PRESS RELEASE: Save The Colorado Supporters Send 1,000 Emails to Congressman Neguse, “No Dams in Wilderness”

For Immediate Release
August 17, 2019
Contact: Gary Wockner, Save The Colorado, 970-218-8310

Save The Colorado Supporters Send 1,000 Emails to Congressman Joe Neguse, “No New Dams in Wilderness”

Colorado River: Over the last two weeks, supporters of Save The Colorado have sent U.S. Congressman Joe Neguse over 1,000 emails about proposed new dams in and near the Holy Cross Wilderness Area in Eagle County, Colorado. The proposed dams were recently highlighted in this Aspen Journalism news story (see story here) which described how the cities of Colorado Springs and Aurora, Colorado, are lobbying the U.S. Forest Service to allow for the drilling of test holes to decide where to place the dams.

The proposed dam(s) would be built to divert a new 30,000 acre feet (about 10 billion gallons) of water per year out of Homestake Creek which flows into the Eagle River which flows into the Colorado River. The water would be piped in tunnels under the continental divide and over to the sprawling Front Range of Colorado. The dam scheme is among several large new dam/diversion projects in Colorado and the Upper Basin States (see list of “irresponsible water projects” here), even though a “shortage” on the Colorado River was declared two days ago by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation requiring Arizona, Nevada, and Mexico to divert less water out of the Colorado River.

“The science is clear — we have to divert less water out of the Colorado River, not more,” said Gary Wockner of Save The Colorado. “As the ‘Science Flank’ of the Colorado River environmental movement, our policy is ‘No New Dams And Diversions’ and we are fighting to stop every proposed dam, including this scheme in Eagle County, Colorado.”

Save The Colorado’s one-thousand supporters responded to this Call2Action (see Call2Action here) to send an email to Congressman Neguse because the proposed Eagle County dams in the Holy Cross Wilderness Area would be in his congressional district in Colorado. In the emails, over 1,000 supporters told Congressman Neguse:

1. I Oppose the drilling of these test holes for the new dam.
2. I Oppose removing land from the Holy Cross Wilderness Area.
3. I Oppose new dams that would further drain and destroy the Colorado River and its tributaries.

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