COLORADO RIVER BASIN HYDROLOGY
Drought conditions in the Colorado River Basin continue. While snowpack conditions this year are better than they have been in the past 4 years, there are no strong signals that there has been significant amelioration of the drought. Early January snowpack showed some promise with the basinwide ‘pack’ getting as high as 115 percent of average by January 8. The pattern since that time has been drier than average, however. As of February 27, 2004, snowpack in the Colorado River Basin was 92 percent of average. The trend of low inflow continues. Unregulated inflow to Lake Powell in November, December, and January was only 64, 67 and 74 percent of average, respectively, while inflows at the end of February are only 50% of average. Low inflows have reduced water storage in Lake Powell to 10.5 maf, 43% of capacity.
COLORADO HYDROLOGY
Weekend storm has improved snowpack conditions is most basins. The Gunnison Basin is at 102% of average; Upper Colorado, 84%; South Platte, 70%, North Platte, 82%; Yampa/White, 89%; Arkansas, 87%; Rio Grande, 108%; and San Juan, 106%.
COLORADO ATTORNEY GENERAL WARNS FARMERS THAT CITIES ARE COMING FOR THEIR WATER
Colorado Attorney General Ken Salazar stepped up his warnings to outlying communities that they stand to lose their water to fast-growing Front Range cities, and he said the Legislature would do little to stop water grabs. Denver Rocky Mountain News; Feb. 11 <http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/state/article/0,1299,DRMN_21_2645555,00.html>
COLORADO CITY READY TO CUT DEAL FOR $5.5 MILLION WORTH OF WATER
Aurora, Colo., is close to completing a deal to buy 12,600 acre feet of Arkansas River water from irrigators to replenish city reservoirs, a $5.5 million deal that would rank as the state’s biggest temporary water purchase. Denver Rocky Mountain News; Feb. 20 <http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_2669195,00.html>
WATER HOOK-UP FEES TO CLIMB HIGHER IN COLORADO CITY
Aurora officials anticipate the city will go into debt $300 million to $500 million in the next 10 years to build water storage and delivery systems, and residents will pay between $18,000 to $24,000 in hook-up fees. Denver Business Journal; Feb. 9 <http://www.bizjournals.com/denver/stories/2004/02/09/story4.html>
COLORADO SENDING OUT WATER BILLS APPROVED LAST YEAR
Fees are not tied directly to use, instead having a flat structure. For direct use rights greater than one cubic foot per second, agricultural users are charged $10 and other users, including municipal, are charged $250. Storage rights in excess of 100 Acre Feet will be charged $25 for ag use and $100 for other uses. The funds raised will go primarily to supporting water commissioners and administration of the state water rights system. About $1.8 million would be raised annually.
FOUR CORNERS IRRIGATORS SAY THERE MAY BE TOO LITTLE WATER TO MEET NAVAJO CLAIMS
Irrigators in New Mexico’s San Juan Basin allege no one knows the repercussions of a proposed settlement of Navajo water claims, and non-Indian water users are being left out of negotiations. Farmington Daily Times; Feb. 26 <http://www.daily-times.com/artman/publish/article_8970.shtml>
NAVAJO WATER SETTLEMENT HITS DELAYS
The Navajo Nation’s proposal to settle water claims in New Mexico’s San Juan Basin is several weeks from being finished, but tribal officials said they will meet the March deadline for submitting it to Congress. Farmington Daily Times; Feb. 26 <http://www.daily-times.com/cgi-bin/artman/exec/view.cgi?archive=305&num=8969>
INTERIOR WILL LOOK AT PLAN TO MOVE ENDANGERED NEW MEXICO MINNOW
Interior Secretary promised serious consideration of New Mexico Sen. Pete Domenici’s plan to move the endangered silvery minnow from its habitat south of Albuquerque northward, where there is more reliable water. Santa Fe New Mexican (AP); Feb. 13 <http://www.santafenewmexican.com/main.asp?FromHome=1&TypeID=1&ArticleID=40319&SectionID=2&SubSectionID=7>
BUSH BUDGET SLASHES MONEY FOR ENDANGERED NEW MEXICO MINNOW
President Bush’s budget contains only about $5 million to restore habitat for the endangered silvery minnow in New Mexico, $9.5 million less than last year and 20 times less than funding for endangered fish in Oregon’s Klamath Basin. Albuquerque Tribune <http://www.santafenewmexican.com/main.asp?FromHome=1&TypeID=1&ArticleID=40319&SectionID=2&SubSectionID=7>
WOUNDED WATERS
Power plants are widely recognized as major sources of air pollutants that damage human health and the environment. Less well recognized is the damage they cause to water, both as large users and polluters. These damages are the hidden dimension of power generation pollution. Lifting the veil off this problem is essential to both restoring and wisely using many of our nation’s waters. This report is a useful resource detailing the lesser acknowledged impacts of power plants. <http://www.catf.us/publications/reports/Wounded_Waters.php>
STUDY: GROWTH RESTRICTIONS TO SAVE NEVADA WATER ‘CATASTROPHIC’
A study to see if controlling growth would work as a means of drought management said a 65 percent drop in construction would cost the state $148 billion in economic output and more than $15 billion in tax revenue over a 14-year period. Reno Gazette-Journal; Feb. 27 <http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2004/Feb-27-Fri-2004/news/23310171.html>
FAKE GRASS SAVES WATER IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In an effort to conserve water (and perhaps bolster Southern California’s reputation as a showcase for all things fake), the city of Anaheim, Calif., and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California are pilot-testing faux lawns. If water savings meet expectations, residents who replace real grass with fake greenery could soon be eligible for rebates from the water district. An estimated 40 to 70 percent of water consumed by the average SoCal household goes to outdoor uses, mainly lawn watering. Faux lawns require no water and last for up to 15 years, although at $6-7 per square foot with installation, they don’t come cheap. Fake-grass manufacturers hype the benefits of their products, which need no mowing or reseeding and leave no unsightly dirt or grass marks. “Roll around on your soft, supple, virtual lawn with your kids with no worry of dirt, cinch bugs, or grass stains,” says the AstroLawn website. “We know you have better things to do than water and care for a grass lawn.” <http://www.latimes.com/services/site/premium/access-registered.intercept>
CALIFORNIA APPROVES RULES FOR WATER-EFFICIENT WASHING MACHINES, WHICH NEED FEDS’ APPROVAL
California regulators approved efficiency rules for washing machines designed to save billions of gallons of water a year, but the changes will need the federal government’s blessing. <http://www.enn.com/news/2004-02-06/s_12852.asp>
CALIFORNIA WATER-RIGHTS RULING COULD THREATEN SPECIES PROTECTION
An effort to save two rare fish more than a decade ago could come back to haunt environmentalists after a recent court decision awarded millions of dollars in compensation to farmers who lost water in the process. <http://www.enn.com/news/2004-02-13/s_13125.asp>
MEXICAN WATER DELIVERIES
According to IBWC reports, since 1992, Mexico has incurred a debt of 1.3Maf. Under the 1944 Water Treaty, Mexico’s annual obligation totals 350,000 af from Rio Grande tributaries, primarily the Rio Conchos. In the past water year, Mexico delivered 389,964 af and added another 100,000 af in the first two months of the current water year. Within days after the Monterrey meeting between Presidents Fox and Bush, Mexico reportedly transferred some 250,000 af more, bringing payments this water year up to 386,738 af. However, Texas farmers along the lower Rio Grande still hope to see more payments. “While they still have as much water as they do [in storage], we’d certainly like to see them go ahead and address the debt,” says Ray Prewett, President, Texas Citrus Mutual. Newly appointed U.S. IBWC Commissioner, Arturo Duran, will continue urging Mexico to repay its water debts. Meanwhile, Mexican farmers across the lower Rio Grande from Reynosa to Matamoros are still fighting with officials from the Mexican State of Chihuahua to get their share of Rio Grande waters (stored along the Rio Conchos) under the 1944 Treaty. (Fort Worth Star- Telegram, January 28, 2004)
STUDY SUGGESTS ELIMINATING SPILL FROM COLUMBIA RIVER DAMS
Fisheries managers are giving a skeptical look at an analysis that looks at alternatives to summer spill that was completed by the Bonneville Power Administration and the U.S. Corps of Engineers, with technical help from NOAA Fisheries. The analysis looked at six alternatives to spill as spelled out in NOAA Fisheries 2000 biological opinion of the Columbia River hydro system. It concludes that the alternative that eliminates spill at Columbia River dams in July and August would reduce adult chinook salmon returns by 19,000 fish, but gain the Bonneville Power Administration as much as $77 million in revenue it now forgoes when it spills water over dams. <http://www.cbbulletin.com/Free/11105.aspx> <http://www.cbbulletin.com/Free/11110.aspx>
IMPACTS ON SALMON ENDS PLAN TO DRAIN LAKE CASCADE
The Bureau of Reclamation and Idaho Department of Fish and Game have jointly decided to discontinue operational changes at Lake Cascade in central Idaho which called for draining the reservoir next year. Further study indicated that such an action could have significant negative impacts on flows for endangered and threatened salmon. The agencies will also discontinue the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement. Previously IDFG determined that in order to bring back fishing in Lake Cascade, the number of pikeminnow and suckers must be significantly reduced. The proposal was for Reclamation to lower the water elevation of Lake Cascade to the lowest level possible to allow IDFG to remove the undesirable fish and restock the lake with perch and trout. The drafting of the lake for fish removal would have been a one-time occurrence, planned for 2005. <http://www.cbbulletin.com/Free/11101.aspx>
IDAHO CITIES TRADE ANNEXATION FOR WATER RIGHTS
In an effort to bolster supplies, the rapidly growing cities of Rathdrum and Post Falls are requiring property owners to transfer their water rights to the cities if they want their land annexed. Spokane Spokesman Review; Feb. 15 <http://www.spokesmanreview.com/news-story.asp?date=021504&ID=s1488131&cat=section.idaho>
WASHINGTON SETS FLOW REQUIREMENTS IN SIX WATERSHEDS
The Washington Department of Ecology has launched an effort to start setting minimum stream-flow requirements in six watersheds for the first time by the end of June 2005. The department also will consider amending existing flow requirements in four watersheds, enhancing stream flows in three more watersheds and help local planning groups in four Lower Columbia basin watersheds develop minimum-flow recommendations for the first time. Setting minimum stream flows doesn’t just help fish. Adopting flow rules helps the agency determine whether additional water is available within a watershed for new uses, such as irrigation, public water supply, recreation and commercial uses. <http://www.cbbulletin.com/Free/11099.aspx>
STATE TO RECOMMEND MINIMUM FLOWS
Washington’s state Dept. of Ecology announced plans to recommend minimum flows to sustain imperiled salmon and steelhead in Salmon Creek and the Washougal River by 2005 says the Columbian 2/17. Once adopted, the minimum flows “would be tantamount to granting a water right to the fish that live in the stream” but “does not guarantee that the flows will be met, or met all the time.” As a result, the state plans to pursue “market-based measures to improve stream flow” such as water-rights buyouts and leases, improvements to irrigation efficiency and conservation and a pilot program to create local water exchanges.
US FISH & WILDLIFE TESTING HATCHERY-RAISED FISH FOR POLLUTANTS
The Northeast region of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is testing its hatchery-raised salmon and other fish for dioxin and other pollutants because of fears they could be picking up contaminants from commonly used feeds. <http://www.enn.com/news/2004-02-25/s_13445.asp>
MISSOURI RIVER: CORPS’ NEW MANUAL CALLS FOR HIGHER FLOWS THAN MANDATED BY COURTS LAST YEAR
Armed with a new biological opinion from the Fish and Wildlife Service, the Army Corps of Engineers says it will manage flows on the Missouri River this year in a way that will balance protections for endangered fish and birds against the needs of barge operators (despite the virtual disappearance of barge traffic) and other commercial interests on the river. <http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/Backissues/022704/022704gw.htm#12>
NEW POWER PLANT RULE CONTAINS CONTROVERSIAL RESTORATION MEASURES
The EPA has decided that existing power plants can mitigate environmental harm caused by massive water withdrawals from natural waterbodies by restocking fish populations, creating wildlife habitat and performing other conservation measures instead of paying for advanced technologies that allow water to be recycled in a closed-loop cooling system. <http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/Backissues/021904/021904gw.htm> – 11
EMBREY DAM REMOVED
The Army Corps of Engineers blew up the Embrey Dam in Fredericksburg, Va., recently, allowing the Rappahannock River to flow unmolested from the Blue Ridge Mountains to the Chesapeake Bay for the first time since 1910 — and making it the longest free-flowing river feeding into the Chesapeake, a renewed migration route for fish that live in the bay but swim upriver to freshwater to spawn. The dam was originally used to generate power, and then to create a drinking-water reservoir, but for the past five years has been essentially useless. The multiyear community movement to remove the dam, led by local environmental groups, is part of a trend that has given some in the Corps a new sense of purpose. “We’re not only restoring fish runs, but also restoring the entire habitat” in areas where dams are being removed, said Beverley Getzen, chief of the Office of Environmental Policy at the Corps. Several dams in California are scheduled for demolition in coming years. <http://www.gristmagazine.com/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=2062>
COMMISSION ADDS COMPLAINTS TO NATIONAL ENERGY BILL
On Capitol Hill for the National Congress of American Indians’ Executive Council winter session, the commission presented its own case against the embattled legislation. The Commission opposes a measure in the much-revised bill that would give dam operators a broad right to appeal conditions on the renewal of their dam licenses, according to public information manager Charles Hudson. Currently, the renewals depend on environmental considerations, particularly dam impact on salmon and other Columbia River basin fish stocks. Under the proposed change in law, federal agencies such as Fish & Wildlife, the Forest Service and National Marine Fisheries would have to factor non-environmental concerns into their decision on alternatives put forward by the dam operators. Dam operators could appeal agency decisions on their plan to the departments of Interior, Agriculture or Commerce. Dams could then continue to operate as they have in the past throughout the prolonged cabinet-level decision-making processes. No other party to the license renewal process would share this right of appeal. <http://www.indiancountry.com/?1077299708>
HOUSE PANEL SLAMS PROPOSED ARMY CORPS BEACH FUNDING
The Army Corps of Engineers heard bipartisan criticism from a House subcommittee for the Bush administration’s decision to suspend or cancel funding in FY ’05 for more than 400 water resource projects worth tens of millions of dollars. Corps funding for these projects, which range from dredging harbors and waterways to replacing sand at eroding beaches, were among the topics at a broad budget oversight hearing of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee of Water Resources and Environment. <http://www.eenews.net/EEDaily/Backissues/022704/022704d.htm#7>
2005 FEDERAL BUDGET LOW-LIGHTS
Two big losers in the budget are EPA, which is facing a 7.2% cut that hits the Clean Water Act state revolving loan fund hard, and the Corps of Engineers civil works program targeted for a 12.7% reduction. The Bureau of Reclamation gets a boost of $13 million to $956 million. Interior’s high profile Water 2025 fared modestly, with proposed funding of $20 million, up from the 8.4 million enacted in FY04. However, the gossip mill indicated that Interior requested $49 million from OMB and got less than half of that. The Administration seriously cut existing conservation and efficiency programs. The very effective water conservation program that implements the Reclamation Reform Act dropped from $6 million to $5.6 million. A popular water recycling program – Title XVI, drops from $28.5 to $11.5. These cuts make you wonder about conservation rhetoric in Water 2025. A couple of dam removal projects – Washington’s Icicle Creek and Oregon’s Savage Rapids Dam received Interior funding. The USGS water program was cut as well, going from $215 million in FY04 to $202 million in FY05. Some of that cut will come from the vitally important stream gauging system, meaning fewer stream gages, especially on tributaries. From Western Water Alliance in association with Trout Unlimited. The budget zeroes out the $691K that the Fish and Wildlife Service provides for support of the Upper Colorado River Recovery Program. The Program will also lose $200k from Reclamation’s budget. The budget also zeroes out funds to implementation of the Platte River Recovery Program.
WASTEWATER TRUST FUND CONCEPT DRAWS ADDED SUPPORT
While still facing an uphill battle in Congress, efforts to establish a national trust fund to pay for upgrades to the nation’s deteriorating sewage and wastewater systems received a boost yesterday as the Natural Resources Defense Council signed onto the effort. <http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/Backissues/022004/022004gw.htm> – 3
E.P.A. RAISES ESTIMATE OF BABIES AFFECTED BY MERCURY EXPOSURE
More than one child in six born in the United States could be at risk for developmental disorders because of mercury exposure in the mother’s womb, according to revised estimates released last week by Environmental Protection Agency scientists. The agency doubled its estimate, equivalent to 630,000 of the 4 million babies born each year, because recent research has shown that mercury tends to concentrate in the blood in the umbilical cord of pregnant women. <http://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/10/health/10WORD.html>
WASHINGTON D.C. WARNS ABOUT LEAD IN WATER
City health officials are warning pregnant women and children under 6 who live in homes with lead service lines to stop drinking unfiltered tap water and have their blood tested. <http://www.enn.com/news/2004-02-26/s_13489.asp>
EPA NEWSLETTERS
This EPA webpage contains links to several newsletters that address various issues relevant to most anyone working on water quality issues. From the joy of ambient monitoring technology, pollution prevention, and chemicals in the environment to quarterly publications from the American Indian Environment Office, Oil Spill Program updates, and Nonpoint Source News, this page has several links worth perusing or at least peeking at. <http://www.epa.gov/epahome/newslett.htm>
GLOBAL WETLANDS AT RISK
Goods and services provided by wetlands across the globe are worth some $70 billion, claims a new study released by the World Wildlife Fund, but those wetlands are in danger of being destroyed. Valuable wetland functions range from recreation to water filtration and flood control; however, insufficient knowledge about wetlands leads policy-makers to sanction their drainage for agriculture and other land uses that promise short-term economic benefit. As a result, more than half of the world’s wetlands have disappeared since 1900. <http://news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=2481360>
MEXICO DESIGNATES NEW MARSHLAND
Mexico’s Environmental Department designated 34 areas as protected marshland, ensuring they will fall under the protection of the international Ramsar Convention on Wetlands. <http://www.enn.com/news/2004-02-03/s_12697.asp>
ONE-QUARTER OF IRELAND’S RURAL WELLS ARE POLLUTED BY FECES
More than one-quarter of drinking water provided by rural water systems in Ireland have been contaminated by untreated sewage, the Environmental Protection Agency reported. <http://www.enn.com/news/2004-02-06/s_12851.asp>
CLOUD FORESTS, WATER SOURCE TO MILLIONS, FACE RISK
A warming climate threatens tropical mountain forests that strip moisture from clouds and supply water to millions of people in Africa and Latin America, experts said in a U.N. report. <http://www.enn.com/news/2004-02-10/s_12940.asp>
THAI KING HONORED BY U.N. AWARD FOR WATER MANAGEMENT PROJECTS
Thailand’s revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej has been honored with a United Nations award for his work in reducing pollution in Bangkok’s canals and other environment projects. <http://www.enn.com/news/2004-02-25/s_13444.asp>
WORLD IS SLIPPING IN GOAL OF FRESH WATER TO POOR
The world is slipping behind a U.N. goal of supplying fresh water by 2015 to more than a half-billion people in developing nations who currently lack it, the head of a U.N. Commission said Tuesday. <http://www.enn.com/news/2004-02-18/s_13207.asp>
LESOTHO DECLARES EMERGENCY, APPEALS FOR FOOD AID
The tiny African kingdom of Lesotho declared a state of emergency Wednesday and appealed for more food aid, saying thousands of people would otherwise face severe shortages because of prolonged drought. <http://www.enn.com/news/2004-02-12/s_13050.asp>
