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ErneJt ~ Schutz 1917 - 2000 On September 24, 2000, southwestern Colorado and the Southwestern Water Conservation District lost an invaluable friend and board member. Ernest (Ernie) Schutz died suddenly at his home in Chromo, Colotado, With his brother, Harold, Ernie Schutz ran cattle and bred quarterhorses at their Chromo Ranches. Ernie was born August 17, 1917, in Flora Vista, New Mexico, and graduated from Aztec High School. He married his wife, Dorothy, in 1941, and served in the South Pacific Theater during World War II until his discharge in 1945. After living in California and the Santa Fe area, Mr. Schutz moved to Chama and then to Chromo in the early '50s. He served on the Red Ryder Roundup Committee and volunteered as a Mounted Ranger, doing both for many years. Ernie was a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and was chairman on all local levels as well as grand master for Colorado. Mr. Schutz served on the Southwestern Water Conservation Board until his death. During an interview in 1994, in which Ernie was asked what he thought the water issues are for this area, he remarked, "Well, primarily within a very few years we will not have enough water unless we do a lot of work to conserve it, teach people how to conserve water and actually do it. It gets real scary if you start thinking about it because what are we going to do if we don't have water?" "Another thing that we need to worry about here is trying to keep Colorado water for Colorado. , . Everybody's trying to get Colorado water..." His expertise and experience in dealing with water issues as they relate to southwestern Colorado and the agricultural business will be greatly missed.' Colora'Jo Water Duality Control Commu<<Iwn SetJ Hea;;ng on AnintaJ River research, collecr stream data, and coordinate demonstration clean-up projects. "We probably have more data than any other watershed in the country, other than the Chesapeake Bay," says Simon. At the upcoming hearing they will present remediation scenarios of prioritized mine sites, including cost estimates to attain Clean Water Act standards. Both natural and mining induced dissolved metals and high acidity currently limit aquatic life. Their findings, based on a "Use Attainment Analysis," will be published in mid-January, providing time for review before the May 15 rule making hearing. The Colorado Water Quality Control Commission will hold its three-year water quality review hearing on Monday, March 12 in Denver at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. The Commission is charged with reviewing srream standards and classifying each stream in Colorado every three years. The Commission is a citizens group appointed by the governor that works with the Colorado Water Quality Control Division. The Animas River Stakeholders Group will make recommendations for the Animas watershed based on their extensive analysis of data collected over the last twelve years. The Stakeholders Group is an ad hoc entity empowered As a national pilot for mine reclamation and stream by the Commission. Over 20 agencies, mining companies, cleanup, the Animas Group has conducted not only a great property owners, and citizen groups make up the Group, deal of research and site characterization, but also numerous The Animas Group's focus according to Watershed remediation projects. Some of the projects have removed Coordinator, Bill Simon, is to improve water quality and and appropriately disposed of mill tailings from the Animas aquatic habitat in the Animas watershed. Federal, state, flood plain, neutralized and capped mine waste piles, and and local funds have been used to conduct water quality treated mine drainage with developed wetlands. The 2 Continued on page 3