Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

WATER RESOURCES REVIEW COMMITTEE

Date:09/16/2014
ATTENDANCE
Time:04:05 PM to 05:58 PM
Brophy
E
Coram
X
Place:Jackson County Fairgrounds, Walden, CO
Hodge
X
Jones
X
This Meeting was called to order by
Mitsch Bush
E
Representative Fischer
Roberts
X
Sonnenberg
E
This Report was prepared by
Vigil
X
Greg Sobetski
Schwartz
X
Fischer
X
X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call
Bills Addressed: Action Taken:
Call to Order and Announcements
Update on the Colorado Water Plan
North Platte Basin Implementation Plan
North Platte Public Testimony and Committee Discussion		-
Briefing only
Briefing only
-


04:05 PM -- Call to Order and Announcements

Representative Fischer, chair, called the meeting to order. He asked members of the Committee to introduce themselves to members of the community in attendance. The Committee was joined by Representative Becker, who represents the district encompassing the meeting site. Representative Fischer also asked staff to introduce themselves.

04:13 PM

Representative Fischer introduced the public meetings component of Senate Bill (SB) 14-115, which requires the committee to hold a meeting in each of nine river basins throughout the state. He then asked members of the public to introduce themselves. These included: Kent Crowder, Chairman, North Platte Basin Roundtable, Administrator, Jackson County, and President, North Platte Water Conservancy District; Lanny Weddle, Jackson County Commissioner; Jason Brey, United States Forest Service; Ty Wattenberg, local landowner and North Platte Basin representative on the Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB); and Hunter Townsend, Colorado State Forest Service.

04:15 PM -- Update on the Colorado Water Plan

Representative Fischer invited Director Wattenberg to brief the Committee on the State Water Plan (SWP). Specifically, he asked about the status of the SWP, which chapters have been approved for inclusion in the December draft, and for any other updates from the CWCB.

04:18 PM

Director Wattenberg distributed the May 5, 2014 update on the Colorado Water Plan (Attachment A) and identified chapters in the SWP that were reviewed by the CWCB during its September meeting in Glenwood Springs. These included draft chapters 6.6 (Environment and Recreation), 6.2 (Meeting Colorado's Water Gap), 7.1 (Watershed Health and Management), 8 (Interbasin Projects and Agreements), 9.4 (Outreach and Education), 4 (Historical and Projected Water Supplies), 5 (Water Demand by Sector), 6.5 (Municipal, Industrial, and Agricultural Use), 9.1 (Economics and Funding), and 9.2 (State Water Rights). Director Wattenberg addressed the economic issues of SWP implementation in the Eastern and Western Slopes. For every $1 billion invested in water infrastructure, the CWCB expects to leverage between $1.7 billion and $2.4 billion in economic output. The CWCB receives 25 percent, up to $50 million, of state severance tax revenue. The CWCB also receives funding from the Water Supply Reserve Fund, capped at $10 million annually. Director Wattenberg asked the committee to consider removing these caps to allow additional financial flexibility for the CWCB.

Attachment A.pdfAttachment A.pdf

Director Wattenberg explained that the CWCB is currently funding between $20 million and $60 million in water projects annually. Senator Roberts asked whether there are shovel-ready projects that could be begun if the General Assembly were to lift the aforementioned funding caps. Director Wattenberg indicated that projects would be authorized if the cap were lifted. Senator Schwartz asked whether the cap constrains funding for projects whose costs exceed those allowed by the cap; Director Wattenberg distinguished between funding for large projects pursuant to House Bill (HB) 05-1177, and funding for basin projects authorized by the CWCB.

Director Wattenberg discussed the Colorado Water Resource and Power Development Authority's bonding authority, which can be exercised without legislative review. In response to a question from Representative Fischer, Director Wattenberg identified the next CWCB meetings: an October 24 workshop in Denver, and a November board meeting. The November meeting will review the SWP from the beginning, including draft chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.1, 6.2, 6.3, 6.4, 6.5, 6.6, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 8, 9.1, 9.2, 9.3, and 9.4.

04:30 PM -- North Platte Basin Implementation Plan

Representative Fischer asked Chairman Kent Crowder of the North Platte Basin Roundtable to brief the Committee with respect to the North Platte Basin Implementation Plan (BIP). He also recognized Carl Trick II, a member of the basin roundtable who had joined the meeting.

04:31 PM

Chairman Crowder addressed the committee on the North Platte BIP. The BIP was prepared by the roundtable in its entirety, without the use of subcommittees. It builds on prior roundtable work and identifies projects and methods to meet basin-specific municipal, industrial, environmental and recreational needs. Chairman Crowder explained that the creation of the BIP incorporated guidance from the entire roundtable and the community. Roundtable meetings usually attracted 20 to 30 people, which represents a large share of the basin's small population. He indicated that today's Committee meeting may have been poorly attended because most interested persons are already informed of the roundtable's progress. The BIP includes five sections, on basin goals, basin needs, basin evaluations, basin projects, and conclusions and recommendations. Projects and project constraints are evaluated using mapping and overlays. The conclusions and recommendations section tells the basin how it means to proceed. Chairman Crowder displayed a map of the North Platte Basin, which encompasses approximately 2,000 square miles, 400 irrigation ditches and diversions, and a total irrigated acreage of 120,700 acres, primarily in the North Platte District, District 47 of Division 6, and the Laramie River District, District 48 of Division 6. The North Platte Basin also includes the Sand Creek watershed, District 76 of Division 1.

04:40 PM

Chairman Crowder explained that Supreme Court decisions in Colorado v. Wyoming and Nebraska v. Wyoming place certain obligations on the district. For instance, the Nebraska v. Wyoming decision enjoins Colorado to limit the acreage irrigated in the North Platte Basin, without placing a minimum requirement on the amount of water delivered to Wyoming via the North Platte River. There is a depletion allowance based on the historical high of irrigated lands in the Basin, in 1952, which applies under the decision in Nebraska v. Wyoming.

Chairman Crowder identified the North Platte Basin goals. These include: maximizing consumptive use permitted in the Equitable Apportionment Decree; increasing economic development, to be measured by 5 percent increases in Jackson County sales tax revenue and campground occupancy; modernizing water infrastructure; maintaining healthy rivers and wetlands, to be measured by a 5 percent increase in waterfowl viewing areas by 2020; quantifying the benefits of nonconsumptive agricultural use; promoting water rights protection; and enhancing forest health. He also showed that the North Platte Basin roundtable had prioritized its list of environmental attributes. In order, these include: stream fishing; lake fishing; waterfowl hunting and viewing; waterfowl habitat; amphibians; wetland plants; whitewater and flatwater boating; and river otter habitat.

04:49 PM

Chairman Crowder shared a list of North Platte Basin planned projects. Originally, this was a list of 27 projects, since reduced to 14. Projects have been prioritized, with the top priorities assigned to MacFarlane Reservoir, an Evapotranspiration Project, and Walden Reservoir. Projects were assessed according to water availability, feasibility, and competition for the same water. The BIP proposes project inventory, assessment, and prioritization, and an assessment of basin infrastructure needs. The roundtable believes that it is important to maintain irrigated lands - from 1952, the amount of irrigated lands in the basin has fallen from 134,000 acres to 117,000 acres. The roundtable recognizes that completing every project on the list is unlikely.

04:55 PM

Chairman Crowder displayed a list of the top 10 of 49 proposed environmental and recreational projects in the region. He then showed the committee a map of all proposed environmental and recreational projects. According to Chairman Crowder, the basin roundtable evaluates all projects according to the degree to which they allow the basin to satisfy the eight goals it identifies in the BIP. Chairman Crowder acknowledged that constraints are placed on all water projects in the basin, and that every project will require a strategic implementation effort. In principle, there are two necessary thresholds that must be met for a project to proceed: acceptance and feasibility.

05:00 PM

Chairman Crowder concluded by reporting that the North Platte BIP was completed on schedule and under budget. Senator Roberts asked whether the CWCB will request revisions to the North Platte BIP, to which Chairman Crowder replied that the basin roundtable is receiving feedback. Director Wattenberg stated that the CWCB does not plan to interfere with each BIP, because the basin roundtable process was conceived as a grassroots endeavor.

05:02 PM -- Public Testimony and Committee Discussion

Due to the small audience attending the meeting, Representative Fischer announced that the committee would not recess for small group discussions and instead invited the audience to dialogue with the committee concerning the SWP and water issue affecting the North Platte Basin.

05:03 PM

Representative Fischer asked Director Wattenberg how the CWCB plans to incorporate BIPs into the SWP. Director Wattenberg indicated that the means by which each BIP will be incorporated have not yet been determined.

Senator Roberts asked about the concerns of the North Platte Basin Roundtable with respect to statewide water issues, including watershed protection. Chairman Crowder responded that the roundtable has looked at beetle kill implications for forest health and the effects of this on the watershed. The basin is attempting to handle mitigation work. As the Director of Emergency Management in Walden, Chairman Crowder is concerned with watershed protection as well. He also recognized Mr. Townsend for the efforts of the Colorado State Forest. Representative Coram asked what efforts had been made to address forest health in Colorado State Forest. Mr. Townsend identified mitigation efforts for fire protection, targeted at maintaining forest health while protecting recreational opportunities. Priority areas have included protection of campgrounds and roads. The State Forest has partnered with Colorado State University to create deliverable outcomes for the State Forest, with reports delivered to the North Platte Basin Roundtable.

Mr. Trick suggested that the committee look for a report, to be released in December, that will summarize pine beetle research relevant to the North Platte Basin and the state as a whole.

05:12 PM

Senator Schwartz asked about the state's use of timber extracted from the forest. Mr. Townsend discussed a partnership between the State Forest and Saratoga Mill in Wyoming, where approximately 40 percent of timber extracted from the forest is currently being sent. Other destinations include the firewood market, wood pellets, and residential use. Senator Schwartz asked about the agreement between State Forest and Saratoga Mill; Mr. Townsend replied that this is not a formal agreement, as State Forest is required to sell all products according to a bid process. State Forest is experimenting with both three- to five-year contracts and stewardship projects, which, in context, refer to long-term (10 years or more) agreements regarding timber extraction.

In response to Senator Schwartz's question about biomass, Mr. Townsend suggested that the timber being harvested is still at a grade that would allow it to be used for lumber, which means that biomass is likely not the best option at this point. Mr. Townsend suggested that the forest is interested in a balance between generating revenue, conservation, and ensuring a safe recreational environment for visitors. He estimates that approximately 70 percent of time is spent on the commercial side. Representative Fischer recognized Mr. Trick, who reported that the community is interested in a biomass harvesting center to use timber that has been killed by pine beetles, but there are financial constraints. He suggested that part of the problem is attributable to subsidies present for wind and solar, but not biomass. Representative Coram asked about the basin's electricity provider, which Mr. Trick identified as Tri-State Generation.

05:21 PM

Representative Fischer recognized Mr. Brey, of the United States Forest Service (USFS). Mr. Brey suggested that most of the USFS interaction with the basin is similar to that discussed by Mr. Townsend, though timber harvesting is relatively less significant on USFS land accounting for its much larger acreage. Timber that has been harvested is sent to mills, including Saratoga, a specialty market, and the firewood market. There is also some pile burning. Some sales go to Confluence Energy, a pellet producer with plants in Walden and Kremmling. Representative Fischer asked to what extent forest health is incorporated in watershed planning. Mr. Brey suggested that everything the USFS is doing in this area is focused on restoration, which allows the USFS to interface with the basin roundtable in preparing the BIP. Mr. Townsend elaborated on some discrepancies between timber harvesting and water quality work in State Forest and the USFS.

05:26 PM

In response to an earlier question from Senator Roberts, Mr. Trick suggested that a major concern of the North Platte Basin is the disappearance of agriculture on the Front Range. Mr. Trick suggested that there may not be room to expand the extent of the trans-basin diversion; most water diverted from the North Platte Basin is used in the City of Fort Collins. Senator Roberts asked about energy production in the basin, as well as whether increased trans-basin diversions would impact agricultural production in the basin. In response, Chairman Crowder explained that, pursuant to Supreme Court decree, the North Platte Basin may only export a cumulative 60,000 acre-feet of water in any 10 year period. Accordingly, water sent to Fort Collins may not exceed that amount. Chairman Crowder and Mr. Trick suggested that one major common interest between the basin and the rest of the state is to preserve agriculture.

Senator Roberts asked whether oil and gas production in Jackson County could result in additional population growth, triggering additional municipal and industrial use. Chairman Crowder and Mr. Trick suggested that municipal and industrial use will likely not be a problem in this basin through 2050, since municipal and industrial infrastructure can support far more people than currently reside in the county.

05:33 PM

Senator Schwartz asked about the basin's conservation target. Chairman Crowder stated that conservation is one of the goals identified in the BIP, but that a level is not specified, particularly statewide, as the basin accounts for only a small share of statewide conservation. He also suggested that water conserved in the North Platte Basin is simply delivered to Wyoming, which may not be the best use of a scarce Colorado resource. Senator Schwartz asked whether any water from this basin enters Flaming Gorge Reservoir. Chairman Crowder responded that it does not; flows from the basin enter the Platte River and eventually the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers.

05:37 PM

Representative Coram asked about the worth of conservation when only a certain number of acres can be irrigated. Director Wattenberg responded that there is little incentive to conserve water in this basin, because water that is conserved is sent to Wyoming. Chairman Crowder explained that the more constrained resource is agricultural land, and that producers actually shut off water to their fields in order to dry hay for the harvest.

Representative Becker asked about flood irrigation. Chairman Crowder argued that flood irrigation is necessary to preserve late-fall flows, which are necessary to create a habitat for trout. He explained that the worst thing that could happen would be for the basin to lose its agricultural production, because this would also cause trout to leave the river during dry falls and not return. Director Wattenberg elaborated that the Laramie River is allocated to acre-feet of water, meaning that it must deliver a certain quantity of water to Wyoming annually, while the North Platte mainstem is allocated according to acreage, because only a certain number of acres can be irrigated pursuant to Supreme Court decree.

05:43 PM

Senator Roberts asked about the effect of Front Range agricultural buy-and-dry on the North Platte Basin. Mr. Trick responded that it is a major concern, and that conservation and storage ought to occur on the Front Range because the need for them is fundamentally related to expanding Front Range population. In response to Senator Roberts' question regarding storage, Chairman Crowder suggested that the North Platte roundtable would like to increase basin storage to 37,000 acre-feet, but that the Supreme Court decree only allows the basin to store 17,000 acre-feet annually for irrigation use. He said that storage can exceed the court's limit, but not for use in irrigation. Additional storage could benefit piscatorial, environmental, recreational, and other nonconsumptive uses.

Mr. Trick suggested that the North Platte Basin could partially offset the responsibilities of the Front Range to allocate water pursuant to the Endangered Species Act. Director Wattenberg clarified that water cannot be sent to the South Platte basin for this purpose, but that there is an opportunity for offsets under the Three State Agreement between Colorado, Nebraska, and Wyoming. Representative Coram asked how Wyoming would respond to this suggestion. Chairman Crowder said that he did not know, but that Colorado is permitted to work within the framework of the Three State Agreement. Commissioner Weddle suggested that it would be unlikely for Wyoming to reject more water via the North Platte River.

05:53 PM

Commissioner Weddle volunteered that the General Assembly should require new residential developers to xeriscape housing developments, to prevent water from running down the street at night in the Denver suburbs. Senator Roberts responded that SB 14-017 would have established requirements to this effect. She noted that the bill was sponsored by four legislators present at the meeting, but that it was blocked by representatives of Front Range municipalities and local government entitites.

05:56 PM

Representative Fischer thanked the attendees for a good interactive conversation. He said that the differences between basin priorities have been interesting to witness, and that the North Platte Basin has been among the most interesting. He also reminded attendees that the committee will return next year, pursuant to the requirements of SB 14-115.

05:58 PM

Representative Fischer adjourned the meeting.