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City offers water compromise <br />Durango pushes for upriver rights <br />June 10, 2006 <br />By Dale Rodebaugh I Herald Staff Writer <br />In an effort to reduce opposition to its application for white -water recreation rights on the Animas River, the city of Durango on <br />Friday proposed a way to safeguard the water needs of upstream residents. <br />Jack Rogers, the city's director of public works, asked the Southwestern Water Conservation District to apply for water rights <br />on behalf of present and future upriver users. No action was taken by water district board members, who were meeting Friday <br />in a telephone conference. <br />Water board attorney Barry Spear suggested that since the matter is in litigation that the board meet in a closed session on <br />June 22. <br />The city's application to the state in February for water for a kayak park on the Animas River upset many individuals and public <br />agencies. Fifty -three objections were filed, representing a range of water interests that included ranchers, homeowners and <br />even La Plata County. The water district, which opposes the city application, has been negotiating with the city on how to <br />assure the availability of water to upstream users. <br />Spear said Friday the city's new position is encouraging. He said the board is "open to an expeditious and inexpensive <br />solution." The parties are negotiating but remain stymied, which could lead to prolonged and expensive court battles. <br />Gov. Bill Owens signed a law on kayak park water rights last month that could have limited Durango's ability to apply for <br />recreational -water right. The bill was sponsored by Sen. Jim Isgar, D- Hesperus. However, Durango's application for a <br />Recreational In- Channel Diversion would be considered under old regulations. <br />Under the new law, cities can petition to keep up to half of a river's historical flow in the channel for recreational use. If cities <br />want more than half the historical flow, at least 85 percent of what they want must be available for them to get anything. The <br />objective is to keep applicants from hogging water. <br />Rogers said after the meeting Friday that one sticking point in negotiations with the water district is the unknown number of <br />upriver water users that would be included in a set -aside and the amount of water they would want. <br />If the Southwestern Water Conservation District, a coalition of agencies stretching from Archuleta County to the Utah line, <br />acquired water rights on the Animas, it could dole allocations as it sees fit, Rogers said. <br />daler@durangoheraid.com <br />Contents copyright @, the Durango Herald. All rights reserved. <br />http: / /Www. durangoherald. com/ asp - bin 1printable_article_generation. asp ?article _path= /ne... 6/14/2006 <br />