Laserfiche WebLink
<br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />www.usbr.gov/uc/envdocs/reports/fg/annRep06.pdf. <br /> <br />Reclamation published a final environmental impact statement (EIS) on the operation of Flaming Gorge <br />Dam in 2005. The EIS describes the potential effects of modifying the operation of Flaming Gorge Dam <br />to assist in the recovery of four endangered fish, and their critical habitat, downstream from the dam. <br />Reclamation signed the ROD in 2006 changing the operational regime for Flaming Gorge Dam. Under <br />the ROD, Reclamation has modified the operation of Flaming Gorge Dam to achieve the flow and <br />temperature objectives recommended by participants of the Upper Colorado River Endangered Fish <br />Recovery Program. <br /> <br />Flaming Gorge Dam, located on the Green River in northeastern Utah about 200 miles east of Salt Lake <br />City, is an authorized storage unit of the CRSP. Flaming Gorge Dam was completed in 1962 and full <br />operation of the dam and reservoir began in 1967. The powerplant, located at the base of the dam, began <br />commercial operation in 1963 and was completed in 1964. Reclamation operates the dam and powerplant <br />and the Western Area Power Administration markets the power. <br /> <br />Colorado River Water Quality at Risk: Glenwood Springs water engineer Louis Meyer, who <br />represents the county on the Colorado River Basin Roundtable, said declining flows in the Colorado <br />River - due to the worst drought in the state's history and increased demands by West Slope and Front <br />Ranger water users - point to future water quality problems. <br /> <br />Meyer, who brought the Garfield County Commissioners up to date on the workings of the Colorado <br />River Basin Roundtable on Oct 16, said the group is wrestling with both water quality and shortage <br />issues. <br /> <br />Demands by downstream states and transfers to the Front Range, plus a recent move to renegotiate an <br />agreement between the Denver Water Board and Xcel Energy to relax the use of Colorado River water by <br />the Shoshone Hydroelectric Plant in Glenwood Canyon, could increase problems with water quality. <br /> <br />Meyer said salinity, minerals and new pollutants called "endocrine disrupters" - medicines, honnones, <br />pesticides and herbicides now entering the river, which have not been targeted by water treatment plants - <br />will increase in the river if more water is diverted. <br /> <br />Meyer urged the commissioners to get personaIly involved in discussions by "headwater" counties such as <br />Grand, Eagle and Summit, which are negotiating with Denver Water to resolve some of the transmountain <br />diversion issues. <br /> <br />Meyer also reported to the commissioners that $40 million of state money is available for water projects <br />to mitigate future shortages. Those could include brining water from streams that flow into the Colorado <br />to Rifle to alleviate the city's dependence on the Colorado River. <br /> <br />Low Flows CaD Attention to Water Rights Issues: Low flows in the Colorado River near Parshall and <br />Kremmling in September had many crying foul and pointing fingers, but the situation has helped put a <br />spotlight on the ongoing problem with water rights in Grand County. <br /> <br />When ranchers in the Kremmling and Parshall area called county officials in September to warn them that <br />if they started irrigating their crops the river would run dry, the situation received some media attention. <br /> <br />County Manager Lurline Underbrink Curran, who has been working for Grand County for 25 years, said <br />this is the first time in her tenure that this many voices have come together to address the issue. <br /> <br />The entities involved include the Colorado-Big Thompson Project (C-BT), which is managed by <br />Reclamation; and Denver Water, which operates Williams Fork. Granby Reservoir, part of the C-BT, <br /> <br />25 <br />