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<br />The coalition then proceeded to characterize current water short falls that exist on a local <br />level. Jim Reasoner noted that a lot of water will need to come out of the South Platte <br />River north of the Denver metropolitan area to meet agricultural needs augmenting <br />existing groundwater supplies. In the South Metro area, there are serious shortcomings <br />related to utilization of groundwater since it is a non-renewable supply. Continued <br />growth will create pressure that groundwater sources will be unable to meet. Chatfield <br />Reallocation would help alleviate this situation by improving the yield of renewable <br />surface water supplies. Tracy Bouvette noted that, generally speaking, the South Platte <br />River Basin is "over-appropriated". <br /> <br />John Hendrick commented on the reliability of reservoir storage. He noted that <br />Centennial Water and Sanitation District would have received a 6500 AF firm yield if <br />Two Forks had been built. Anytime Centennial can pull water off Chatfield, it helps <br />prolong the District's deep well sources. If Chatfield Reallocation had been previously <br />approved and available for use, Centennial could have stored water this year as a result of <br />excess snowmelt runoff and rainfall runoff. <br /> <br />Tracy Bouvette commented that without a Record of Decision (ROD), Colorado can't <br />realistically include Chatfield Reallocation for water supply planning purposes. John <br />Micik asked what the Omaha District has said regarding the completion of the FR/EIS. <br />Tom Browning noted that the current schedule calls for the ROD to be rendered by <br />spring/summer 2009. <br /> <br />In terms of meeting the schedule as articulated above, Tom Browning raised concerns <br />about the Seismic Stability Report (SSR) that must be conducted on the Chatfield Dam. <br />The Phase 1 SSR Study is scheduled to be funded through FY08 Corps O&M (or <br />possibly construction general) dollars. The concern is that if the study is not completed <br />by the time the ROD is issued, the Corps would instead issue a conditional ROD. A <br />conditional ROD could delay the reallocation process and detrimentally impact local <br />water supply planning efforts. Tom Browning asked whether there was anything HQ <br />could do to move up the study in order to complete it before the ROD is rendered. John <br />Micik commented that Phase 1 cost would be as high as $150,000. Tracy Bouvette said it <br />was his understanding that Phase 1 could cost anywhere from $40,000 to $150,000. John <br />Micik said that the Corps has indicated that the O&M account is flexible from a <br />reprogramming point of view. He offered to check with the Omaha District to see if <br />they've spoken with HQ about reprogramming O&M dollars to fund the study. <br /> <br />Ken Hall noted that the Chatfield FR/EIS is not in the President's FY08 budget. John <br />Micik said that the Omaha District's request to reprogram funds for the study is tied to <br />completing the ROD in a timely fashion and would be a sound justification. Tracy <br />Bouvette walked through the schedule as it is known currently for development of the <br />FR/EIS and ROD. Tom Browning commented that this could potentially become a major <br />problem for the reallocation to stay on schedule if the SSR Study is delayed. Concerns <br />were expressed also about the potential costs of the study as well as whether the Corps <br />has the funds available to undertake the study and keep it on schedule. The Chatfield <br />group underscored the importance of keeping the SSR on schedule consistent with the <br /> <br />2 <br />