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Water news and events for southwestern Colorado
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WATER INFORMATION PROGRAM 
December 2019 Newsletter
LOCAL NEWS

Southwest Colorado Forests, Communities Get Boost From New Collaborative Initiative

 
Dolores Watershed Forest


The Rocky Mountain Restoration Initiative

An unprecedented gathering of Colorado’s land managers, natural resource partners, utility providers and nonprofit organizations have selected Southwest Colorado to be the focus of a new effort to increase the resilience of Colorado’s forests and communities.

A diverse group of 30 organizations have joined forces as the “Rocky Mountain Restoration Initiative” to explore places where they can pool resources to make transformational differences in protecting the things Coloradans value most: recreation opportunities, water resources, communities, forests and wildlife habitats.

The group unanimously selected the Southwest Colorado Project, which encompasses nearly 750,000 acres along Colo. Highway 160, including the towns of Cortez, Dolores, Mancos, Durango and portions of the San Juan National Forest.

“This project really stood out to us because it’s in a place where we can move the needle quickly,” said Cindy Dozier, Board Chair of Club 20, a non-partisan coalition advocating for Colorado’s West Slope. “Collaborations already exist on the ground to get work done on a large scale; also, there is an existing wood-products industry and social license to utilize all tools, including prescribed fire.”

The Rocky Mountain Restoration Initiative was born when Colorado was selected as a pilot location by the National Wild Turkey Federation and the USDA Forest Service to showcase the USDA’s Shared Stewardship Strategy — a national effort to plan and implement work across public and private lands. In July, the newly formed Initiative, representing interests from across Colorado, chose three priority areas — southwest Colorado, the central Front Range, and the I-70 corridor.

Click here to read the full story!

 
Around the State

Western States Cutting Back on Water Use from the Colorado River 

 

          
U.S. Interior Secretary David Bernhardt speaks to reporters Friday, Dec. 13, 2019, after addressing water managers from seven Western U.S. states at a Colorado River Water Users Association conference in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ken Ritter) 
 

By The Associated Press

States in the U.S. West that have agreed to begin taking less water next month from the drought-stricken Colorado River got praise and a push for more action Thursday from the nation’s top water official.

Federal water managers are starting now to review how a crucial share-the-shortage agreement has worked for seven states that rely on the Colorado River, instead of waiting until the end of next year. U.S. Interior Secretary David Bernhardt said Friday in Las Vegas he wants a report in time for a deadline set in a key operational guidelines document signed in 2007 that established a schedule of water cutbacks to states if surface levels continue to fall at the crucial Lake Mead and Lake Powell reservoirs.

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Brenda Burman told federal, state and local water managers that abiding by the promises they made will be crucial to ensuring that more painful cuts aren’t required.

The river supplies 40 million people in Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming as well as a $5 billion-a-year agricultural industry.

“We need to be proud of what we’ve done,” Burman told hundreds at the annual Colorado River Water Users Association conference at a Las Vegas Strip resort, while also warning of “tougher challenges in the future.”

Arizona, Nevada and Mexico will start taking less water from the river Jan. 1 under a drought contingency agreement signed in May. It followed lengthy negotiations and multiple warnings from Burman that if the seven states didn’t reach a deal, the federal government, which controls the levers on the river, could impose severe water restrictions.

For more on this story click here!
 

Applications for Watershed Implementation Projects Being Accepted




The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment are accepting applications for watershed implementation projects that address water quality impairments caused by nonpoint sources of selenium, sediment, pathogens and/or nutrients OR protect waterbodies currently meeting water quality standards from degradation due to nonpoint sources of pollution. 

For more information visit: https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/cdphe/nonpoint-source -funding-opportunities for application and reference materials. 

Applications must be submitted to cdphe_wqcd_nonpointsourcemanagers@state.co.us by February 3rd, 2020 at 5pm (MST). 

Please direct questions regarding the RFA to Estella Moore at estella.moore@state.co.us by January 7, 2020 at 5pm (MST). Answers to those questions will be posted on npscolorado.com on January 15, 2020.

 

Big Temperature Swings this Fall in Colorado 

The November 2019 Drought Update:

Water Year 2019 was considered as near average temperatures and was the 34th wettest year in a 125-year period. The start of Water Year 2020 (WY2020) saw dramatic temperature swings statewide: from the warmest September on record (Sep. 2019) to the 4th coldest October on record (Oct. 2019), marking one of the largest rank jumps on record and one of the state’s biggest changes in monthly average temperature.

To access the Colorado Department of Natural Resources - Water Availability Task Force, November Drought Update click here!

If you have questions regarding the Drought Update, please contact Tracy Kosloff at tracy.kosloff@state.co.us or Megan Holcomb at megan.holcomb@state.co.us

 

Click here to access the Colorado Drought Monitor map.
 
 
SW Basin SNOTEL Summary

 

   

   Happy Holidays from the Water Information Program  

 


Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and Happy New Year. May the Holiday season fill your home with joy, your heart with love and your life with laughter! Whatever is beautiful, whatever is meaningful, whatever brings happiness, may it be yours this holiday season and throughout the coming year. 

 

Thank you for supporting the Water Information Program!

 

The WIP lending library has more than 200 water-related books and videos available for checkout. Stop by the office to find a book or DVD of interest to you to check out for free!
 
 
Upcoming Events

December 18, 2019
Durango Water Professional Happy Hour
An informal gathering of water professionals and an opportunity to discuss all things water.
Animas Brewing Company
5:00 pm
Durango, CO


January 15, 2020
Southwest Basin Roundtable Meeting
Dolores Water Conservancy District
3:00 pm
Cortez, CO

January 8 - 10, 2020

Four States Irrigation Council Annual Meeting
Fort Collins, CO


January 29 - 31, 2020
Colorado Water Congress Annual Convention
The Westin Westminster
Westminster, CO

February 4 - 6, 2020
RiversEdge West
2020 Riparian Restoration Conference
Colorado Mesa University
University Center - Ballrooms on 2nd floor
Grand Junction, CO

February 10 - 13, 2020
Colorado Rural Water Association
2020 Conference

Crowne Plaza DIA Convention Center
Denver, CO

February 12 - 13, 2020
Southwestern Water Conservation District Board Meeting
841 E. 2nd Avenue
Durango, CO


February 19 - 21, 2020
Snow School for Water Managers
Center For Snow and Avalanche Studies 
Silverton, CO


February 20 - 21, 2020
Family Farm Alliance Annual Conference 
Eldorado Resort Casino
Reno, Nevada


February 26, 2020
29th Annual Governor's Forum on Colorado Agriculture
Renaissance Stapleton Hotel

8:00 am - 4:30 pm
Denver, CO


March 5 - 6, 2020
Ditch and Reservoir Company Alliance Conference
Wine Country Inn
Palisade, CO

April 3, 2020
Southwestern Water Conservation District Annual Water Seminar
Double Tree Hotel 
8:30 am - 3:30 pm
Durango, CO



Any events you would like to add? Send them to elaine@waterinfo.org.
Other News

Agriculture is part of the climate change problem. Colorado want's farmers' soil to be part of the soulution
More Information

Snow, flow & reservoir data

CWCB's Newsletter

Fresh Water News

Headwaters PULSE newsletter

Connecting the Drops Radio

Grants

Bureau of Reclamation: Drought Contingency Planning Grants

Funding Opportunities December

Bureau of Reclamation WaterSMART Funding Opportunities

WaterSMART's Cooperative Watershed Management Program

DOLA Resources: Water/Wastewater Treatment 

USDA Funding Opportunity - Rural Water Projects

Water Plan Grant Program

Colorado Water Conservation Board

Bureau of Reclamation Small Scale Water Efficiency Projects

Colorado Watershed Assembly Grants Bank 

NRCS Regional Conservation Partnership Program

Riparian Restoration funding opportunities

Jobs


Colorado Springs Utilities
Colorado Springs Utilities has a variety of job openings

Colorado River District
Contract Administrator/Information Specialist 


SGM Engineering
SGM has several openings for engineers on the Western Slope


Co Rural Water Association

Colorado Waterwise Job Bank

Josh's Water Jobs


Rich listing of water jobs all over the world can be searched here.
The Water Information Program (WIP) provides balanced educational programming and resources to the people of the San Juan and Dolores watersheds. Thank you to our 25 partner organizations in southwestern Colorado--water districts, utilities, private stakeholders and environmental advocates--who make WIP possible!

Water Information Program
841 E Second Avenue
Durango, CO 81301
www.waterinfo.org

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