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<br />,. <br /> <br />#-f <br /> <br />,. <br /> <br />STATE OF COLORADO <br /> <br /> <br />Bill Owens, Governor <br />DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES <br /> <br />DIVISION OF WilDLIFE <br /> <br />AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER <br /> <br />Bruce McCloskey, Director <br />6060 Broadway <br />Denver. Colorado 80216 <br />Telephone: (303) 297-1192 <br /> <br />March 17,2005 <br /> <br />Dan Merriman, Instream Flow Section Chief <br />Colorado Water Conservation Board <br />1313 Sherman Street, Room 723 <br />Denver, Colorado 80203 <br /> <br />Re: Colorado Division of Wildlife's Request for Flow Reduction on Cunningham Creek (a.k.a. <br />North Cunningham Creek) and Middle Cunningham Creek. <br /> <br />Dear Dan, <br /> <br />The purpose of this letter is to ask the Colorado Water Conservation Board for tentative <br />approval of the Colorado Division of Wildlife's (CDOW) request for a "Flow Reduction'~ on <br />Cunningham Creek (a.k.a. North Cunningham Creek) and Middle Cunningham Creek. <br />Cunningham Creek is a tributary of the North Fork of the Fryingpan River and is located <br />approximately 17 miles northeast of the Town of Aspen (see attached maps). The CDOW is <br />currently in the process of reclaiming the Cunningham Creek watershed to protect the existing <br />populations of genetically pure Colorado River cutthroat (CRG) trout. CRC trout have been <br />recognized by the CDOW as a species of "Special Concern" in Colorado. The CDOW needs <br />the assistance of the CWCB to accomplish this task. <br /> <br />The CWCB currently holds the followinglnstream flow water rights: <br /> <br />. 1.0 cfs (4/1 - 9130) and 0.5 cfs (10/1 - 3/31) on Cunningham Creek, (a.k.a. North <br />Cunningham Creek, Case No. 5-73W1951), beginning at the Fryingpan-Arkansas <br />Diversion and extending downstream to the confluence with the North Fork of the <br />Fryingpan River, a distance of approximately 3.2 miles; and <br />. 1.0 cfs (4/1 - 9/30) and 0.5 cfs (10/1 - 3/31) on Middle Cunningham Creek, Case No. <br />5-73W1957, beginning at the Fryingpan-Arkansas Diversion and extending <br />downstream to the confluence with Cunningham Creek, a distance of approximately 0.5 <br />miles (see attached map). <br /> <br />The CDOW is attempting to eradicate the existing populations of non-native brook and brown <br />trout from this segment of Cunningham Creek without using harmful chemicals. The initial <br />plan was to reclaim the creek with rotenone (a commonly used chemical for aquatic species <br />control) and detoxify the rotenone with potassium permanganate, but by reducing the flows in <br />the creek, the same goal can be accomplished without the use of these chemicals. <br /> <br />DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES. Russell George, Executive Director <br />WILDLIFE COMMISSION. Jeffrey Crawford, Chair. Tom BurKe. VICe Chair. Ken Torres. Secretary <br />Members, Bernard Black. Rick Enstrom. Philip James. Claire O'Neal. Brad Phelps. Robert Shoemaker <br />Ex Officio Members, Russell George and Don Ament <br />