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<br /> <br />OUT WITWER & FREEMAN, <br /> <br />FAX NO. 3038324465 <br /> <br />P. 19 <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />PART vm <br />CASE STUDIES <br /> <br />A. CASE STUDY: SYSTEM OPTIMIZA nON IN THE CACHE LA POVDRE <br />RIVER, COLORADO. ENHANCE!) FISHERIES WITHOUT BYPASS FLOWS <br /> <br />In the early 1990's the Arapahot1l.oosevelt National Forest asserted that the <br />renewal of land use authorizations for a pumber of existing water supply resel'\loirs located <br />in the Poudre River drainage in Colorad!l would include a requirement that water <br />historically stored in these facilities be "bypassed" in order to achieve Forest Plan goals for <br />the protection of aquatic habitat. SeverlfJ of these reservoirs are owned by the City of <br />Greeley and the Water Supply and Stor~ge Company, and store water when their water <br />rights are in priority so that the water can be released for municipal and agricultural uses <br />downstream. This storage water is typically used either in times of drought or when <br />stored water is needed because extreme ,winter temperatures have reduced the natural <br />inflows in the river. The proposed bypajis flow requirements would have reduced the <br />Water supply provided from these facilities by as much as 50% to gOO/. (See City of <br />Greeley leller to Task Force, AuguSt 13, 1997; Water Supply & Storage Company <br />Comments to Task Force, July 31, 1997). <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />The Forest Service and the water users disagreed on the issue of whether the <br />Forest Service has the legal authority to 'impose bypass flow requirements as a condition <br />of the renewal of these land use authori~tions. However, as an alternative to a resolution <br />of this issue, the water users and th~ Foiest Service developed a plan for the coordinated <br />operation of a number of reservoirs located in the Poudre River headwaters. This "Joint <br />Operations Plan" (JOP) was designed tq optimize aquatic habitat on National Forestlands <br />without causing a loss oflbe water supply provided from these facilities, and was included <br />as a tenn and condition of the renewed land use authorizations for the reservoirs owned by <br />Ihe City of Greeley and the Water SuPP,l,y and Storage Company. <br /> <br />The lOP focused on the fact thaI storage reservoirs can serve two <br />purposes - providing water for municipal and agriculrural purposes in times of shortage, <br />and augmenting streamflows to enhance aquatic habitat. In the Poudre River basin, <br />natUrally occurring low wirltenime t1ow~ are the limiting factor for the trout fishery. <br />Under the JOP, 3,000 acre feet of storage water is to be released for,beneficial uses when <br />it will also augment low wintertime flows that would otherwise occur in Joe Wrighl Creek <br />and the 31 miles of the Cache La Pouclr~ River mainstem. The reservoir releases are lhen <br />diverted fi"om the stream below the fore~t boundary for mutiicipal water supply purposes. <br /> <br />The Poudre River lOP provides '8 case study of the potential for optimization of <br />the operation of water supply facilities tll anain National Forest purposes without causing <br />a loss ofwaler supply from these facilities, The effects oflhe implementation of the rop <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />VIII-I <br />