Colorado River Update: The “Biggest Colorado Water Court Battle in the History” and We Are In It!

Hi Friends of the Colorado River,

It’s the “Biggest Water Court Battle in the History of Colorado” and we are smack-dab in the middle of it. Further, we are the ONLY group in Colorado engaging in this battle that is arguing for the biggest possible improvement in the flow of water and the health of the Colorado River.

Here’s the details: The Colorado River District and other applicants are trying to protect the flow of water down the Colorado River on the West Slope of Colorado by transferring part of the water right from the old Shoshone Hydroelectric Powerplant near Glenwood Springs to be used for “instream flow.”

The applicants successfully got the State to recognize the transfer of water — which was great news — and now they are in water court deciding “how much” water will be transferred. The outcome of this court battle could be astounding for the ecological health of the River itself.

Consider: The Colorado River District believes that about 850,000 acre feet should be transferred for instream flow use, whereas the big city water suppliers on the Front Range — Denver, Colorado Springs, Aurora, and Northern Water — argue that way less, around 550,000 acre feet of water, should be transferred which is a huge 300,000 acre-foot difference! The Front Range cities want to pump that 300,000 acre feet of water through the continental divide over to their cities rather than letting it flow downstream.

As a comparison, if you’ve driven on I-70 over the continental divide and seen Dillon Reservoir beside the town of Silverthorne, that big reservoir holds about 250,000 acre feet of water. Imagine that entire reservoir full of water flowing downstream in the River versus getting pumped through the continental divide to slake the thirst of growth on the Front Range every single year.

Further yet, our organization enters this battle by taking an even more aggressive stance arguing that the entire hydroelectric plant’s water right, which is just over 1,000,000 acre feet, should be transferred for instream flow which would make a huge difference in the health of the River.

Read this excellent story about the water court battle in Aspen Journalism here.

We are thrilled to be in this battle to protect and restore the Colorado River, and we are very fortunate to be represented by the student attorneys at the University of Denver, Sturm College of Law, Environmental Law Clinic. Not only are we working to make a difference in the health of the River, we are also helping to educate the next generation of River-protecting attorneys! (Just look at their young smiling faces here on the Clinic’s website — they are our future!)

This water court battle could take months to play out, but we are committed to the long-term because it’s one of the most important battles the state of Colorado will ever face for ensuring that the River actually flows downstream -vs- getting pumped uphill towards money.

As we paddle hard into this New Year, please know that we are high-grading our work to focus on the biggest and most important actions we can take to make a difference. Your support is the power in our paddles, and we greatly appreciate it!

You can donate online by clicking here.

Thank you!