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COLORADO WATER CONSERVATION BOARD <br />1313 Sherman Street, Room 721 <br />Denver, Colorado 80203 <br />CONCERNING THE APPLICATION FOR <br />RECREATIONAL IN-CHANNEL D[VERSION <br />WATER RIGHTS OF THE TOWN OF <br />SILVERTHORNE <br />Andrew Peternell <br />Trout Unlimited <br />1320 Pearl Street, Suite 320 Case Number: 5-2004CW217 <br />Boulder, Colorado 80302 <br />Phone: (303) 440-2937 <br />Fax: (303) 440-7933 <br />Email: d eternell tu.or <br />PREHEARING STATEMENT OF TROUT UNLIMITED <br />Pursuant to the May 17, 2005 Notice of Prehearing Conference and Deadlines issued by the <br />Hearing Coordinator and Rule 13.d of the Rules Concerning Recreational In-Channel Diversions ("RICD <br />Rules"), Trout Unlimited ("TU") hereby submits its Prehearing Statement to the Colorado Water <br />Conservation Board ("CWCB"). <br />1. INTRODUCTION <br />TU is a nationwide non-profit conservation organization with approximately 130,000 members <br />nationally and apQrorimately 9,000 in Colorado. TU's mission is to conserve, protect and restore <br />coldwater fisheries and their habitats. In Colorado, TU's Colorado Water Project is concerned primarily <br />with maintaining and restoring stream flows for healthy coldwater fisheries and with increasing <br />meaningfu{ public participation in decisions regarding water allocation. <br />Because of the attendant environmental benefit to fisheries and river ecology, TU supports the <br />right of appropriators to put water to non-consumptive, in-channel beneficial uses. Such water rights, <br />whether for recreational or fishery purposes, are an important manifestation of the flexibility in Colorado <br />water law and are particularly necessary to sustain Colorado's new economy which is increasingly <br />dependant on recreation and tourism rather than on the agricultural and extractive industries that <br />dominated the state at the time it adopted its water law system. <br />Though as a general matter TU supports the right of appropriators to claim water rights for <br />recreational in-channel diversion ("RICD") purposes, TU is concerned that Silverthorne's RICD <br />application, if granted as filed, could have adverse impacts on the trout fishery in the B{ue River. TU is <br />hopeful that Silverthorne will agree to provisions in its decree that will alleviate these concerns and allow <br />TU to support the application.' <br />1 TU's participation in this proceeding is not a waiver of its right, which it hereby expressly retains, to challenge on <br />any grounds any portion of Senate Bill 2001-216 (as codified at C.R.S. § 37-92-102, § 37-92-103 and § 37-92-305), <br />the RICD Rules or the CWCB's Policy Regarding RICD Technical Criteria Adopted November 21, 2003.