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<br />Between Granby and Kremmling, some gauges are measuring flows as low as 20 cubic feet per second, <br />leading Trout Unlimited (TV) to raise an alarm. The cold water fisheries conservation group is concerned <br />that the low flows could harm trout populations in the prolific fishery, and claims that the state is not <br />trying to meet its obligation to maintain minimum stream flows. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />Mely Whiting, attorney for TU's Western Water Project said that they were getting calls from ranchers <br />who are also TV members, saying that if they take their entire allotment, the river will be completely <br />dried up. The only thing sustaining fish populations at this point is voluntary cooperation from some of <br />the large ranch owners in the area, Whiting explained. <br /> <br />Summit County fits into the picture because water from the Blue River system, via Dillon and Green <br />Mountain reservoirs, is currently being used to meet downstream demands, especially the crucial <br />Shoshone water right. That means more available water in the Upper Colorado, above Kremmling, for <br />diversion to the East Slope via the Colorado-Big Thompson Project. <br /> <br />But operation of the Colorado-Big Thompson project is partially governed by a U.S. Senate document <br />that requires the Bureau of Reclamation to operate the Colorado-Big Thompson Project in a way that <br />maintains a live stream and satisfies irrigation needs. According to Whiting and other officials in Grand <br />County, that is currently not happening. Grand County Commissioner James Newberry was on his way to <br />Washington, D.C., Thursday to discuss the situation with top Bureau of Reclamation officials. <br /> <br />On September 6, Denver Water started releasing about 50 cfs from the WiIliams Fork Reservoir <br />Thursday, boosting flows from the confluence of the Colorado downstream to Kremmling. But upstream <br />toward Granby, the river is as low as it's ever been, according to Skylark Ranch manager Wes Palmer. <br /> <br />While water levels in the Colorado are healthy below the confluence with the Blue, there is a gap in the <br />flows upstream, between Kremmling and Granby, resulting from the diversions to the Front Range. <br />Kirk Klancke, with the Winter Park West Water and Sanitation District, said the low flows in the upper <br />Colorado River can mostly be attributed to Front Range demand. He said the state-owned water rights, <br />held by the Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB) to meet minimum flow requirements, are junior <br />to other rights currently being used. But he did say that some of the state's water rights are senior to some <br />other diversions, including water being used to irrigate golf courses in Grand County, and he wondered <br />why the CWCB wasn't asserting its right to at least that portion of the instream flows. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />Weather Modification Update: As part of the Colorado 7 Basin States Negotiations Denver Water wiIl <br />receive a $30K grant for cloud seeding operations. The <br />CWCB has been working with Denver Water to scope out a <br />cloud seeding project this winter that will deploy ground based <br />seeding generators but will also incorporate a small evaluation <br />component. With Denver Water's Reservoirs in good shape <br />this year, the goal is related to exploration of targeting and <br />generator placement for efficient operations. The target area <br />will be either the Blue River or Snake River Basin above <br />Dillon Reservoir, or the Fraser River Basin near Winter Park. <br />Plume dispersion modeling might be a component of the <br />evaluation of cloud seeding efforts. The Desert Research <br />Institute of Reno, Nevada is an excellent candidate for this <br />analysis. The analysis would help determine effects of <br />generator placement on the mixture of silver iodide arriving in <br />the intended target area. <br /> <br />18 <br /> <br /> <br />DRl's MM5 modeling of seeding plume dispersion <br />shows a better dispersion of seeding material from <br />storms In the south than storms from the west <br /> <br />. <br />