ROCK SPRINGS – While the threat from Colorado to divert water from the Flaming Gorge Reservoir to the front range seems to has been put to bed for now, a new fear has a local group concerned and that threat may be California.
A couple of years ago, two projects surfaced that would have diverted water from Flaming Gorge to the front range of Colorado. To watch these projects, the cities and county put together a committee to protect local water. On Tuesday, the Rock Springs appointed member of the committee, Don Hartley, gave the council a brief update.
Hartley said the two original projects, one of which was being led by Aaron Million, have dissipated. As these two projects lost momentum, the state of Colorado put together the Flaming Gorge Task Force which was also looking at possible diversion. Hartley said this task force also came to the realization they could not put together a project to divert water and this also lost momentum.
More good news which Hartley passed along involved Colorado’s eastern slope and western slope. He said the Western Slope and Eastern Slope have been meeting and they did come to an agreement on water issues in the state. Harley said the agreement actually helps protect Sweetwater County from diversion projects.
After giving the council the positive news about Colorado, Hartley said there is now an increased concern which is coming from California. Currently, northern California is suffering from a severe drought and, on Tuesday, the city of San Diego actually issued water restrictions.
One thing that Hartley said he is very concerned about is there are 53 representatives from California in Congress who could possibly get a federal resolution passed which would affect Wyoming water.
“The California delegation is working on a solution and they are doing it in private,” Hartley said.
While happy to hear the news about Colorado, Mayor Carl Demshar said he is bothered by the lack of responsible water use in the west. Demshar said he continues to hear Nevada and California talk of water shortages but every time he goes to Las Vegas, he sees the giant water fountains being used from which water evaporates on a daily basis and there are more being built.
Another bit of information Hartley relayed to the council was about Wyoming Governor Matt Mead’s water strategy. He said in his plan there was a diversion plan to move water from the upper green down to Sweetwater County and then over to the upper Platt. He said it appears this will not happen.
There is one project in Mead’s water strategy that appears will move forward according to Hartley. This project will involve the Fontenelle Dam.
It will allow “roughly 200,000 acre feet of storage to be utilized on the Upper Green without a noticeable impact on the environmental footprint of the development” according to Mead’s plan.
The total capacity of the 20-mile long reservoir is 345,360 acre-feet, but the Bureau of Reclamation recently reported it has an “active capacity” of 150,500.
Hartley said the issue is the armoring on the upstream face of the mile-long dam to protect the structure from wave erosion. Hartley told Sweetwater NOW riprap only extends part way down the face so the reservoir cannot be drained beyond a point before exposing the dam to erosion.
According to reports, the armoring was not completed because there was no contract for that water at the time and the Bureau was “being careful with with taxpayer money.”
The project in Mead’s strategy would put the additional riprap to the upstream face of the dam.
For a complete look at Mead’s water strategy go to https://governor.wy.gov/Documents/Water%20Strategy%20Possible%20Innitiatives.pdf.
