1. Pitkin County Town Hall
Public Meeting
April 10, 2014

2. Agenda
 Pitkin County/Roaring Fork Watershed
 Background
 Colorado Basin Roundtable
 Colorado Water Plan
 Basin Implementation Plan (BIP)
 BIP Project Status
 Where have we been?
 Where are we going?
 Questions/Breakout Sessions

3. Pitkin County/Roaring Fork Watershed
 Water Supply (vulnerable to drought/forest health/FryArk)
 FryArk
 “PSOP” - Preferred Storage Options Plan
 Drought
 Forest health
 Nonconsumptive critical reaches (low flow)
 Roaring Fork – City of Aspen
 Roaring Fork – above confluence with the Fryingpan River
 Crystal River
 Federal lands/permitting
 Ruedi Reservoir
 Pre 1922 water rights
 Conditional water rights
 RICD’s (Recreational In-Channel Diversion)

6. Pitkin County/Roaring Fork
Watershed – Moving Forward
 More regional cooperation is needed
 Roaring Fork River Watershed
 Roaring Fork Efficiency Plan (conservation focus
will increase)
 Prepare for Compact Call and drought

7. Background
 Basin Roundtables
 Colorado Water Plan
 Basin Implementation Plan (BIP)

9. Governor’s Executive Order -
What?
 Executive Order signed in May of 2013
 Prepared by the 9 Roundtables (BIP)
 Plan has to show how we meet the consumptive
and nonconsumptive Gap
 48,000 AFY Consumptive Gap
 64 Critical Reaches Nonconsumptive Gap
 Planning horizon is 2050
 Draft BIPs to State by July 2014

11. Yampa/White
Gunnison
Southwest
Rio Grande
Arkansas
South Platte
Metro
North Platte
Colorado

14. Governor’s Executive Order-Why?
 Population
 Statewide growth to double from 5 to 10
million
 Fastest growth will be in the Colorado
Basin Counties, more than 240%
 Pitkin County growth projected to be 71%

15. Colorado Basin Population
Projections
County
2000
Population
2030
Population
Increase in
Population
2000 to
2030
Percent
Change
2000 to
2030
Percent
Annual
Growth
Rate
Eagle 43,300 86,900 43,600 101 2.3
Garfield 43,800 119,900 76,100 274 5.2
Grand 12,900 28,800 15,900 123 2.7
Mesa 116,250 220,600 104,350 190 3.8
Pitkin 15,900 27,200 11,300 71 1.8
Summit 25,700 50,400 24,700 96 2.3
TOTAL 248,000 492,600 244,600 99 2.3
Population doubling
Ref: SWSI and AGNC

16. Population – Increasing, No
“New” Water….Reallocation of
existing use.
Many uses
compete for a
scarce and limited
water supply
Municipal &
Industrial
9%
Agriculture
86%
Recreation
Environment
16
Graphics provided by the Colorado Foundation for Water Education.

17. Governor’s Executive Order-Why?
 The “Gap” between future demand and future projects is
real….500,000 acre-feet per year
 Already planned projects (Windy Gap Firming, Moffat Collection ++)
 How can we fill the “Gap”?
Conservation Ag to Urban
Transfers
New Projects
(Colorado Basin
development)
Graphics provided by the Colorado Foundation for Water

18. Governor’s Executive Order-Why?
 Threats, Challenges, and Issues
 Compact Calls
 Transbasin diversions (new supply)
 Endangered Species
 Growth separation of land use and water planning
 Energy/Conditional Water Rights
 Shoshone Call
 Loss of agriculture (transfer of water rights)
 Climate change
 Water quality degradation
 Interstate issues

19. Imbalances between Supply and Demand
(US BOR) - Exacerbate Current Stresses

20. Lake Powell Elevations

26. Your Opportunity
 CWP is an opportunity to transition from an
individual perspective to a regional perspective.

27. Colorado Basin Roundtable Tasks
 Assess internal needs & identify projects to meet them
 Negotiate how to meet state needs

28. BIP Project Status –
Where Have we Been?

29. Nonconsumptive Needs
Assessment (NCNA)
 Part of the Statewide Water Supply Initiative (SWSI)
2010
 Environmental and recreational mapping – focus areas
and projects and methods
 Habitat restoration (bank stabilization or instream
habitat restoration)
 Flow protection [voluntary flow agreements, instream
flow (ISF) donations, voluntary re-operation of
reservoirs for environmental and recreational benefit]

30. Nonconsumptive Needs
Assessment (NCNA)
 Attributes at risk
 Water quality/Temperature
 Geomorphic function
 Riparian/wetlands ecological function
 Aquatic ecological function
 Recreational boating
 #1 Factor affecting attributes - FLOW
 Quantification of “at-risk” reaches = 64+

31. Nonconsumptive Needs Focus Map

32. Roundtable Themes
 Local control
 Land use - connection with water use
 Healthy rivers
 Not just flat, but supporting healthy biology
 Multi-purpose projects
 Existing reservoirs, restricted, better cooperation of review
 Why reliance upon stream – vulnerable no redundancy
 Save agriculture
 Protect mainstem water rights operations
 Regional cooperation
 Themes change and evolve
 Bottom line…No water to support other basins

33. No Water to Support Other Basins
 Colorado Basin already has 100,000 AFY ag shortage
 SWSI - our basin will lose addl 80,000 acres
 Water Providers vulnerable to drought and compact call
 BOR study indicates shortage of 3.2 Million AFY with current
hydrology (Lake Powell and Mead)
 64 critical reaches already (headwater streams impaired)
 Uncertain future
 Risk is non starter
 Firming and IPP’s and growing into existing water rights will divert
addl 150,000 AFY
 Water quality problems in middle and lower basin
 We already contribute 400,000 – 600,000 AFY

34. Figures from report “Water and its Relationship to the Economies of the Headwaters Counties,” commissioned by the Northwest Colorado Council of

35. Project Status –
Where are we Going?

36. Upcoming Meetings
Colorado Basin Roundtable Meetings
April 14, 2014, Glenwood Springs Community Center, noon – 4 p.m.
April 28, 2014, Glenwood Springs Community Center, noon – 4 p.m.
State of the River Meetings
May 6, Summit County, (more info TBD)
May 13, Grand County, 321 West Agate Avenue, Granby, CO, 6:00pm
May 14, Middle Colorado State River meeting, Garfield County Library, 815 Cooper
Ave., Glenwood Springs, CO, 6:00pm
May 15, Mesa County State of the River meeting, Mesa County City Hall, 250 North
5th Street, Grand Junction, CO, 6:00pm
June 2, Gunnison County State of the River meeting (more info TBD)
Eagle River Valley (more info TBD)
http://coloradobip.sgm-inc.com/

37. Thank You
 This is your plan and project….we want to
hear from You! You are driving this plan!
 Breakout stations
 Consumptive
 Nonconsumptive (Enviro. and Rec.)
 Agriculture
 Policy