BOARD00461

• Board Meeting Date: 5/7/1992
• Description: Agenda or Contents, Minutes, Memos. Partial.
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Meeting

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COLORADO WATER CONSERVATION BOARD
Department of Natural Resources
721 Stale Centennial Building
1313 Sherman Street
Denver, ColorJdo 80203
Phone [phone]
FAX [phone]

STATE OF COLORADO
8

MEMORANDUM

Roy Romer
Governor

TO:

Members, CWCB
Randy Seaholm~

Sara Duncan
Oe~}uty Director

FROM:

DAlE:

April 30, 1992

SUBJECf:

Agenda Item 6, May 7-8. 1992, Board Meeting--
Temporary Storage for Parks in Chatfield Reservoir

Background

Attached hereto is a request and related correspondences from the Colorado
Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation (State Parks) for 700 AF of temporary
storage space in Chatfield Reservoir, which is owned by the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers (Corps). State Parks would utilize the space to store water for exchange
or augmentation purposes to help offset evaporation losses at Cherry Creek Reservoir.
Water storage at Chatfield is requested because there is insufficient storage capacity
at Cherry Creek Reservoir to offset evaporative losses without impacting recreation.
State Parks has accomplished this exchange previously, but, as you will note in the
attached letter, the Corps is requesting a more formal approval for such operations.
Through discussions with both Denver and State Parks this request has been modified
to include an additional 50 AF to support 20 acres of wetlands at Chatfield State Park
as well.

The Board and State Parks have a contract with the City and County of
Denver, Board of Water Commissioners (Denver) in which Denver agrees to provide
and maintain a permanent recreational pool in Chatfield Reservoir of approximately
20,000 AF from May 1 - September 1 and 16,000 AF for the remainder of the year.
However, the pool may fluctuate between elevation 5,423 (15,849 AF) and elevation
5,432 (26,634 AF). In return, the State granted Denver the right to utilize the 11,000
AF of fluctuating storage capacity for its use in regulating water supplies in Chatfield
Reservoir between elevations 5,423 and 5,432. This storage capacity is the primary
means by which Denver can recapture stored water released to meet its instream flow
obligations below Strontia Springs Reservoir.

The Corps determined as recently as January 13, 1987, that there was about
22,700 AF of available space in Chatfield Reservoir which could be allocated to water