BOARD0116

• Board Meeting Date: 1/24/2001
• Description: ISF Section - Instream Flow Appropriations
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

RECE~VC:D

Upper Yampa Water Conservancy District

January 16, 2001

JAN 1 8 2001

Colorado Waiel Conservation Soald

Greg Espegren
Colorado Water Conservation Board
1313 Sherman St, Room 721
Denver, CO 80203

Dear Mr. Espegren,

The Upper Yampa Water Conservancy District does not oppose a junior instream flow water right on the Yampa
River between Stagecoach Dam and Catamount Reservoir, but only so long as the amount of the minimum flow
decree in that total reach does not exceed 20 cfs from 1 August through 30 November and does not exceed 40 cfs
or the inflow from Stagecoach Reservoir, whichever is lower, from 1 December through 31 July. Those are the
impositions on our releases and we believe that our agreement not to oppose an instream flow below Stagecoach
Dam was intended with respect to those limits.

We are troubled with the proposal you have given regarding the flow recommendations. First, the recommendation
for the flow between the Dam and the confluence with Morrison Creek exceeds our release requirements. This we
cannot support, since a 40 cfs year round flow decree will inevitably result in future imposition of bypass flow
requirements on the reservoir to support such flow levels.

For the reach between the confluence of Morrison Creek and Lake Catamount, we are troubled by the way you hav.
characterized the flow recommendation. We believe that below Morrison Creek, before the confluence of Service
Creek, the flow recommendations will not be reached with native flow during periods of low flow and, hence, such
flow recommendations may be used in the future to impose bypass flow requirements on Stagecoach Reservoir.
We have recommended that you consider not increasing flow recommendation above our release requirement and
obtain instead minimum flow decrees on each of the four tributaries - Morrison Creek, Service Creek, Green Creek,
and Harrison Creek. That way,R you can protect all the inflow you can get into the Yampa from such tributaries.

However, if you conclude that you must step up the flow recommendation on the Morrison Creek-Catamount reach
of the River itself, then we would strongly urge that the flow decree for the lower segment be:

The amount of our release requirement, PLUS
The SMALLER of (l)your proposed incremental increase above our release requirement, or (2) the
inflow into the Yampa River from each of such four tributaries

Perhaps, if these suggestions are acceptable, the District could contract with the CWCB to provide flow protection in
the Stagecoach/Catamount reach for the hydroelectric releases of the District above inflow levels.

Sincerely,{' '1tf,/" "
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/ John R. Fetcher, seerr:tf(ry 'Man]ger

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Mailing Address
P.O. Box 880339
Steamboat Springs, CO 80488-0339

Location
Fish Creek Filtration Plant
3310 Clear Water Trail

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