Carefully crafted language in the new
<br />agreement also helped resolve a long- stand-
<br />ing issue of contention for the Poudre -
<br />federal reserved water rights. Filed in the
<br />Greeley water court, resolution came in
<br />the form of an agreed -upon decree for an
<br />express federal reserved water right with
<br />a priority date of October 30, 1986, for
<br />"all of the native water arising upon or
<br />flowing through the designated segments
<br />of the Cache la Poudre River, subject to
<br />valid prior appropriations under Colorado
<br />law." This agreement also protected use
<br />of the Poudre for importation and car-
<br />riage of trans - mountain imported water.
<br />Because water management interests had
<br />long fought against federal reserved water
<br />right claims, the agreement to recognize
<br />such a right for the Poudre speaks volumes
<br />about the compromise.
<br />Christopher Brown of the American
<br />Rivers Conservation Council held up the
<br />compromise as a new precedent for nation-
<br />al action, calling it "a major breakthrough
<br />in the Wild and Scenic River Act."
<br />Next Steps: A Heritage Area
<br />Brown next turned his attention toward
<br />implementation of a National Recreation
<br />Area Study on the Poudre River, also
<br />authorized under the Wild and Scenic
<br />Act. The three -year study investigated the
<br />potential federal recreation designation of
<br />an 18.5 -mile section through the Fort
<br />Collins urban growth area.
<br />Brown viewed a National Recreation Area
<br />as a means of improving recreational oppor-
<br />tunities in the corridor between Greeley and
<br />Fort Collins where a bike trail was under
<br />construction to ultimately connect the two
<br />cities. He stressed that water and private
<br />property rights would be preserved.
<br />By the time the study was finalized in
<br />September 1989, it had evolved and expand-
<br />ed into creation of a "National Heritage
<br />Corridor" with emphasis on environmental
<br />and historic education within the entire
<br />Poudre basin.
<br />Brown introduced the "Cache la Poudre
<br />National Heritage Corridor Act" in June
<br />1990. Surrounded by political infight-
<br />ing, the bill died in committee. However,
<br />Brown remembered his early defeats with
<br />the Wild and Scenic designation and
<br />kept pursuing a bill. He also increased
<br />his leverage with a move from the United
<br />States House of Representatives to the
<br />United States Senate. Elected in 1990, he
<br />vowed to get another Poudre bill passed
<br />before he left office. Little did he know
<br />how close he would cut it.
<br />Brown asked again for local help. The
<br />City of Fort Collins, Latimer County and
<br />the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy
<br />District responded by funding a study to deter-
<br />mine how to proceed. The theme "History
<br />of Water Development in the Westward
<br />Expansion of the United States" emerged
<br />as the basis for legislation. The National
<br />Park Service prepared a study assessing the
<br />Poudre's national significance. It determined
<br />that the Poudre had national significance
<br />relating to water law and water development.
<br />Brown introduced two more bills in
<br />1991 and 1993 seeking Heritage Area
<br />designation for the Poudre; both failed.
<br />In February 1995, after nearly two years
<br />of rewriting, Brown introduced Senate Bill
<br />342, the "Cache la Poudre River National
<br />Water Heritage Act." On the last day of the
<br />legislative session —and Brown's last offi-
<br />cial day as a senator —the 104th Congress
<br />passed the bill giving the Poudre status as
<br />Colorado's first National Water Heritage
<br />Area. The bill authorized a commission to
<br />coordinate and develop a plan to interpret
<br />the history of water law and water develop-
<br />ment on the Poudre.
<br />Brown prepared to leave Congress after
<br />16 years. He had spent a good deal of his
<br />energy promoting the Poudre River and
<br />he deserved much of the credit for the
<br />two bills passed by Congress nearly 10
<br />years apart. Brown facilitated negotiations
<br />between very diverse groups, including
<br />environmentalists, concerned citizens and
<br />water managers, all of whom viewed the
<br />Poudre as an essential resource in their
<br />community, albeit for different reasons.
<br />By the 21st century, the citizen's of
<br />northern Colorado had two national desig-
<br />nations for the Cache la Poudre River that
<br />they could all take pride in. The Poudre is
<br />Colorado's only Wild and Scenic River and
<br />it is also a National Heritage Area. But more
<br />than that, the Poudre is a unique river born
<br />of compromise —a working resource and a
<br />protected treasure. ❑
<br />References
<br />David Boyd, A History: Greeley and the
<br />Union Colony of Colorado (Greeley:
<br />Greeley Tribune Press, 1890).
<br />Howard Ensign Evans and Mary Alice Evans,
<br />Cache la Poudre: The Natural History of a
<br />Rocky Mountain River (Niwot: University
<br />Press of Colorado, 1991).
<br />Rose Laflin, Irrigation, Settlement, and
<br />Change on the Cache la Poudre River (Fort
<br />Collins: Colorado Water Resources
<br />Research Institute, 2005).
<br />National Park Service, Rocky Mountain
<br />Region, Resource Assessment: Proposed
<br />Cache la Poudre River National Heritage
<br />Corridor (December 1990).
<br />Northern Colorado Water Conservancy
<br />District, News clipping files 1977-
<br />2006.
<br />Alvin T. Steinel, History of Agriculture in
<br />Colorado, 1858 -1926 (Fort Collins:
<br />Colorado State Agricultural College,
<br />1926).
<br />United States Department of Agriculture,
<br />Office of Experiment Stations. Bulletin
<br />No. 92: The Reservoir System of the
<br />Cache la Poudre Valley, by E.S. Nettleton
<br />(Washington, D.C.: Government
<br />Printing Office, 1901).
<br />United States Department of Agriculture,
<br />U. S. Forest Service, Final Environmental
<br />Impact Statement and Study Report, Cache
<br />la Poudre Wild and Scenic River (April
<br />1980).
<br />United States Department of the Interior,
<br />U.S. Geological Survey, Water Supply
<br />and Irrigation Paper: Irrigation Near
<br />Greeley, Colorado, by David Boyd
<br />(Washington, D.C.: Government
<br />Printing Office, 1897).
<br />United States Congress, Senate, An Act
<br />Designating Segments of the Cache la
<br />Poudre River in the State of Colorado as
<br />a Component of the National Wild and
<br />Scenic River System, Public Law 99 -590,
<br />99th Congress, 2nd Session, August
<br />1986.
<br />About the Authors: Brian Werner is currently
<br />the Public Information Officer for the Northern
<br />Colorado Water Conservancy District. A
<br />Colorado native with a Master's degree in his-
<br />tory, he writes, researches and gives numerous
<br />presentations on the development of water in
<br />Colorado and the American West. He is the past
<br />chairman of the Poudre River Trust and was on
<br />the organizational group that helped establish
<br />the Colorado Foundation for Water Education.
<br />Rose Laflin has a Master's degree in History
<br />from Colorado State University. Her areas of
<br />interest include Western United States History
<br />and Environmental History. Her report on the
<br />history of irrigation along the Cache la Poudre
<br />River was published in 2005 by the Colorado
<br />Water Resources Research Institute.
<br />CITIZEN' S GUIDE TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL ERA 1 23
<br />
|