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As County leaders, we must protect our region. Our quality of life is directly connected to our commitment to build a tomorrow that preserves the best of today. This vision includes protecting our natural resources, utilizing our county’s resources in a fiscally-smart manner, and wisely planning for our future. Thank you for standing with us.
The Path Forward on Water Demands County Officials To “Trust, But Verify”
When dealing with the Soviet Empire, Ronald Reagan famously said, “trust, but verify.”
That proverb could be the motto of Douglas County’s development of a countywide water plan.
A major challenge for the county’s newly formed Water Commission is getting reassurance from the region’s several water providers that they not only have adequate, renewable water supplies but also science-based strategies to ensure water security can be guaranteed into the next century, and beyond.
Rosy scenarios and predictions about water security are nothing new
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For example, Parker Water officials have claimed for the last 13 years Rueter-Hess is on schedule to be filled but the reality is they are far behind their own goals of having the reservoir filled in the next 10 years.
Current Parker Water figures show that Rueter-Hess is 38.5 percent full.
This one statistic illustrates two important points.
First, trusting predictions – but verifying them with facts – is why the open and transparent review of our current and future water supplies by the Douglas County Water Commission is so critical.
Secondly, is the question of how and when the reservoir will be filled, which can and must be a priority.
We know this will not be accomplished by simply relying on runoff from Cherry Creek or counting on an infusion of water from the WISE project (which has its own challenges).
It will require the addition of a significant amount of renewable water.
The “business-as-usual” approach on water policy has been to simply trust the supply assertions of water providers. While those assertions carry significant weight at times – for such speculative predictions to be incorporated into the county’s water plan – citizens, taxpayers, and property owners deserve them to be verified.
Additionally, a primary function of a Commission is consistent validation of predictions to ensure assumptions are tracked.
Recent Headlines
Colorado’s demand for water is slated to surpass supplies by 2050. Did lawmakers do enough to address the crisis?
As Colorado’s rivers shrink and its soils dry out, state lawmakers this year passed a slew of water bills that advocates say will help reduce water use and protect the critical natural resource.
…But momentum must continue if Colorado is to avoid looming water shortages, lawmakers and advocates said. Critical conversations about paying farmers and others to use less water and making sure that conserved water is used thoughtfully must turn into policy, they said.
Colorado’s demand for water is expected to outpace its supply by 2050 as the population grows and climate change sucks moisture from streams and snow, according to state water experts. By that time, municipal and industrial water users every year could be short up to 240 billion gallons.
Neighborhood in Morgan County becomes hazmat scene due to toxic sludge in drinking water
The tanks that hold drinking water for nearly 140 residents in the Prairie View Ranch Water District are full of sludge that is so toxic that Colorado's Water Quality Control Division has now brought in hazmat crews to dig them up and clean them out.
Larimer County commissioners say “yes” to Thornton water pipeline
…The growing city of Thornton won unanimous approval Wednesday night from Larimer County for 10 miles of a pipeline to deliver Poudre River water to Adams County, after years of battling neighbor and environmental opposition for the northernmost part of the $485 million project.
More than a third of Colorado’s largest towns and cities lost population last year, but a handful boomed.
Erie and Castle Rock are also seeing population surges, up 16% and 10.2% respectively since July 1, 2020. Commerce City, Parker, Grand Junction and Brighton all had population growth rates between 5% and 10% in the three-year period that the Census has counts for.
