Colorado Water Dec 2003 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

WATER SUPPLY and DEVELOPMENT Denver Water OKs 5.4% rate increase The Denver Water board approved a 5.4 percent rate hike in their bills for next year - the largest increase since 1996. The rate increase will pay for major projects that had to be accelerated to provide water for its growing service area and to cover costs associated with water treat- ment and delivery. The rate increase is expected to generate about $8 million in revenue. The new rates for Denver Water's 1.2 million customers will take effect Jan. 4. In a related matter, the board decided not to impose new tap fees on new houses. The board also agreed to a $400,000 contract with Western Weather Consultants to continue Denver Water's cloud seeding and Denver Water will cover about 80 percent of the contract while other entities will cover the rest. Though it has not been proven that the cloud seeding program worked last season, Den- ver Water received 12 percent more volume of water - largely from snowfall in areas where the seeders operated. For more detailed informa- tion about the rate plans, go to www. denverwater. org /rateinfo /rateinfoframe.html. Rockv Mt News / October 2, 2003 Norton `disappointed' with higher A -LP costs A 48- percent increase in costs for the Animas -La Plata Project likely won't derail construction, Interior Secretary Gale Norton says. Still, Nor- ton said she, too, wants to get to the bottom of why project costs jumped from about $338 million to more than $500 million only four months after construction began. Currently, the Bureau of Reclamation is building a 120,000- acre -foot Ridges Basin dam and reservoir south of Du- rango, a pumping plant and a pipeline. The plant will be used to pump water from the Animas River into the new reservoir. The pipeline will be used to deliver some of that water to New Mexico. Water from the project will go to the Ute Mountain Ute, Southern Ute, Navajo Nation and three water districts in Colorado and New Mexico, including the cities of Durango and Farmington. As far as the cost increases jeopardiz- ing the project, Norton said she's not expecting that to happen. Durango Herald / October 18, 2003 Wells failing at `tip of saucer' in Denver Basin Aquifer Running out of water isn't a theoretical danger in some parts of Douglas County. It's already happening. Many of the 45 homeowners in Chatfield Acres already spent up to $15,000 each to drill new wells a decade ago to replace those that had gone dry. Now, the water levels in the new wells are dropping. Chatfield Acres homeowners have asked Highlands Ranch to let them hook up to its water system, one of the few in Douglas County that uses surface water in addition to well water. But Highlands Ranch says it has no water to spare right now, and if it does eventually relent, the residents would have to pay $30,000 each to connect. Some scientists say dropping water pressure and dwindling wells are a harbinger of what the rest of the county can expect. "West Douglas County is experiencing today what central Douglas County will experience in the future. We just don't know when," said Robert Raynolds, a geologist with the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. Rockv Mountain News / November 22, 2003 Eagle Valley reservoir planned The Colorado River Water Conservation District wants to look at building a 60,000 - 100,000 acre foot reservoir on land owned by Denver Wa- ter in Eagle Valley. Denver Water originally bought the Eagle Ranch site in the Valley as the site for a 350,000 -acre reservoir that would have supplied water via a pipeline under Vail Pass to Dillon Reservoir. Negotiations between the CRWCD and Denver Water over the voluntary surrender of Denver Water's Eagle Valley water rights and support for a new, smaller reservoir are underway. The new reservoir would allow Denver and Aurora to release water to downstream users when required. Denver Post / October 23, 2003 Jeffco developers could face water requirement Faced with findings from a groundwater study and foothills residents' wells running dry, Jefferson County Commissioners have agreed to make having sufficient water a development requirement. Three experts will be asked to develop criteria to ensure that proposed development has enough water without affecting existing wells. The area to be studied would be outside public water and sanitation systems where residential development is proposed on lots of less than 12 acres and for all other development that requires ground water. Denver Post, October 23, 2003 Arvada pumping water into old mine On Oct. 12, the City of Arvada began pumping drinking water into an old coal mine, replacing the natural gas that a local utility had stored there. City officials have said they are convinced the plan is safe. Converting the old Leyden mine would save millions over building another reservoir, they said. Denver Post, October 12, 2003 Fort Collins looks at Halligan Reservoir expansion Fort Collins is considering its first new water- storage facility in nearly 25 years with a large -scale expansion of Halligan Reservoir. The reser- voir is northwest of town on the North Fork of the Poudre River, and city officials say it offers the most cost - effective, environmentally friendly 37