You are receiving this newsletter because you are a recognized Douglas County community leader and stakeholder.
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.
Water Supply Study for DougCo A Must:
Time to Keep Up With Our Neighbors
Over the next few issues we will highlight what our neighboring counties – Arapahoe, Elbert, and El Paso – are doing to ensure their citizens have a reliable and sustainable water supply for generations.
While Douglas County’s progress on developing its own countywide water plan has been talked about for over a decade, it is now underway with our county’s Water Commission.
The plan that the Commission will develop will be critical to assess our current supplies and chart our future needs.
But for now, the focus today is Arapahoe County’s water plan.
Details on the county’s efforts can be found here.
At a high-level, their plan which is nearing completion will include several important details such as:
Assess current and projected water demands in the county in relation to water supplies and availability.
Identify potential water supply shortages.
Identify use efficiencies and reuse options to meet expected demands.
Recommend sustainable water use revisions to the County’s land development code.
Throughout last year and the early part of 2024, Arapahoe County conducted public forums to gain direct public input and conducted a citizen survey to help inform the overall county water plan.
Among the findings of the survey were that, by a 2-1 margin residents, support increased infrastructure investments to increase supply. A majority also backs the county making direct investments to ensure it has a “greater role in supply delivery.”
The details of the Arapahoe County plan as well as those of other neighboring counties are helpful roadmaps for Douglas County’s critically important water security efforts.
Recent Headlines
"Wellington is killing its residents," Northern Colorado residents say water bills have increased to more than $1,000 a month for some
Many residents in a small but growing town in Northern Colorado are accusing the town of increasing water bill rates to levels that are unaffordable, leaving many to wonder if there is a system error while others are contemplating moving. Wellington, a town of nearly 12,000 people, is at the center of the dispute.
The town, which is located just north of Fort Collins, has had issues with its water system for many years now. CBS News Colorado has covered issues from the water quality to the smell and even to the price, since 2016.
…Francis was one of dozens who emailed CBS News Colorado's Dillon Thomas to express their frustrations with the recent spike in water bills.
Nearly every person who wrote Thomas said their water bills have skyrocketed this year even after they have drastically reduced the amount of water they are using.
Colorado water rights: A complex system and pricey process
Understanding the difference between 'absolute' and 'conditional' water
…When there is water that is accessible, such as in the aquifer that sits beneath the mine in London Mountain, but has not yet been developed and put to beneficial use, then it’s considered “conditional water.”
...“We’d like to see more volume created and don’t want to go to water court 19 times for small increments,” said Aurora Water general manager Marshall Brown of the city's efforts to obtain London Mine water. “Water court is a lengthy and expensive process. We’d rather do it in one lump.”
…The decreed water rights that make up the London Mine — the amount that can be legally taken out of the ground and sold — is about 5,357 acre-feet per year, a potential bonanza that could sustain nearly 13,400 households, roughly 9 percent of the number of houses in Aurora today.
H2O or Au? Aurora's water quest sparks new hunt for gold
When Aurora Water, the city utility, inked its initial deal in January 2018 to pay $31.1 million for water that emanates from the historic London Mine, it was for
1,411 acre-feet annually.
... That contract, at the time lauded as the first of its kind nationally for a municipality to purchase water from a historically polluted gold mine, was the start of years of deal-making between one of the Front Range’s thirstiest communities and the mine’s ownership.
....The potential cost to the city could easily top $100 million over the next several years.
Did you know? In the 2023 Douglas County annual citizens survey, more than 70 percent of respondents said Douglas County should centrally coordinate many water issues now administered by multiple water districts.
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.
