic and environmental con- siderations; (3) establistwnent of an ll-state inter- disciplinary environmental planning cOlllllittee with specialists from throughout the region in all the environmental disciplines to provide more technical and scientific input and objective analysis than are now provided for in the Plan; (4) establishment of on-going, infonnal dialogue between Plan admini- strhors ilnd concerned citizens so that the basic assumption of the Plan that the economy of the West IlJJst grow and must have water to grow can be questioned; and (5) insuring that environmental matters be considered at the beginning of the study so they can be incorporated into the discussion of altematives at the earliest possible stage. Hansen has. said that the Westwide Study Plan has the potential ~of being the first truly ecological approach to major resource planning in the nation's history." However. he feels it should be designed as a control mechanisr.1 of econCll1ic and POllulation eltpansion in an area whose natural resources are limited and at a point of overuse. EPA SAYS POLLUTION THREATENS HELENA ENVIRONMENT A study of envirorvnental pollution in the Helena Valley of Montana made by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agenc)' (EPA) says that consumption of locally grown fruits and vegetables J:lc1y be dangerous. ACCOrding to the report. both the air and the soil in the Helena area contain lIlOre than a "safe" ,2, . amount of such potentially damaging pollutants as lead. cadmium. arsenic and sulfur dioxide. Therefore. EPA recommends that all produce be washed to remove surface contaminants and that horses and sheep not be allowed to graze in the vicinity of East Helena. the area of heaviest contamination. Acknowledged sources of the pollution are principally the smelters of the American Smelting and Refining Com~ny and the Anaconda Company. which have processed lead and zinc in the Helena area since 1899. According to an ASARCO spokesman. much of the soil contamination may have occurred in the early part of the century prior to the installation of pollution control equiptlent. However, the EPA report indicates finding concentrations of heavy metals in human hair far above normal. In addition. research has not been done to establish safe levels of these meta 1 s for pregnant women. infants and young children. ,~~ , , Go_,. ....ftl... oe__ .OWCOI _'11 _M<. 10.. e._ eMl _ ~."", ...' ......... ..i.. ........R ......._... .ote.-h_' ~......_, ,.....""1. ...,..... "',1,.. .MI....._.......otl.... PLAN,METRO DENVER READY FOR ACTION The recent RO'1COE-sponsored workshop on the environ- lIlent of the Denver metropolitan area has resulted in tile establistvnent of a new envirorwnental action effort -. People's league for Action Now, or PLAN- Metro Denver, A steering cOllll1ittee chaired by Ruth Wright met during June and July to consider the need for a new environmental "coalition" in Denver. It found that it would be desirable to have an "action" organiza- tion which could lObby on the whole range of environ. mental problems facing the RJetropolitan area. Accordingly, articles of incorporation have been drawn up and dn interim Board of Directors has been selected to serve for 90 days during the fOnT.ative stage. The initial organizational meeting for PlAN-i1etro Denver will be held August 31 at 7:30 p.m. at the Denver Botanic Gardens. All citizens from throughout the II1(>tropol~tan area are invite(! to attend. The interim Board has already begun its activist efforts. In a statement issued jointly with Colorado Citizens for Clean Air, Richard !~duro. temporuy chairman for PlMl. expressed the groups' opoosition to the construction of more park.ing lots and garages in downtown Denver. According to 1oIauro, the City administration should be encouraging other alterna- tives to the private automobile since the e~ission level of air pollutants in dOft'ntown Denver already exceeds levels set by the federal government. Among other issues which PLAN hopes to start worUng on inr.ediately are the Dutch elm disease problem. planned channelization of the South Platte River from the Chatfield Darn to the city limits. policies of the Denver Water Board and F.letropolitan land use patterns.