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<br />" <br /> <br />STATE OF COLORADO <br /> <br />Colorado Water Conservation Board <br /> <br />Department of Natural Resources <br />1313 Sherman Street, Room 721 <br />Denver, Colorado SOlO3 <br />Phone: (303) 866-3441 <br />FAX: (303) 866-4474 <br />www.c.wro_state.ro.us <br /> <br /> <br />May 31, 2002 <br /> <br />BiD Owens <br />Governor <br /> <br />Rick Miner, Project Manager <br />Army Dept. of Corps of Engineers <br />Attention: CENWO-PM-AE <br />106 S. 15th Street <br />Omaha, Nebraska 68102 <br /> <br />Greg E_ Waidler <br />Executive Director <br /> <br />Rod Kuharicb <br />CWCB Director <br /> <br />Dan McAuIilfe <br />Depury Director <br /> <br />Subject: Emergency authorization to store water above elevation 5,432 feet at Chatfield <br />Reservoir <br /> <br />Dear Mr. Miner: <br /> <br />The Front Range of Colorado is experiencing severe and prolonged drought conditions. One of <br />our municipal water providets, Denver Water (Denver), is "spilling" water from its account in <br />Chatfield Reservoir at the very time the Front Range municipalities are trying to conserve and <br />wisely use all available water supplies. Therefore, the Water Conservation Board respectfully <br />requests that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) authorize Denver to store water in an <br />additional one and one quarter (1 \4) foot above elevation 5,432 feet at Chatfield Reservoir for up <br />to six months. Hopefully the following short history will place this request in the proper context. <br /> <br />As part of a settlement agreement with the U.S. Forest Service (Forest Service) allowing the <br />construction ofStrontia Springs Reservoir, Denver agreed to: <br /> <br />"[m]anage water flows in the South Platte River from Strontia Springs Dam to Chatfield <br />Reservoir as to provide average daily flows of 60 cfs (cubic feet per second) from May 15th to <br />September 15th of each year and average daily flows of30 cfs from September 16th to May 14th <br />of the next year thereafter. . ." <br /> <br />Denver agreed to this fish flow with the expectation that the released water would be captured at <br />Chatfield Reservoir so that Denver would not lose any water supply for its customers. The 200 1- <br />2002 drought has demonstrated that Denver does not have enough storage at Chatfield Reservoir <br />to fully capture and manage the water released for fish flows. In fact, Denver expects to lose up <br />to 100 acre-feet each day throughout the summer that could be used for water supply unless they <br />can get some relief from the by-pass flow requirements from the Forest Service, and they can get <br />additional storage at Chatfield Reservoir. One hundred acre-feet will supply the annual needs of <br />about 200 households in the Denver metro area. <br /> <br />Denver is presently working with the Forest Service on a program to reduce the fish flows <br />released from Strontia Springs Reservoir during this drought. I have attached a copy of Denver's <br />proposal to the Forest Service for your information. If successful, Denver still needs to store <br />Flood Protection. Watec Supply Planning and Finance. Stream and Lake Protection <br />Warer Supply Prot<ction . Conservation and Droughr Planning <br />