Friday, September 29

The Crestone Eagle is a nonprofit monthly newspaper serving Crestone and the San Luis Valley

Conservation

Our water, climate & stream flow

Within the past 25 years climate in the northern San Luis Valley has changed significantly. As shown by data herein, rising temperatures and falling precipitation are impacting our snowpack, rainfall, stream flow; and indirectly, groundwater levels, vegetation, and fire danger. This article looks at long-term trends in the above parameters, and what we can expect in the future; warmer, drier, and windier conditions. Temperature’s a risin’ Since 1900 Colorado average temperature has risen 2.5°F, with 2/3 of the rise occurring since 1975. In the SLV mean annual temperature rose 2°F since 1913 (Fig. 1). Roughly 2/3 of this rise occurred rapidly...

Douglas County votes no to expend federal funds on RWR water export proposal

Douglas County Commissioners issued a decision in a work session held on May 24: “The Board of Douglas County Commissioners has made the decision, based on objective legal recommendations from outside counsel, that American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds are inapplicable to the RWR proposal and that RWR has significant additional hurdles to overcome in order to demonstrate not only a “do no harm” approach, but also a “win-win” for Douglas County and the San Luis Valley. “That said, Douglas County welcomes ongoing discussions with RWR, should they be able to provide new information or otherwise overcome these hurdles.” Commissioners...

Douglas County votes no to expend federal funds on RWR water export proposal

Douglas County Commissioners issued a decision in a work session held on May 24: “The...

Governor opposes RWR water export plan, US Senators Bennet & Hickenlooper concur, invoking Wirth Amendment

Governor Polis joins other Colorado elected officials in opposing the proposed water export plan...

Governor Opposes RWR Water Steal

The attention on a $600-million proposal to pipe water from the San Luis Valley...

Nebraska Governor announces $500 million plan to claim water in South Platte—why this concerns the SLV

In a January press conference, Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts announced that Nebraska would invoke...

Renewable Water Resources proposes selling SLV water to Douglas County—SLV opposition organizes

RWR’s proposal to Douglas County is, for an initial payment of $20 million, to...

What has the SLV Ecosytem Council been doing to protect your public lands in 2021? —Lots!

For over two decades, the San Luis Valley Ecosystem Council (SLVEC) has loyally advocate...

Federal government declares water shortage on Colorado River—Water cuts expected for western states

Lake Mead has dropped to its lowest level since 1937, when the reservoir first...

Rebalancing the SLV water budget through shared sacrifice Persistent drought affecting water use & planning

In March of this year, well operators in the Rio Grande Water Conservation District...
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