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Water news and events for southwestern Colorado
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WATER INFORMATION PROGRAM 
September 2020 Newsletter
LOCAL NEWS

Southwestern Water Conservation District Seeks Candidates for General Manager Position

The Southwestern Water Conservation District (“District”), based in Durango, Colorado, is seeking candidates for the General Manager position. The District was created by Colorado statute in 1941 to lead in the protection, conservation, use and development of the water of the San Juan and Dolores River basins for the welfare of the District, and to safeguard for Colorado all waters of the basin to which the state is entitled. The District encompasses all of La Plata, Montezuma, Archuleta, San Juan, San Miguel and Dolores counties and parts of Montrose, Hinsdale and Mineral counties. The District has a nine-member board of directors with an appointee from each board of county commissioners. 

The General Manager serves as the chief executive and management official of the organization reporting directly to the District’s Board of Directors. The General Manager is responsible for all business operations (administrative, financial, technical and external affairs) and manages a small team of staff and contractors. The General Manager must be able to lead the team, delegate, and play to the strengths of others, and must possess strong oral and written communication skills and be capable of clearly communicating difficult issues with candor. The General Manager works collaboratively to bring together groups of diverse interests in complicated and sometimes contentious matters, and is expected to offer creative solutions to the Board that take into consideration the varying water-related priorities and perspectives of the District’s diverse constituency. The General Manager represents the District’s broad range of constituents and priorities at conferences, speaking engagements and on local, statewide, and national matters, as directed by the Board.  

All application materials should be submitted electronically (PDF preferred) to generalmanager@swwcd.org by Friday, September 25, 2020 at 5:00 PM. Applicants are encouraged to apply promptly and are responsible for ensuring that application materials are received by the District before the closing date and time listed above.

For more information and full job desctiption go to: https://swwcd.org/about-us/careers/.

SW Basin Roundtable Roundup

 


Below are some of the highlights of the July SW Basin Roundtable meeting:


Content taken from Laura Spann - Roundtable Recorder Notes

CWCB Board Report                                                             Celene Hawkins summarized highlights from the Colorado Water Conservation Board’s July meeting, which included discussion of the state fiscal situation, consideration of grant requests postponed from the May meeting, and Colorado River matters, including a brief discussion of the written update on the demand management feasibility investigation. The CWCB was able to secure important funding for ongoing grant programs as part of the Projects Bill, but the combined impacts of declining severance tax revenues and the COVID-19 pandemic means these funds will likely need to be stretched for use in coming years.
 
Public Education Participation and Outreach (PEPO) Liaison                                                             
Elaine Chick, Water Information Program, reported that all filming and interviews for the PEPO educational video focused on the southwest basins have been completed. The final video should be released in November 2020.
 
Basin WSRF Fund Balance                                                
As of July 2020, the fund balance was $489,511.
 
Elections
Mike Preston stepped down as Roundtable chair, and opened nominations for chair. Several Roundtable members thanked Mike Preston for his service and leadership via the chat box. Mely Whiting nominated Ed Tolen for Roundtable Chair. Ken Curtis seconded. The motion passed by unanimous consent. There was unanimous consent to elect by acclimation Ed Tolen as Roundtable Chair.
 
Ken Curtis nominated Brandon Johnson as First Vice-Chair. Ed Millard seconded. The motion passed by unanimous consent. There were no other nominations. Brandon Johnson was elected First Vice-Chair by acclimation.
 
Mely Whiting nominated Al Pfister as Second Vice-Chair.  Justin Ramsey seconded. The motion passed by unanimous consent. There were no other nominations. Al Pfister was elected Second Vice-Chair by acclimation.
 
Report on Joint IBCC Meeting, June 17th
Mely Whiting, Al Pfister, Ed Millard and Russ Sands summarized the June Interbasin Compact Committee (IBCC) meeting, which was focused on how a proposed demand management program could be equitable. The IBCC’s discussion is summarized in a short report included in the written demand management update presented to the CWCB board at their July meeting. The Roundtable has been asked to provide input on what the IBCC should address next and what types of information members would like to see for presentations, including continuing the demand management equity discussion and other topics. A broader question is what is the IBCC role in the state. It was suggested that IBCC meet more often and serve as a collaborative forum for drafting policy documents. It was suggested that the IBCC serve as a compact negotiator among intra-state basins. There was consensus to conduct a survey of the Roundtable members to get input on what IBCC should focus on.
 
Demand Management Subcommittee
Ken Curtis reported on the morning DCP-DM Subcommittee, which would like to change its name to the Colorado River Issues Subcommittee. It was suggested that the Drought Subcommittee might be a good name also. The purpose of this ad-hoc committee is to provide additional information and discussion regarding Colorado River issues that might not otherwise fit into a full Roundtable meeting. Membership includes Roundtable members and the public and all meetings are open. Ken Curtis has taken over coordination and chairing of this Subcommittee from Mike Preston and Carrie Padgett. At today’s meeting, the subcommittee heard a presentation from the Western Water Assessment at the University of Colorado, specifically focused on hydrology and climate modeling for southwestern Colorado. The subcommittee also heard an update from demand management workgroup members and from the CWCB regarding their review of the recent written update, upcoming public comment period and the public work session. The group also discussed a concept regarding individual accounts in the Lake Powell storage pool, and there was brief discussion of the Water Assets Management water and land purchases in the Grand Valley.

The CWCB will open a public comment platform on the demand management feasibility report. A virtual public workshop will be scheduled in advance of the September meeting to review the report in detail. The CWCB board’s discussion of the report will also be open to the public.  
 
Basin Implementation Plan Update
Carrie Padgett, Harris Water Engineering, reviewed the Basin Implementation Plan (BIP) Subcommittee’s work to date, the proposed BIP update workplan, the Project’s List update, and a proposed Roundtable meeting schedule. The BIP subcommittee has held three meetings in June and July, at which they discussed the draft Work Plan, the Project’s List and data needs, and the Project’s List tiering matrix. Carrie also hosted a BIP 101 webinar to get everyone up-to-speed.  The subcommittee will review the BIP update and Project’s list initially and prepare recommendations for consideration by the full Roundtable.  Carrie then reviewed the proposed BIP update work plan, which describes the process for updating the 2015 BIP, specifically 1) a general description of project data collected and data collection needs, 2) a plan for how the core duties will be carried out, 3) a description of additional studies to be conducted, and 4) a schedule and budget.
 
Review of WSRF Applications and Concept Proposals
Applications were presented to the Roundtable by Montezuma Orchard Restoration Project; Redmesa Reservoir & Ditch Company; Florida Canal Diversion Structure Rehabilitation, Phase II; Dolores River Adaptive Management Support; and Morrison Consolidated Ditch Company Syphon Replacement.
 
There was Roundtable consensus not to take applications in October and form a WSRF subcommittee to meet prior to the October meeting on how to structure funding and a schedule for accepting applications.
 
All WSRF applications were approved, with exception of Morrison Ditch, which was approved for $25,000 from the Basin Account, not $50,000, subject to meeting all CWCB criteria and additional funding needs. 

SW Basin Roundtable Seeks New Members

 
The Southwest Basins Roundtable is seeking persons interested in serving as voting members. We are accepting applications for three at-large representative seats, at-large local domestic water provider representative, at-large industrial representative, and at-large recreational representative. Applicants should submit a letter describing their qualifications. Please note in your letter if you own water rights, shares in a ditch or reservoir company, or represent an agent with a Reclamation contract. Letters of support for your application are welcome, but not required. Please submit your letter to Ed Tolen, etolen@laplawd.org, and Laura Spann, lauras@swwcd.org, no later than October 14, 2020. 

Elections will be held at the October 22, 2020 meeting via Zoom at 3:00 pm, at which applicants will have an opportunity to address Roundtable members. Please contact Ed Tolen, Roundtable Chair, at 970-442-1303 for specific questions or visit the Roundtable webpage for more details. 

 

NEW Virtual Event "Water Connections: SW’s Water Cooler" Takes Place of SWCD's Annual Water Seminar

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SWCD's Annual Water Seminar has been cancelled. Instead, The Southwestern Water Conservation District and Four Corners Water Center at Fort Lewis College are partnering up to present “Water Connections: SW’s Water Cooler.” This free Zoom event will be held on Wednesday, October 14th from 4:00-5:30pm. Register now to reserve your spot and hear short local and regional water updates. It’s like visiting the water cooler, only virtual!

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER!
 

Forest to Faucets K - 12 Teacher Workshop


On August 3 - 4 we held our Forest to Faucets program in Pagosa Springs. Since 2012, over 100 teachers have been trained in this program across the San Juan River Basin in the My Water Comes from the San Juan Mountains teacher guide, children's book, and kit developed in 2009 by Mountain Studies Institute, the Water Information Program, San Juan Forest Association and Ft. Lewis College. Ten teachers attended the two-day workshop where they explored topics in forest and watershed health, practiced the lessons found within the My Water guide, and met with local water experts and professionals.

The workshops build teachers' capacity for teaching watershed science by providing place-specific knowledge and activities that can be easily integrated in science and social science curricula.
 
     
 
 
Around the State

Free Webinar Series on Colorado's State Revolving Fund


 

Are you interested in learning more about Colorado's State Revolving Fund, a low-interest loan program for water and wastewater infrastructure? In lieu of their annual in-person training, they are offering three webinars that review the basics of the SRF program. Each session will include a 45-60 minute presentation and approximately 30 minutes for Q&A.

SRF 101- Financial Benefits of the SRF Program
(includes discussion of other DOLA and CDPHE grant opportunities)

  • October 6, 2020 1:00 pm-2:30 pm

SRF 101- The Process & Program Requirements

  • October 13, 2020 1:00pm- 2:30pm

SRF 101- The Regulations
(planning for future regulations and the SRF program)

  • October 20, 2020 1:00pm- 2:30pm
Attendance is FREE. Please RSVP here to receive the webinar link and call in information.

Webinars will be recorded and the recordings will be shared afterwards.

Meet the presenters:

Mark Henderson is the Unit Manager for the Water Quality Control Division Grants and Loans Unit. Prior to his current role, Mark spent seven years as a Senior Review Engineer in the division engineering section and ten years as an environmental engineering consultant. Mark’s expertise is focused on the funding as well as design and construction of water/wastewater treatment facilities. He has authored and edited numerous articles for Rocky Mountain Water Magazine (formerly Rumbles) including articles for Rural Community Assistance Partnership and contributions to the ASCE Infrastructure Report Card. He is a Colorado native and enjoys trail running, mountaineering, and backpacking.  

Evan Butcher is the Central Region Project Manager for the Water Quality Control Division Grants and Loans Unit. Evan has spent four and a half years managing water related projects with the Division and another eleven years managing construction projects in the private sector. When Evan is not at work he enjoys spending time with his family, riding mountain bikes and fishing.  

Ian Loffert, graduated from Regis University in 2017 with a degree in mathematics and economics. Ian is currently a Financial Analyst with the Colorado Water Resources and Power Development Authority, and has been a part of that organization for over 3 years. Ian is a Colorado native who currently resides in Westminster. In his spare time, Ian enjoys golfing, fly fishing the great waters of this state, and being anywhere in the mountains.   

Desi Santerre has been with the Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) since 2017 and is the Water and Wastewater Program Manager, working with Colorado communities to evaluate and solve drinking water and wastewater infrastructure concerns. She has been working with the SRF program for three years, starting as a finance analyst before moving into her current position about a year ago. Prior to her employment with DOLA, Desi worked in healthcare management.
 

Possible Lawsuits over Utah’s Lake Powell Pipeline Project




 
The Colorado Sun - Jason Blevins

Decades of collaborative agreements between the states that rely on the Colorado River could be threatened by the Trump Administration plan to expedite review of Utah’s diversion project.

For more than 20 years, negotiations among the seven states that rely on the Colorado River have avoided lawsuits, even as drought and population growth threaten the river’s flows.

That may change as a promise to rush the environmental review of a diversion project between the Colorado River’s upper and lower basins has six states suggesting that lawsuits challenging the project could topple years of agreements. 

To read the full story click here. 

Legislative Committee Seated to Stem Colorado Water Speculation


Colorado Politics - Joey Bunch
 

Sponsors of Senate Bill 48, to study anti-speculation water laws, are, from left, Sens. Don Coram of Montrose and Kerry Donovan of Vail, with Reps. Marc Catlin of Montrose and Dylan Roberts of Avon.
 

A special committee tasked with stemming the flow of state's water into the speculation market was identified Wednesday afternoon.

The 18-member committee will look at ways to strengthen anti-speculation laws and make a recommendation to the state legislature, the product of last session's Senate Bill 48. A report is due by Aug. 15, 2021.

Click here to read the full story!

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

September 16 -17, 2020
Colorado Water Conservation Board
Virtual Board Meeting 


September 18, 2020
Water Education Colorado 2020 President's Reception
6:00 pm - 7:30 pm (Virtual) 
5:30 pm VIP wine tasting hosted by HDR in the comfort of your own home or gather for a virtual watch party

September 21-23, 2020
The San Juan Mining and Reclamation Virtual Conference

THEME: Adaptive Capacity in Uncertain Times
Register Now. 

September 21-24, 2020

Colorado River District’s Annual Water Seminar: Zooming in on West Slope Water
Noon - 1:15 pm Each Day
Free Registration

September 22, 2020
Drought 2020: Let's Talk About Soil Health

Organized by the Drought Learning Network
On-line Event 
4:55 PM – 6:30 PM MDT

September 24, 2020
SW Basin Roundtable Basin Implementaion Plan Update Workshop: Forest Health 

3:00 PM - 5:30 PM

October 6 - 8, 2020
2020 Sustaining Colorado Watersheds Conference
A Virtual Experience - Register by Sept. 18 for Early Bird Prices


October 14 , 2020
Water Connections: SW's Water Cooler Virtual Event
Register Now
4:00 - 5:30pm
Durango, CO

October 22 , 2020
SW Basin Roundtable Meeting 
Public Welcome 
Via Zoom - Contact the SWCD Office if you would like to attend
3:00 pm - 6:00 pm

October 27 - 28, 2020
The Annual US Water Treatment Conference
A Virtual Event


November 4 - 5, 2020
10th Annual Upper Colorado River Basin Water Forum:
Coming to Terms with Limits and Uncertainty
Colorado Mesa University
Grand Junction, CO

November 18 - 19, 2020
CSU Spur Water in the West Symposium 2020
Wed, Nov. 18, 2020, 1:00 PM 
Thu, Nov. 19, 2020, 12:00 PM MST

November 19, 2020
SW Basin Roundtable Basin Implementation Plan Update Workshop: Water Plan Technical Update Review  
3:00 PM - 5:30 PM


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

"We Broke A Lot of Records"" State Climatologist Reflects on Extreme Weather in Colorado - KUNC Story

Highly Invasive Aquatic Weed Discovered in the Animas Valley - Durango Herald


EPA Announces Colorado-based Office Dedicated to Cleaning up Abandoned Mines - The Colorado Sun

Drought May Mute Fall Colors in Southwest Colorado - Durango Herald
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 for September

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

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 26 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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