7. Climate Change
Goal: To understand and minimize the effects of climate change on our water resources.
Objectives:
A. Develop a better understanding of the potential effects of climate change on all of our water issues, and ensure the effects of climate change are considered as we develop responses to our water issues.
B. Ensure that provisions for climate change-driven impacts, as well as adaptations necessary to account for climate change are integrated into master planning and operations planning throughout the watershed.
C. Enhance collaboration among all jurisdictions and key stakeholders (e.g., Aspen Skiing Company) in the watershed to ensure that adequate data are collected to monitor local climate change and assess its impacts.
D. Enhance the knowledge and use of existing state and federal alternative energy grant programs by Roaring Fork Valley decision makers and other key stakeholders.
E. Improve our community’s understanding of the potential impacts of climate change on our water resources.
Friday, August 21, 2009
Draft Objectives: Instream Areas
6. Instream Areas
Goal: To protect and restore the functions of instream areas.
Objectives:
A. Monitor the condition of the native fish communities and determine limits of acceptable change.
B. Assess instream habitat condition status and trends for all major streams in the watershed.
C. Maintain or increase population size, extent, and purity of all existing cutthroat trout populations.
D. Maintain existing boreal toad populations and, where possible, restore or expand populations.
E. Monitor existing Northern Leopard Frog populations and, where possible, expand populations.
F. Prevent the New Zealand mudsnail and Quagga and Zebra Mussels from establishing in the watershed.
G. Determine the adequacy of recreational access to our rivers and streams, their recreational carrying capacity and the limits of acceptable change.
Goal: To protect and restore the functions of instream areas.
Objectives:
A. Monitor the condition of the native fish communities and determine limits of acceptable change.
B. Assess instream habitat condition status and trends for all major streams in the watershed.
C. Maintain or increase population size, extent, and purity of all existing cutthroat trout populations.
D. Maintain existing boreal toad populations and, where possible, restore or expand populations.
E. Monitor existing Northern Leopard Frog populations and, where possible, expand populations.
F. Prevent the New Zealand mudsnail and Quagga and Zebra Mussels from establishing in the watershed.
G. Determine the adequacy of recreational access to our rivers and streams, their recreational carrying capacity and the limits of acceptable change.
Draft Objectives: Riparian Areas
5. Riparian Areas
Goal: To protect and restore the functions of riparian areas.
Objectives:
A. Identify and protect our existing high quality riparian communities.
B. Identify and restore high priority riparian zones so that the riparian zone and the aquatic system are functionally connected again.
C. Identify and minimize impacts from development, land uses, and other activities (e.g., beaver eradication) in riparian areas.
D. Eradicate invasive plant species in riparian areas and prevent their expansion into new riparian areas.
E. Improve our community’s understanding of the importance of riparian areas and riparian issues by educating citizens and decision makers on the importance of riparian areas for a wide variety of wildlife.
F. Assess riparian habitat condition, wildlife status and trends for all major streams in the watershed.
Goal: To protect and restore the functions of riparian areas.
Objectives:
A. Identify and protect our existing high quality riparian communities.
B. Identify and restore high priority riparian zones so that the riparian zone and the aquatic system are functionally connected again.
C. Identify and minimize impacts from development, land uses, and other activities (e.g., beaver eradication) in riparian areas.
D. Eradicate invasive plant species in riparian areas and prevent their expansion into new riparian areas.
E. Improve our community’s understanding of the importance of riparian areas and riparian issues by educating citizens and decision makers on the importance of riparian areas for a wide variety of wildlife.
F. Assess riparian habitat condition, wildlife status and trends for all major streams in the watershed.
Draft Objectives: Water Quality
4. Water Quality
Goal: To protect our rivers and streams from any further degradation of water quality and to restore the high water quality of this headwater watershed.
Objectives:
A. Meet state water quality standards in all of our rivers and streams.
B. Keep our rivers and streams free of human-induced pollutants, such as lawn chemicals and discharges from poorly maintained or failed septic systems.
C. Improve our community’s understanding of water quality issues by enhancing public education on the relationship between water quantity and water quality.
D. Improve our community’s ability to address water quality issues by upgrading technology at our wastewater treatment plants to address emerging contaminants.
E. Improve our community’s understanding and enforcement of federal, state and local regulations designed to protect water quality.
F. Obtain water quality data for key parameters on stream reaches where recent data is lacking.
G. Improve our water quality monitoring of lakes and reservoirs.
H. Preserve safe drinking water supplies.
I. Improve coordination of water quality monitoring, analyses, and reporting efforts.
Goal: To protect our rivers and streams from any further degradation of water quality and to restore the high water quality of this headwater watershed.
Objectives:
A. Meet state water quality standards in all of our rivers and streams.
B. Keep our rivers and streams free of human-induced pollutants, such as lawn chemicals and discharges from poorly maintained or failed septic systems.
C. Improve our community’s understanding of water quality issues by enhancing public education on the relationship between water quantity and water quality.
D. Improve our community’s ability to address water quality issues by upgrading technology at our wastewater treatment plants to address emerging contaminants.
E. Improve our community’s understanding and enforcement of federal, state and local regulations designed to protect water quality.
F. Obtain water quality data for key parameters on stream reaches where recent data is lacking.
G. Improve our water quality monitoring of lakes and reservoirs.
H. Preserve safe drinking water supplies.
I. Improve coordination of water quality monitoring, analyses, and reporting efforts.
Draft Objectives: Groundwater
3. Groundwater
Goal: To protect the availability, sustainability and quality of our groundwater.
Objectives:
A. Improve information availability, comprehensiveness, and accuracy on groundwater availability and sustainability, particularly in areas subject to continued development or changes in land use.
B. Improve information availability, comprehensiveness, and accuracy on the susceptibility of the flows in our rivers and streams to pumping of groundwater.
C. Provide and improve opportunities for groundwater recharge, through such methods as maintaining and restoring wetlands and, where possible, restoring overbanking flows.
D. Keep our groundwater free of pollutants, such as discharges from poorly maintained or failed septic systems.
E. Improve our information on the susceptibility of our groundwater resources to contamination, particularly in areas where groundwater is, or will be, utilized as a drinking water supply.
F. Improve our water quality monitoring of groundwater.
G. Improve our community’s understanding and enforcement of federal, state and local regulations designed to protect groundwater availability, sustainability and quality.
Goal: To protect the availability, sustainability and quality of our groundwater.
Objectives:
A. Improve information availability, comprehensiveness, and accuracy on groundwater availability and sustainability, particularly in areas subject to continued development or changes in land use.
B. Improve information availability, comprehensiveness, and accuracy on the susceptibility of the flows in our rivers and streams to pumping of groundwater.
C. Provide and improve opportunities for groundwater recharge, through such methods as maintaining and restoring wetlands and, where possible, restoring overbanking flows.
D. Keep our groundwater free of pollutants, such as discharges from poorly maintained or failed septic systems.
E. Improve our information on the susceptibility of our groundwater resources to contamination, particularly in areas where groundwater is, or will be, utilized as a drinking water supply.
F. Improve our water quality monitoring of groundwater.
G. Improve our community’s understanding and enforcement of federal, state and local regulations designed to protect groundwater availability, sustainability and quality.
Draft Objectives: Surface Water
2. Surface Water
Goal: To protect the availability and sustainability of our surface water.
Objectives:
A. Improve our information on surface water availability and sustainability, particularly in areas subject to continued or increased diversions, or changes in land use.
B. Identify the optimum flows needed to meet our environmental and recreational needs, including the magnitude, timing, and duration of such flows.
C. Increase flows for stream reaches where Colorado Water Conservation Board instream flow rights are not being met on a consistent basis, or where flows have been significantly reduced from historical flows.
D. Assess flow alteration in stream reaches where flow data are lacking.
E. Identify stream reaches that are vulnerable to increased flow alteration and work to minimize future flow alteration.
F. Provide reliable, real time, and easily accessible information on streams flows, including high and low flows for the Roaring Fork and its major tributaries.
G. Reduce the impacts of drought on our surface waters.
Goal: To protect the availability and sustainability of our surface water.
Objectives:
A. Improve our information on surface water availability and sustainability, particularly in areas subject to continued or increased diversions, or changes in land use.
B. Identify the optimum flows needed to meet our environmental and recreational needs, including the magnitude, timing, and duration of such flows.
C. Increase flows for stream reaches where Colorado Water Conservation Board instream flow rights are not being met on a consistent basis, or where flows have been significantly reduced from historical flows.
D. Assess flow alteration in stream reaches where flow data are lacking.
E. Identify stream reaches that are vulnerable to increased flow alteration and work to minimize future flow alteration.
F. Provide reliable, real time, and easily accessible information on streams flows, including high and low flows for the Roaring Fork and its major tributaries.
G. Reduce the impacts of drought on our surface waters.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Draft Objectives: Regional Water Management
1. Regional Water Management
Goal: To ensure that solutions to water management issues meet both our consumptive needs for water and the need to keep water in our rivers and streams for instream uses.
Objectives:
A. Promote communication between the Colorado Basin Roundtable and Roaring Fork Watershed stakeholders on water availability/sustainability estimates and options for meeting Colorado’s future water needs.
B. Improve public education concerning federal and state water policies/programs affecting management of our rivers and streams (e.g., the Upper Colorado River Endangered Fish Recovery Program).
C. Encourage collaboration among Roaring Fork Valley decision makers to achieve a unified, watershed position on federal and state water policies/programs affecting management of our rivers and streams (e.g., proposals for reoperation of the Fry-Ark Project, proposals for administration of a Compact Call).
D. Improve public education, communications, and collaboration concerning project proposals which would impact management of our rivers and streams (e.g., the Ruedi Pumpback).
E. Improve collaboration among Roaring Fork Valley decision makers to ensure that land use actions prevent or mitigate potential water impacts in other jurisdictions.
F. Foster communication between local land use planners and state water commissioners on projects of common interest (e.g., development approvals of micro-hydro facilities and ornamental ponds).
G. Promote state regulatory changes to require implementation of augmentation and substitute supply plans which most closely duplicate the natural hydrology of our streams and rivers.
Goal: To ensure that solutions to water management issues meet both our consumptive needs for water and the need to keep water in our rivers and streams for instream uses.
Objectives:
A. Promote communication between the Colorado Basin Roundtable and Roaring Fork Watershed stakeholders on water availability/sustainability estimates and options for meeting Colorado’s future water needs.
B. Improve public education concerning federal and state water policies/programs affecting management of our rivers and streams (e.g., the Upper Colorado River Endangered Fish Recovery Program).
C. Encourage collaboration among Roaring Fork Valley decision makers to achieve a unified, watershed position on federal and state water policies/programs affecting management of our rivers and streams (e.g., proposals for reoperation of the Fry-Ark Project, proposals for administration of a Compact Call).
D. Improve public education, communications, and collaboration concerning project proposals which would impact management of our rivers and streams (e.g., the Ruedi Pumpback).
E. Improve collaboration among Roaring Fork Valley decision makers to ensure that land use actions prevent or mitigate potential water impacts in other jurisdictions.
F. Foster communication between local land use planners and state water commissioners on projects of common interest (e.g., development approvals of micro-hydro facilities and ornamental ponds).
G. Promote state regulatory changes to require implementation of augmentation and substitute supply plans which most closely duplicate the natural hydrology of our streams and rivers.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Watershed Plan Purpose
To plan and work toward an environmentally and economically healthy watershed that benefits all who have a stake in it.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Technical Advisory Group
Lead: Mark Fuller, Ruedi Water and Power Authority
Planning Team: Sharon Clarke, Tim O’Keefe, and Rick Lofaro, Roaring Fork Conservancy; Bob Schultz, Robert Schultz Consulting LLC; Rose Ann Sullivan, Kootenay Resources
Name, Organization/Agency
Dee Malone, Colorado Natural Heritage Program
Dan Birch, Colorado River Water Conservation District
A’lissa Gerum, City of Glenwood Springs-Planning
Kendall Ross, Colorado Division of Wildlife
Cindy Houben, Pitkin County-Community Development
Bob Harris, Blazing Adventures
Lane Wyatt, Northwest Colorado Council of Governments
Tom Kinney, Hill, Kinney & Wood
Lisa Tasker, E.M. Ecological
Ray Merry, Eagle County Planning
Paul Noto, Patrick Miller & Kropf
Kevin Lusk, Colorado Springs Utility
Kerry Sundeen, Grand River Consulting
Kit Hamby, Snowmass Water and Sanitation District
Bill Miller, Miller Ecological
Bill Blakeslee, Colorado Division of Water Resources
Phil Overeynder, City of Aspen-Public Works
David Brown, US Geological Survey
Mark Lacy, US Forest Service
John Sanderson, The Nature Conservancy
Steve Renner, Division of Reclamation Mining and Safety
Mark Gilfillan, Army Corps of Engineers
Sharie Prow, Mt Sopris Conservation District
John Niewoehner, Garfield County-Planning
Ken Kolm, Hydrologic Systems Analysis
April Barker, City of Aspen-stormwater
John Katzenberger, Aspen Global Change Institute
John Emerick, Colorado School of Mines
Bonnie Pate, Colorado Department of Public Health and the Environment
Clark Anderson, Sonoran Institute
Planning Team: Sharon Clarke, Tim O’Keefe, and Rick Lofaro, Roaring Fork Conservancy; Bob Schultz, Robert Schultz Consulting LLC; Rose Ann Sullivan, Kootenay Resources
Name, Organization/Agency
Dee Malone, Colorado Natural Heritage Program
Dan Birch, Colorado River Water Conservation District
A’lissa Gerum, City of Glenwood Springs-Planning
Kendall Ross, Colorado Division of Wildlife
Cindy Houben, Pitkin County-Community Development
Bob Harris, Blazing Adventures
Lane Wyatt, Northwest Colorado Council of Governments
Tom Kinney, Hill, Kinney & Wood
Lisa Tasker, E.M. Ecological
Ray Merry, Eagle County Planning
Paul Noto, Patrick Miller & Kropf
Kevin Lusk, Colorado Springs Utility
Kerry Sundeen, Grand River Consulting
Kit Hamby, Snowmass Water and Sanitation District
Bill Miller, Miller Ecological
Bill Blakeslee, Colorado Division of Water Resources
Phil Overeynder, City of Aspen-Public Works
David Brown, US Geological Survey
Mark Lacy, US Forest Service
John Sanderson, The Nature Conservancy
Steve Renner, Division of Reclamation Mining and Safety
Mark Gilfillan, Army Corps of Engineers
Sharie Prow, Mt Sopris Conservation District
John Niewoehner, Garfield County-Planning
Ken Kolm, Hydrologic Systems Analysis
April Barker, City of Aspen-stormwater
John Katzenberger, Aspen Global Change Institute
John Emerick, Colorado School of Mines
Bonnie Pate, Colorado Department of Public Health and the Environment
Clark Anderson, Sonoran Institute
Monday, August 10, 2009
Watershed Plan Meetings to Start August 20, 2009
There’s an old saying in the West: “Whiskey is for drinking and water is for fighting”. Despite that, local groups are working together to create a new approach to water management based on research, collaboration, mutual support and education. After studying the conditions in the Roaring Fork Watershed over the last 2+ years, a series of public meetings will get underway next week aimed at developing recommendations and actions which will protect local water resources into the future. The public is invited to attend and help shape that action plan. A series of five public meetings focused on different sections of the Roaring Fork Watershed are planned for the next two months as Phase II of the Roaring Fork Watershed Plan enters it most interactive phase. The first of those meetings will be held at the Eagle County Community Building in El Jebel at from 6:30 – 9:00 PM on Thursday, August 20.
“We are excited to be moving forward with the Watershed Plan,” said Mark Fuller, Director of the Ruedi Water and Power Authority, the sponsor of the Plan. “These meetings will involve the public in a meaningful way in discussions about the future of local water resources. It is important that people voice their concerns, priorities and ideas about how we can best preserve the quality and quantity of local waters. We look forward to sharing the findings of Phase I, the State of the Watershed Report, with the public and hearing from them about how we can work together to assure the future of our water.”
The meetings on Phase II of the Watershed Plan will be held at the Eagle County Community Building in El Jebel on August 20th; in Redstone at the Church at Redstone on September 10th; in Woody Creek at the Community School on September 24th; in Glenwood Springs at the Community Center on October 1st; and in Aspen at the Aspen Center for Environmental Studies on October 15th. Each meeting will concentrate on the local elements of the watershed where the meeting is being held. So, for instance, the El Jebel meeting will focus on the Fryingpan River and that part of the Roaring Fork between approximately Wingo Junction and Carbondale, including East and West Sopris Creeks. “We welcome all comments on all parts of the watershed,” said Fuller, “but we hope to make it more relevant by spreading the public meetings around the various sub-watersheds in the valley. Although every part of the watershed affects every other part, we know that the concerns of a fly fisherman in Aspen might be different than those of a rancher in Carbondale or a riverside homeowner in Glenwood Springs.”
The meetings will be facilitated by Bob Schultz, a public consultant from El Jebel. Staff of the Roaring Fork Conservancy, the Plan’s lead consultant, will present a summary of the Phase I findings for the relevant part of the watershed and attendees will work in groups to address the issues identified by Phase I. The ideas generated from the meetings will be reviewed and analyzed by local experts who will prioritize them according to feasibility and effectiveness before including them in the final Plan. Recommendations and implementation strategies will eventually be presented to both local and regional governments and water managers as part of the completed Plan.
The Watershed Plan is being funded by contributions from local governments and agencies and grants from the Colorado Water Conservation Board. The budget for Phase II of the Plan is $98,000 and is being administered by the Ruedi Water and Power Authority, a local consortium of County and municipal governments that has worked on water-related issues in the Roaring Fork Valley since 1981. The Watershed Plan grew out of an issues committee formed by the Roaring Fork Watershed Collaborative’s Water Committee, an informal group of local planners, agency and government representatives and private citizens which meets periodically to assess local resource and planning issues. Phase I of the Plan was begun in 2006 and completed in December of 2008. Phase II of the Plan is currently underway and is expected to be completed in late 2010. For more information visit www.roaringfork.org/watershedplan.
“We are excited to be moving forward with the Watershed Plan,” said Mark Fuller, Director of the Ruedi Water and Power Authority, the sponsor of the Plan. “These meetings will involve the public in a meaningful way in discussions about the future of local water resources. It is important that people voice their concerns, priorities and ideas about how we can best preserve the quality and quantity of local waters. We look forward to sharing the findings of Phase I, the State of the Watershed Report, with the public and hearing from them about how we can work together to assure the future of our water.”
The meetings on Phase II of the Watershed Plan will be held at the Eagle County Community Building in El Jebel on August 20th; in Redstone at the Church at Redstone on September 10th; in Woody Creek at the Community School on September 24th; in Glenwood Springs at the Community Center on October 1st; and in Aspen at the Aspen Center for Environmental Studies on October 15th. Each meeting will concentrate on the local elements of the watershed where the meeting is being held. So, for instance, the El Jebel meeting will focus on the Fryingpan River and that part of the Roaring Fork between approximately Wingo Junction and Carbondale, including East and West Sopris Creeks. “We welcome all comments on all parts of the watershed,” said Fuller, “but we hope to make it more relevant by spreading the public meetings around the various sub-watersheds in the valley. Although every part of the watershed affects every other part, we know that the concerns of a fly fisherman in Aspen might be different than those of a rancher in Carbondale or a riverside homeowner in Glenwood Springs.”
The meetings will be facilitated by Bob Schultz, a public consultant from El Jebel. Staff of the Roaring Fork Conservancy, the Plan’s lead consultant, will present a summary of the Phase I findings for the relevant part of the watershed and attendees will work in groups to address the issues identified by Phase I. The ideas generated from the meetings will be reviewed and analyzed by local experts who will prioritize them according to feasibility and effectiveness before including them in the final Plan. Recommendations and implementation strategies will eventually be presented to both local and regional governments and water managers as part of the completed Plan.
The Watershed Plan is being funded by contributions from local governments and agencies and grants from the Colorado Water Conservation Board. The budget for Phase II of the Plan is $98,000 and is being administered by the Ruedi Water and Power Authority, a local consortium of County and municipal governments that has worked on water-related issues in the Roaring Fork Valley since 1981. The Watershed Plan grew out of an issues committee formed by the Roaring Fork Watershed Collaborative’s Water Committee, an informal group of local planners, agency and government representatives and private citizens which meets periodically to assess local resource and planning issues. Phase I of the Plan was begun in 2006 and completed in December of 2008. Phase II of the Plan is currently underway and is expected to be completed in late 2010. For more information visit www.roaringfork.org/watershedplan.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Phase II Public Meeting Dates Announced
Roaring Fork Watershed Collaborative, Ruedi Water & Power Authority and Roaring Fork Conservancy announce five public meetings to gain public input on the Roaring Fork Watershed Plan.
August 20 - 6:30 pm - Eagle County Community Center, El Jebel
September 10 - 6:30 pm - Church at Redstone, Redstone
September 24 - 6:30 pm - Aspen Community School, Woody Creek
October 1 - 6:30 pm - Glenwood Springs Community Center, Glenwood Springs
October 15 - 6:30 pm - Aspen Center for Enviornmental Studies, Aspen
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