BOARD00725

• Board Meeting Date: 1/18/1973
• Description: Agenda or Table of Contents, Minutes, Memos
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Meeting

I

I

think we should do more; we have an overworked and burdened staff, but
I think unless we take a more affirmative direction of the future of
water and its relationship to other aspects of the state, that we are
going to take a continuing backseat. The creation of the Department
of Natural Resources, of course, has something to do with this. Yet
I think as we go into some land use and the relation of water to the
development of the economy that this board has to take a definitive
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stronger position. I think we had good statutory authority for the
development of water. I think as the legislature proceeds, I want
them to consider us for a vital and important place in the development
of the new policies of the state of Colorado.

Now this came rather forcibly to my attention last spring when I criti-
cized fairly severely one of my good friends, who I didn't even know
was the head of Trout Unlimited. I didn't think he knew what was
going on the board and I didn't know he had anything to do with Trout
Unlimited, and he thought that we didn't know anything about what
Trout Unlimited was doing. A complete failure of communications. I
have the feeling that our communications aren't really sufficient
enough now with people that we should be talking with and dealing with,
and working out our problems with. I think we need to have significant
improvement in that area. I don't know who is on our mailing list or
who should be. What I am suggesting is more .time on the part of the
board and the help of the director, but as one famous fellow said
across the sea, "He didn't want to preside over the liquidation of the
British Empire." I am not about to be chairman of the Colorado State
Water Board and have this perfunctory state agency that doesn't mean
anything. I think Larry knows that this board doesn't take everything
recommended by the s'caff. I am sure he wouldn't want it if we did.
I think we have some clear thinking to do and I want us to participate
fully with the legislature and the administrative branch in the devel-
opment of this.

I am going to ask Larry to work with the board in formulating some
thoughts and policies for the next meeting of the board. I am going
to ask a couple of people whom I haven't had a chance to talk with,
and I think it would be unfair to appoint them right out of the blue.
If you agree with me, I am going to get a couple of representatives
of the board, who have been on the board for some time, to work with
Larry and see if they can't come up with some concrete recommendations
for our next mee.ting. Now that is about all I wanted to say, but I
would like to see if there is any discussion, or whether you consider
the chairman as off base in what he is talking about at this point.
Is it all right then, if I ask a couple of members to wo~c with Larry

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