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come 2000, the federal government could elecl to wipe oul tbe remain- der of the debl and use the reservoir as a sourae of water for fish, Kuhn said_ Ruedi waleI' is also being eyed as an alternative source of waler for Colorado Springs and Aurora in lieu ofHomestal<e II. The Front Range cities have given up all the controversial expansion of their Eagle River lransmOlmtain IValer diversion, ..1th llJe nnder- slanding that other allematives will be considered, To date, the ideas have focused on . <: '"' "- .. i .. "- '" ." @ .... 0> " <> <> ;:! l>< '" .... <> '" .. ." <> 0> <> .... ~ ~ 3-~l>.qt? Changes in water rights discussed Valley water suppliers' plans would benefit endangered fish By KEAmER McGREllOll ll1eo.iljSeI\li"" Grand Valley waler snpplie"" met TblltS<lay for an updale on plans to alter the Shoshone power planl wa. ter rigill to benefll endangered fish. Lowering or eliminating Ibe wa. ter right would tip water.use domi- noes npstream and downstream of the Glen IVood Canyon power plant, and Weslern Slope water olficials say a study is needed before the idea gains more moment urn. Dale Tooker, numager of the Clift- on Water Districl, said the study should look closely 01 how nuctual- ing seasonal fio;;.. would change , Colorado River salinity. Public Service Co. of Colorado, owner of the power planl and the 1905 water right, has said it would need to be paid for more t:bmI ill5t power production 10 agree to the deal, said Eric K~ manager of the Colorado River Water Conservation District Ski areas in Eagle, Smnmit and Grand counties would love to see lbe IVater right eased hocause they could use more water for snowmaking, But Grand County anglers and ranchers are dead sel against the idea because winter releases 10 Shoshone from Denver's Williams Fork Reservoir improve the Colo. rado River fishery and keep the riv- er open in the winter for livestock, Kuhn said a sludy of Ihe idea .could cost $100,000 and would be paid for by l:!1e fish recovery program, Meanwhile, Kuhn predicted Ihat Weslern Slope water users will see movement Ihis spring on Round n water sales from Ruedi Reservoir, The sales have been slalled for 15 years as the endangered fISh issue developed. ReseI"<o1t releases for the fish have increased to :!Il,OOO acre-feet a year while the deadline for repay. ment of Ib.e federal water slorage projoct is just2t years away. Even if Round II sales IVere 10 slart lhis year ,Ihey maynal bring in enough money lo payoff the debl, Kuhn said, Tbere's speculation Ihal <:: on to :;" ~ ~ o ~ See WATER, page 118 ~ WATER: New idea: Pump water from Ruedi to Boustead Tunnel > Conlinued !Jom page 18 pumping f;roundwater frem the ,-Camp Hale area upstream to Home- stake Reservoir. But. Kuhn said a new idea has emerged' to pump about 21),000 acre- feet of waleI' from Ruedl up to the Bouslead Twmel coUecti<in system. Boustead draws waler from the headwaters of the Fryingpan River and Hunler Creek and delivers them 10 Turquoise Lake near Leadville. Under the new concep~ the Front Range cities would USI! the pwnped Ruedi water inslead of lapping /he Eagle'River for more water, Kuhn said. TeClmica1ly, it a]lpoors the idea could work, Kuhn said. mId it would help 10 mllintain lllllderale Dows in the FryWgpml below Rued!, a troul. fIShing mecca. But the conce]lt is new and objections could still pop up. 1&1 <> <> ...