32

• Board Meeting Date: 3/18/2008
• Description: ISF Section - Proposed Dominguez Canyon National Conservation Area or Wilderness Legislation
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

STATE OF COLORADO
Colorado Water Conservation Board
Department of Natural Resources
1313 Sherman Street, Room 721
Denver, Colorado 80203
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
wuu . o~n cU. state. co.us
Bill Ritter, Jr.
Governor
TO: Colorado Water Conservation Board Members
H:uris D. Sherman
DNR Executive Director
FROM: Linda J. Bassi, Chief
Stream and Lake Protection Section Jennifer L. GimUel
CWCB Director
DATE: March 10, 2008 DanMcAnliffe
CWCB Deputy Director
SUBJECT: Agenda Item 32, March 18-19, 2008 Board Meeting
Stream and Lake Protection -Proposed Dominguez Canyon National
Conservation Area or Wilderness Legislation
This is an informational item intended to serve as preliminary notice to the public that staff may
bring an instream flow recommendation to the Board in January 2009 on Big Dominguez Creek
and Little Dominguez Creek in Mesa County. Staff will not request the Board to take action on
this agenda item.
Introduction
On March 10, 2008, CWCB staff met with representatives of the Wilderness Society and the
Colorado Ri~~er Water Conservation District to discuss legislation being sponsored by Sen. Ken
Salazar to establish a Wilderness Area surrounded by a National Conservation Area in Mesa
County. The purpose of the meeting was to brainstorm about developing an approach to stream
protection within the Wilderness Area using Colorado's Instream Flow Program rather than a
federal water right. A map showing the boundaries of the proposed Wilderness Area and
National Conservation Area is attached to this memo.
Background
The Dominguez Canyon Wilderness Study Area was first studied by the Bureau of Land
Management in the 1980s and recommended in the BLM's 1991 Wilderness Report to Congress
for wilderness designation. The subject area lies fairly near, but not at, the headwaters of Little
Dominguez Creek and Big Dominguez Creek, which headwaters are located at the crest of the
Uncompahgre Plateau in the Grand Mesa-Uncompahgre-Gunnison National Forest.
An unusual aspect of the potential wilderness legislation is that the proposed area is located mid-
watershed on streams that carry significant and perennial flows of water. There are se~~eral
relatively small di`~ersions and small storage units upstream of the proposed Wilderness Area;
one significant irrigation water right with a point of di~~ersion immediately downstream of the
proposed Wilderness Area (outside of the Wilderness Area boundary); and a small diversion
point located within the proposed Wilderness Area currently is owned by the BLM, but used by
an individual as part of a life estate.
Water Supply Protection • Watershed Protection & Fluud blitigatiun • Stream & Lake Protection • Water Supply Planning & Finance
Water Conservation & Drought Planning • Intrastate ~F'ater Management & Development