A Stacked Deck

• Description: Pueblo RICD
• State: CO
• Basin: Arkansas
• Water Division: 2
• Date: 6/25/2002
• Author: Frank S. Hoag, Robert H. Rawlings, The Sunday Chieftain
• Title: A Stacked Deck
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: News Article/Press Release

0612512002 11:11 7204290524 FAX PAGE 02/02
JUN - eb - euu? TUE 10:26 AM PETERSEN & FONDA, PC 719 542 8515 P. 01
paw 2G The Puenia Chieftain, Puebla, Cato„ Sund , Jun% 25, 2002
I
Zbe .*:zutibap . :.
, - . Cbiettain -
St ar-Journal
PRANK S, HOAG, General Manager, Publisher, Prssidr ml-1904.1989
PRANK S. HMO, JFi., Chairman, Pub!later, president 1931 -1989
PORSAT F}. RAWL INGS, Publis ter and Editor '
A stacked deck .
W HEN PUEBLO city government officials take
their case before the Colorado Water Can.ier-
vation Board next month, they will be facing It •
• • stacked deck.
The city is aeeking a recreational in-channel diversion • .
in District 2 Water Court, and under a law passed last
year it first must present its request before the Water l
Conservation Board. Under that law, the board's findings •
are only advisory; but they are expected to carry a lot of ■
weight with water judges. f
In the bare -bones version, the city wants a flow of 100
cubic feet per second in the winter and 500 efs March .
. through November. Historically, there's plenty of water
to support that flow in the summer, so the sticking point
•
at first seemed to be the "shoulder months" in the spring •
. and fall..
• For the last meeting on May 20, the city modified its '•
proposal to put in a "dry year" provision their it could not
require curtailment of amber users' rights in any month
when the flow forecast is 65 percent of average or less, If
the June 1 forecast is that low in any year, the parantee
•
would be abandoned for the season. The city also ..
adjusted its request for the spring and fall.
The problem facing the city in its quest is that much of . ' •
• Colorado's water law Is antiquated, „going bac k t o the p :::••• . • • •
' • , 19th century' when the territory first was being settled. ,,: • -
And
the Water Conservation Board Consists of what are .; - .
known as "water buffaloes, people who hate the idea of '
nny changes in how things are done hr water matters.
And the water buffaloes hate the idea of recreational
"
in- channel diversions. They do not fit in with their 11. '
notions of how the people's water should be4a
administered. , . "
One problem with the water laws is that, except for a g -•
provision for ntinimum strum flows, they do not protect . a
our rivers, they only protect the owners of water shares '•: •
on those rivers. During all of the hullabaloo over water
raids in this ptirt of thui state, wo s onritnntiy have won-
c1ereed, where are the environmentalists?
Where are the fishing interests, the fowlitug Interests ?" •
A healthy river through the city 01' Putrhlo is Just ctrl valu* .
• uhi• as ono: ;somewhere in the mountains. '• i;tt';i .
No one, of course, can predict what alt }lilt! appointed ;,.
board will do with perfect certainty. Bet unless there ltas' . ' •
been some enli$litenliient itiiaett:tl into the Ctiiclradoi 'ay
Winer CtiliNerv11lionl ROM', Pueblo tt3 facing an uphill ' • Ntrtiaiik to keen its river whole. .A. •,