From the Editor: A New Year
By Mike Rosso Wow, another year has come and gone and we are now staring down the barrel of the late Twenty-teens.
Search Results for: "john orr"
Water Update
By John Orr MINUTE 323 Several tributaries of the Colorado River get their start in the crags of the Central Colorado mountains. Storied rivers: Blue, Eagle, Roaring Fork and the powerhouse Gunnison. They’ve all faced the footstep of humankind. The mines dotting the slopes, hay fields, ranching, orchards and cornfields bear witness and are now …
Water Update
By John Orr November Election Recap Normally this column deals with water issues and water folks in Central Colorado, but in the aftermath of the weirdest election season in my lifetime this iteration will take on a statewide and national flavor. Del Norte rancher Travis Smith, currently serving on the Colorado Water Conservation Board, likes …
Water Update
by John Orr Hobbs to Say Adiós to the Colorado Supreme Court Greg Hobbs is calling it quits after 19 years as the Colorado Supreme Court’s “water expert.” Early in his career he clerked for the 10th Circuit, worked with David Robbins at the EPA, and worked at the Colorado Attorney General’s office. AG duties …
Colorado Supreme Court Justice Gregory J. Hobbs Retires
By John Orr Greg Hobbs is calling it quits after 19 years as the Colorado Supreme Court’s “water expert.” Early in his career he clerked for the 10th Circuit, worked with David Robbins at the EPA, and worked at the Colorado Attorney General’s office. AG duties included the natural resources area – water quality, water …
Some Facts About Mountains, Water, Geology, Spirits and Early Law in Colorado
Mountains by Jane Koerner • Colorado has 637 13ers (mountains over 13,000 feet but under 14,000). • Mounts Bierstadt, Grays and Torreys are the most popular 14ers for peak baggers. • There are seven total mountain ranges in Colorado: the San Juans, the Elk Range, the Sawatch (which include the Collegiates), the Sangre de Cristos, …
Regional News Roundup
Police Close Case on Western Student’s Death An investigation into the death of a Western State Colorado University wrestler, Dammion Heard, whose body was found hanging in a tree east of Gunnison on April 2, has officially been closed. After conducting 45 interviews and receiving 187 pages of investigative reports, Gunnison police have determined that …
Water Update
by John Orr Preston Frank Kaess Moves on to Greener Pastures Mr. Kaess passed on Nov. 6, 2013 in La Junta. Born in Rocky Ford, Kaess never ranged far from the Arkansas River and its tributaries, and in particular, Salida, where he graduated from high school in 1948 and married his wife, Patricia, in 1950. …
Water Update
Snowpack and Drought “Spring is an incredibly important time of year for Colorado’s water supplies,” observed State Climatologist Nolan Doesken in a March 18 press release from Colorado State University. He was commenting on the dryness of the soil and forests across Colorado while watching the smoke from a rare wintertime forest fire west of …
Water Update
By John Orr First Congreso de Acequias The oldest water right appropriation date in Colorado (April 10, 1852) belongs to the San Luis People’s Ditch on Culebra Creek on the western slopes of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in the San Luis Valley. The ditch is a historical artifact from the colonial days of the …
Water Update
by John Orr Drought and Trout Back in May, Front Range cities were falling all over themselves telling their customers that there would be no watering restrictions over the summer turf season, despite the fact that a meager snowpack – rivaling the drought year of 2002 – was melting out weeks early. When the Upper …
Water Update
by John Orr The National Ski Areas Association Sues the Forest Service Colorado Supreme Court Justice Greg Hobbs was speaking over in Breckenridge a couple of years back and told the group in attendance that “the water ditch is the basis of society.” Colorado law grew from those simple agricultural roots: put the water to …
Water Update
by John Orr Colorado River Basin: Colorado College State of the Rockies Project “For some reason we’re starting this in October,” quips Will Stauffer-Norris, standing in cold weather gear and snowshoes, down valley from the headwaters of the Green River. He made the statement in the first video chronicling his journey – along with fellow …
Water Update
by John Orr Summitville Clean Up It’s been nearly 20 years since the Environmental Protection Agency started cleanup efforts at the Summitville Mine. Runoff from the former open pit gold mine and its cyanide leach field was blamed for killing all aquatic life in the Alamosa River. In early September the Colorado Department of Public …
Water Update
by John Orr New hydroelectric generation plant online near Creede Humphreys family member Ruth Brown flipped the switch on the family’s new $1.3 million 310 kilowatt hydroelectric generation station on July 15. The new plant utilizes an existing 90 foot tall concrete arch dam and reservoir that Brown’s great grandfather built in 1923 below the …
Water Update
by John Orr La Niña, snowpack and runoff The picture can change quickly when you’re watching the Colorado snowpack. On March 26 snowpack as a percent of average was declining in the Arkansas basin and San Luis Valley but by the end April things had improved considerably. The winter was dominated by La Niña. Cool …
Water Update
Water Update by John Orr Denzel Goodwin The Upper Arkansas Valley said goodbye to cowboy, rancher and visionary Denzel Goodwin in February just before his 87th birthday. Goodwin (along with attorney Ken Baker) led the petition drive in the late 1970s that established the Upper Arkansas Water Conservancy District. Goodwin led the organization for 25 …
Water Update
by John Orr Coloradans elect John Hickenlooper What fun it was watching the election season last year. Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper won the chance to deal with Colorado’s fiscal vise grip – TABOR, Amendment 23 and the Gallagher Amendment. The three constitutional amendments essentially tie the hands of the legislature and governor when they try …
Water Update
by John Orr Forecasting water year 2011 November 1 is the usual start of the water year here in Colorado, although some – including the the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – say it starts on October 1. That said, by the time December rolls around the new water year has started, irrigation is mostly …
Water Update
by John Orr Runoff Most of Colorado’s water users – municipal, agricultural, recreational and industrial – depend on annual snowmelt for their supplies. So it’s no wonder that many across Colorado watch the snowpack closely through the beginning of the water year and then anxiously anticipate the runoff. Will it come off too fast to …
Water Update
by John Orr Taylor River rafting rift comes full circle The epic saga, termed “row vs. wade” by some opponents, ended up with a deal for this season between Wilder on the Taylor fishing reserve owners Jackson-Shaw and the owners of the two rafting operations, Three Rivers Outfitting and Scenic River Tours. Hours of operation …
Water Update
by John Orr State Representative Curry’s bill: What a Long Strange Trip It’s Been State Representative Kathleen Curry’s bill, HB 10-1188, was designed to clarify the rights of outfitters on Colorado streams that have been traditionally used for rafting. The original bill meant to allow portages during high water and the right to float certain …
Water Update
by John Orr 2010 Colorado legislative session Gunnison County’s State Representative Kathleen Curry — who recently declared as an independent after winning her seat in the state house as a Democrat — plans to introduce a bill that would allow rafting companies and others to float through private property without being subject to trespassing charges …
Water Update
by John Orr Creede hydroelectric project It makes sense to generate electricity with water and gravity where possible. Hydroelectric power is clean and as reliable as the water supply. Near Creede the A.E. Humphrey Ranch is going to get a shiny new hydroelectric plant for the dam there. Owner Ruthie Brown is ponying up over …
Water Update – October 2009
by John Orr It’s been a good water year so far Streamflow in the Arkansas River kept most everyone happy this summer. The runoff came early and high flows were bolstered by a cool and wet beginning to the season and plenty of transmountain water. The above average boating season lasted well into August.
Water Update – August 2009
by John Orr Nestlé Waters Chaffee County Project As we go to press the Chaffee County Commissioners have yet to issue or deny Nestlé Waters a permit to build their pipeline, pumphouse and loading facilities to truck water from the Hagen Spring out of basin to Denver. The company bottles spring water under the brand …
Water Update – June 2009
by John Orr Gunnison River flow regime through Black Canyon Last year, conservationists, irrigators, the National Park Service, the Bureau of Reclamation, the state of Colorado, along with many other groups and municipalities, sat down and hammered out an agreement to manage flows in the Gunnison River through the Black Canyon. The agreement was the …
From the Editor – June 2009
We hope you enjoy this current issue of CC. It’s been nicknamed the “art edition” although it is not strictly about art or artists. June is the month Salida celebrates its annual ArtWalk, an opportunity for area artists to show their stuff and shake off the winter doldrums. Now in it’s 17th year, the event …
Water Update – April 2009
By John Orr Nestlé Waters’ Chaffee County project update Most Colorado Central readers already know about Nestlé Waters North America’s plans to export water out of the Arkansas River Basin — from springs they’ve purchased near Nathrop — to their bottling plant in Denver. Nestlé plans to restore the area around the springs (Bighorn Spring …
Regional News Roundup – April 2009
Buena Vista developer files for Chapter 7 BUENA VISTA – A major property developer in Buena Vista has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Dean Hiatt, who ran his business as Vista Builders filed for bankruptcy on January 28. It is estimated he built nearly 350 homes and multiple commercial properties since the early 1990s in …
From the Editor – April 2009
It looks like the tourists have returned to Salida. Or at least they were out and about in good numbers on a Friday night during their spring break vacations down south. Good news for the restaurant owners, lodgers, gas dealers and other visitor-dependent businesses. Even the daffodils and crocus are rearing their tentative heads.
Farewell and best wishes
Essay by Martha And Ed Quillen Colorado Central – February 2009 – Colorado Central Magazine AFTER 15 YEARS AND 180 editions, it’s time for Martha and me to bid something of a farewell to Colorado Central. We founded it in 1994, and we’ve run it ever since. Now it’s getting a new owner and publisher, …
Water Update
Article by John Orr Water – February 2009 – Colorado Central Magazine New advisory committee proposed to help regulate SLV water usage Around the middle of December State Engineer Dick Wolfe let San Luis Valley irrigators know that he was planning to appoint an advisory committee to help draft rules that will govern groundwater use …
Water Update
Article by John Orr Water – January 2009 – Colorado Central Magazine Fryingpan-Arkansas Project debt The Fryingpan-Arkansas project affects the Arkansas River from stem to stern in Colorado. It moves water from the headwaters of the Fryingpan River under the Great Divide through the Boustead Tunnel to satisfy some of the agricultural needs in the …
Water Update
Article by John Orr Water – December 2008 – Colorado Central Magazine RGWCD – Special Improvement District No. 1 The management plan for the Rio Grande Water Conservation District’s Special Improvement District (Subdistrict) No. 1 was on trial during late October and early November; and on December 16th, Division Three Water Court Judge O. John …
Water Roundup
Article by John Orr Water – November 2008 – Colorado Central Magazine Drought management and climate risk In October Governor Ritter hosted the “Governor’s Conference on Managing Drought and Climate Risk” in Denver. According to the Rocky Mountain News, attendees were treated to information on historical droughts along with predictions about the effects of climate …
Central Colorado Water Update
Article by John Orr Water – October 2008 – Colorado Central Magazine Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel This past June — with the release of their LMDT risk assessment — Reclamation threw the Environmental Protection Agency under the bus over the possibility of a catastrophic blowout of water and debris. Readers may remember that a November …
Water Update
Column by John Orr Water – September 2008 – Colorado Central Magazine Great Sand Dunes National Park water right In August, Division Three Water Court Judge O. John Kuenhold signed the decree for a water right for the Great Sand Dunes National Park. The decree was the final piece of the puzzle in converting the …
Water Update
Article by John Orr Water – August 2008 – Colorado Central Magazine Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel The relief well for the Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel came on line late in June. Peter Soeth from Reclamation said, “The plant is now treating between 2000 and 2100 gallons per minute,” combined flow from the LMDT and the …
Central Colorado water update
Column by John Orr Water – July 2008 – Colorado Central Magazine James Tingle Reservoir Colorado is blessed with a water supply system that has grown up around the annual snowfall, unlike other states which rely on groundwater or rainfall. Our mountain ranges act as reservoirs during the winter, storing snowfall (most years).
Appeasement, uranium, and South Park water
Letter from Phil Doe Water – July 2008 – Colorado Central Magazine Editors: As valuable as I find John Orr’s monthly water updates, I find his discussion of HB 08-1161 far too sanguine. The legislation requires uranium miners to clean up ground water that might become polluted from their operations. Orr states that the citizens …
Central Colorado Water Update
Article by John Orr Water – June 2008 – Colorado Central Magazine 2008 water legislation in review Water and Stream Flow In May HB 08-1280 passed both houses by large margins. Although it’s rare, every so often the legislature passes a water bill that almost everyone regards as needed and beneficial. Now, water rights owners …
Regional water update
Column by John Orr Water – May 2008 – Colorado Central Magazine Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel Update Since the disaster declaration for the Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel, it’s been learned that the actual cause of the rising water in the mine pool could be the result of a combination of factors including a collapse in …
Regional Water Update
Article by John Orr Water – April 2008 – Colorado Central Magazine San Luis Valley Water News Climate change and its possible effects on local water supplies were the topic at a recent meeting of the Rio Grande Roundtable. Scientists still can’t predict how global warming will impact local conditions, but featured speaker, Jason Vogel …
Regional Water Roundup
Article by John Orr Water – March 2008 – Colorado Central Magazine General Assembly water bill update Every legislative session Colorado’s lawmakers take a stab at passing new water legislation. This year is no different. So far three bills have been shelved.