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Reallocation of Chatfield Reservoir Storage for Multiple Uses Current Situation The South Platte River is the birthplace of Denver. From the very beginning, the River provided water supply and a place to dispose of unwanted belongings. As late as the early 1970's, the River was uninviting and nasty - its dark and smelly waters rarely visited by the members of the community, belying its value as a source of drinking water, irrigation water and refuge for wildlife. Thankfully the nature of the relationship between the River and the community has changed over the past decades, with a "renaissance" occurring over the past 35 years. A vital component of that renaissance has been the development and expansion of parks and other amenities along the river's corridor that have renewed the connection between water and people, and water and wildlife. As in many areas in the West, the South Platte River has become under increasing pressure to provide for the various and diverse needs of its community - human and wildlife - which leads to decreased flows, and therefore decreased options to meet the needs of the growing population. The Challenge The citizens of the Denver Metropolitan Area are faced with a tremendous opportunity, and a challenge, associated with leveraging the storage within Chatfield Reservoir. Just in the past few weeks, USACE HQ has come to understand that the reservoir's original purpose - that of flood control protection to the downstream population - can be expanded without detriment or compromise to its original mission. The reallocation of the storage in Chatfield Reservoir creates a tremendous opportunity to '\':'-~,~, . 'I :~."; "'J.-'~~ . ," !,'':''''r'~' .' ~ '" r . :""-- 'i :~p .i,.';f.~.j ~., '. .,-{}f:'''':', ~'~' ,:" "c: ;;.~ .~_.. '.JJ-i'l' - .~_ , . .:: iC"''1 viyt" .' , . t ..-- r '"".'0' ~ .'" , .') ,..' '. ..... ',~&i.oj "", ...~..'".,z;,.;o:'",_,,.1 , f i . ~. ..!1 -$' i Li. '\.-..... "T...~J . _,.,.."..~.~,::..1;:.. .~_.-lb. ':.','" .~. ,j.,- .,:...~ address one of the "Key National Water Resources Challenges" that USACE Civil Works identified in its 2004 Strategic Plan, namely that the USACE needs to assist the country's citizens to "Achieve greater balance between traditional water resources demands and environmental/ecosystem objectives." We are looking to fully engage the challenge identified by the USACE and develop an appropriate means to leverage future flow enhancements for both traditional water resource demands and the needs of the river environment through an urban and suburban setting. This has not been done in the US by the USACE before! To address this challenge and leverage this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, a strong political coalition has been developed linking many different water users and jurisdictions across the Denver Metropolitan Area - linked by a common need for and desire to manage that most precious resource - the South Platte River. Our Goals . Engage USACE in a policy discussion to develop and adopt metrics and criteria for evaluating environmental benefits within an urban and suburban area. . Develop environmental benefit alternatives for downstream water users that help to offset future costs associated with the reallocated Chatfield Storage. . Expand and maintain strong local political consortium to support USACE programs in and along the South Platte to benefit the local water community. . Overall, maximize the beneficial use of available Chatfield Reservoir capacity for purposes of meeting instream needs, without compromising municipal and agricultural water supp Iy needs. Photos courtesy City and County of Denver, USDA, Bill Schmoker, Great Western Institute, Google Earth March 2006