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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.
Action on Water Policy Makes Major Headlines
Colorado’s water challenges, and a series of potential solutions, are back in the news.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis recently signed into law a series of new provisions to address Colorado’s ever increasing water challenges, largely centered on drought fighting tools.
But some members of the state Drought Task Force, whose recommendations formed the core of the legislation, said they postponed addressing more significant steps, such as an expansion of the “buy and dry” program funded by state tax dollars.
The task force report made it clear that there is an urgent need for action, provided reservoirs along the Colorado River Basin are sitting at 35 percent of capacity.
The historic pressure from downstream states, like California, for more Colorado River water and their efforts to limit or curtail Colorado’s allotment and use of water off the Colorado River - accelerates the need for solutions.
The ongoing conversation focuses on the rising demand for water and the efforts by municipalities, counties – and neighboring states – to match supply to that increased demand.
The City of Thornton, in Adams County, for example, has invested significantly over the years in increasing its water supplies.
It is now in a battle over how to move the water it owns from Larimer County as its population is expected to nearly double in the years ahead.
Likewise, Aurora, which spent $80 million to acquire Arkansas River water rights near La Junta to bolster its own supplies – and use those new assets in just three out of every 10 years – is in a dispute with Colorado Springs and other jurisdictions over the plan.
The State of Nebraska is purchasing land, including some in Colorado, to construct a major canal to move water out of the South Platte River into Nebraska – water that it is entitled to under a 100-year-old pact. The South Platte River is the most overused river in the United States.
Colorado Springs has created a large fund to acquire additional water supplies to protect its future.
In Northern Colorado, one of the largest dams built in the United States in the last two decades is one year away from completion.
This dam will help supply water to Northern Colorado communitiesfor decades to come and insure those communities safety and prosperity.
These, and other, major water efforts will continue to shape Colorado’s water conversations.
Douglas County, with our significant growth trends, cannot be simply an observer as other communities move forward with strategic, bold solutions.
Recent Headlines
Fast-growing northern Colorado wins $250 million in loans for new dam, regional water project
Fast-growing northern Colorado won approval for two major water loans from the state this month that will help finance a new dam outside Loveland and a major regional water project northwest of Fort Collins.
Vetted by the Colorado Water Conservation Board and approved by a bipartisan group of lawmakers May 1, the $155 million for Chimney Hollow Reservoir and the $100 million for the Northern Integrated Supply Project, or NISP, are among the largest financing packages the state has approved in recent years, according to the board.
…The full costs of the water projects, $561 million for Chimney Hollow and roughly $2 billion for NISP, are being financed by water users, as well as the state, Stahla {a spokesperson for Northern Water} said.
…“Our small communities, we’re facing some big needs,” Roman {general manager of the Eagle River Water & Sanitation District} said. “We know that water rates have been increasing for all of us, and we have so many needs in front of us and they’re continuing to increase.”
…“People just need to understand that these increases are not for nothing,” Rietmann {Gypsum’s town manager} said. “They’re to sustain the level of stewardship that is required to protect public health and protect our waterways.”
Governor, legislators celebrate bill addressing drought but Colorado’s biggest water fights loom
‘Demand reduction projects’ remain a sticking point among leaders tasked with providing state with recommendations to conserve water
As Gov. Jared Polis and lawmakers this week celebrated a bill adopting new ways to fight drought as recommended by a state task force, an underlying truth lingered overhead: one of Colorado’s most controversial water questions remains unresolved.
The drought task force, created during the 2023 legislative session and made up of water leaders representing various interests, was charged with recommending to the legislature ways to address drought in the Colorado River Basin. The group was specifically asked to look at how to implement “demand reduction projects,” according to the bill.
That concept, which comes in many forms, including demand management and consumptive use programs, is generally the idea of paying water users to reduce their consumption. Some say beginning discussions of such a program is a necessary step as the state’s water woes persist, but others believe pursuing the idea could hurt the state’s negotiations and result in more water being sent out of Colorado.
…But some Western Slope water leaders want to lean into that difficult conversation out of fear the details of a demand management program could otherwise be made for them by other entities. The federal government has threatened to step into the Colorado River basin negotiations if the seven states drawing from the river aren’t able to find their own solution.
Did you know? The Northern Integrated Supply Project, currently estimated at $2 billion, would create two new reservoirs and a system of pipelines to capture more drinking water for 15 community water suppliers.
Upcoming News from DCFF
Every other week, DCFF will report on important news and challenges impacting our community. We hope you will stay engaged and connected with us.
