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(Provisionally Accredited Levee) agreement and/or certification. The effective date is still unknown. BILL TO ALLOW WATER RIGHT HOLDERS TO DONATE BACK TO RIL'ER PASSES COMMITTEE - A bill paving the way for water rights holders to lease or donate water to the Colorado Water Conservation Board for non-consumptive purposes is making its way downstream in the Legislature. House Bill 1280, sponsored by Fort Collins Democrat Rep. Randy Fischer, passed the House Agriculture, Livestock & Natural Resources committee Wednesday by a 10-2 vote. The state of Colorado passed laws in 1973 to ensure that state stewards of Colorado's water resources would work to preser~~e rivers and streams. With more population growth expected statewide in coming decades, water program managers and partners are promoting several improvements to the current law including HB 1280. BIG SNOW BOOSTS STATE SNOWPACK - As snow keeps piling up in Colorado's mountains, the state's snowpack is building to its biggest level in more than a decade. The snowpack, the source of 80 percent of the state's water supply, is huge in southern Colorado, which was hit hard by the recent drought. The area's snowpack ranges from 165 percent to 170 percent of average. Statewide, the snowpack is 132 percent of average. The levels are lower in northern Colorado and along the Front Range, running from 109 percent in the Yampa and White river basins 101 percent in the South Platte River basin. The snowpack percentage is measured against a 30-year average. Western Colorado's abundance of snow is good news for the region. Eight major Colorado river systems also provide water to 10 western states. A dry November had ski resorts and water managers worried and some forecasters predicting a dry winter. Since then, an onslaught of stotYns has dumped several feet of snow in western Colorado, setting off avalanches and prompting emergency feeding for big game in the Gunnison Basin. Seven people have died or are presumed dead this winter after hiking, skiing and snowYnobiling in Colorado's backcountry. March typically is one of the state's biggest months for precipitation. GROUPS BACK BILLS TO BOOST FLOWS IN STATE WATERWAYS - Environmentalists and outdoor recreation interests on Wednesday endorsed a package of bills designed to make it easier to leave water in Colorado's streams and rivers. Citing the report, "Healthy Rivers, Healthy Economy" funded by the group Environmental Defense, proponents of the bills said a slight increase in water flows in the state would generate another $4.4 million in recreational spending and create 340 more jobs in the rafting and fishing business. But keeping water in its rivers has long been a challenge for Colorado. More than a century of state water law has put a higher priority on using the water for farms, utilities and homes than for kayaks, fish and scenic beauty. That has started to change in the past decade. ~13~