Water Program News
WRA Provides Comments on "Waters of the United States"
In July, Western Resource Advocates spoke up for protecting streams and water quality essential to our western way of life. We submitted extensive comments supporting recent Clean Water Act Guidance issued by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), comments that held up important examples from the southwest, where even small streams are important for recreation, the environment, local communities, and local economies.
Recent decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court left considerable confusion regarding what water bodies are subject to Clean Water Act protection. The issue is of heightened importance in the West, where streams may run for only part of the year, as snowpack melts and runs down to larger rivers. The answer to the “reach” of the Clean Water Act governs polluters’ ability to dump their wastes in drinking water supplies, road-building across streams and along lake fronts, and the health of wetlands that provide a home to millions of resident and migratory birds, and form a natural filter to clean our water.
The EPA Guidance document defines the term “waters” broadly. It would help clarify the reach of the Clean Water Act and help protect rivers and streams all across the country. Because it matters to the West, WRA weighed in strongly in support of EPA.
WRA urges federal agencies to act now to protect the West’s rivers, lakes, and streams. In the Interior West, where water is scarce, the clean water is essential. The Interior West is home to the headwaters of great American rivers: the Missouri, the Colorado, the Arkansas, the Snake and the Rio Grande. Just one of these—the Colorado—supplies drinking water, irrigation, recreation and industrial use to 30 million people in seven states. The West is also home to spectacular flowing waters, including the rivers that empty into Idaho’s Eastern Snake Plain Aquifer and Utah’s Great Salt Lake, as well as the playas and prairie potholes of the eastern plains of Colorado and New Mexico.
Western jobs depend upon clean water. In some rural, mountain communities, river recreation and related activities generate the largest share of the local economy. Indeed, throughout the headwaters states, river recreation, including boating, fishing and wildlife watching, represents billions of dollars in commerce. In the Colorado River Basin alone, $55million/year is spent directly on commercial rafting, with an additional $141 million/year of indirect and induced economic activity.
A 2006 federal nation-wide survey found $2.85 billion spent on freshwater fishing in Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah and Wyoming. Another way of looking at the contribution to commerce that fishing makes in headwaters states is to consider that, in 2006, in the State of Utah alone, 23% of anglers were from out-of-state, and that there were an estimated 7,000 jobs created at business establishments including guide shops, gas stations, motels and restaurants to support these anglers.
The importance of rivers and related water bodies to western communities and aquatic life is undeniable. They deserve protection pursuant to the Clean Water Act.
WRA recently provided its comments to federal regulators on how to resolve this predicament. Read the comments here.
The Water-Energy Nexus in Coloradan Communities
For Colorado communities, a lot of energy is tied-up in the water they use to provide provide public services and in the movement, management and treatment of water. Consequently, for every gallon of water saved, there is a corresponding energy savings as well.
WRA has produced a fact sheet with best practices and case studies for water utilities and municipalities in Colorado interested in reducing the energy use and greehouse gas emissions through their water policies. Many of the best practices identified save both water and energy, and many of the best practices also have the potential to save money.
Click here to read how this can be accomplished.
WRA's Work in Arizona Expanding Rapidly
Western Resource Advocates is building from the groundwork laid by the Arizona Water Meter Report to establish a strong Arizona program that promotes water conservation to reduce impacts to Arizona rivers and groundwater resources. Initially, WRA is working with stakeholders in Cochise and Yavapai counties where groundwater pumping or surface water diversions impact flows in the San Pedro and Verde rivers. In the San Pedro, WRA is working with stakeholders to promote a conservation program collaborative with a goal to significantly reduce groundwater pumping through reuse, rainwater harvesting and reductions in per capita use and is evaluating the water conservation potential of domestic wells, which are unmetered but represent a significant portion of the area's water demand. In the Verde, WRA is continuing an initial assessment of water conservation needs. At the state level, WRA is actively engaged in the Water Resources Development Commission, which is tasked with assessing Arizona's current and future water needs. In that process WRA has advocated for an in-depth evaluation of water conservation as a key strategy to reduce future demand and the need to recognize risks to Arizona's water-dependent natural resources when planning how Arizona will meet its future water needs. Click here for more information on that initiative.
"Rushing Rivers" Explores Using Conserved Water to Enhance Streamflows
Western Resource Advocates is exploring opportunities for dedicating water conservation savings to instream flow -- a program we are calling "Rushing Rivers". Our focus is currently on the Western Slope of Colorado, where healthy river flows are a key economic driver for headwaters communities and vital part of the region’s quality of life. With assistance from a Glenwood Springs based contractor, SGM Inc., we developed screening criteria that identify key community qualities for this type of program to be successful, such as a strong community connection to the river, strong utility staff support, and that conservation savings would stay in river for meaningful distance, among others. After quantitatively applying these criteria to more than 50 west slope communities, our results indicate several strong potential candidates for our Rushing Rivers Program.
WRA Weighs-in on Lake Powell Pipeline in Comments to FERC
Western Resource Advocates provided a thorough analysis of deficiencies with the Lake Powell Pipeline proposal to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the agency charged with the permitting process for the planned project. WRA comments centered on whether the pipeline's proposed water supply is actually available, whether there is any proven need for the project, and how other measures such as conservation and water rates could provide cheaper options for sustaining the region's water supply. Read the comments here.
"Every Drop Counts" Report Points Out Energy's Water Costs, Renewables' Energy Savings
Electricity production is a large consumer of the West's scarce water. As utilities and their regulators make future resource planning decisions based on costs and other factors, the costs borne by other water users from large new water withdrawals for energy production is a factor rarely discussed. A WRA report, "Every Drop Counts: Valuing the Water Used to Generate Electricity" provides a critical analysis of how electric utilities' can – and should –value water in their long-range planning. Once water costs are taken into account, the benefits of using cleaner renewable energy generation, which can use little to no water, are much more impressive. Read the report here.
WRA Commends Four Arizona Communities for Water Conservation
The Arizona communities of Payson, Phoenix, Tucson, and Prescott received WRA's Top drop award for their work in implementing water conservations programs that work. These awards sprung from a thorough analysis of water conservation practices in 15 Arizona communities that was published in the Arizona Water Meter report. See a slideshow of images from the Top Drop awards presentation in Phoenix.
Turning Smart Water Use into Law
Four new laws were passed in the state of Colorado with WRA's help that makes the state more water smart. The state's plumbing code will now take into account water conservation, purchasers of new homes will now have the choice to furnish with water smart appliances, the state will extend funding for water conservation programs, and utilities are now required to make public data about their system's water use.
"Cash for Grass" Can Minimize Need for New Diversions to Front Range
WRA's Drew Beckwith was featured on Denver TV news station CBS4 during a report about the imperiled Fraser River, discussing whether additional diversions from it were necessary. Denver Water, Colorado's largest water utility, has plans to increase their already considerable diversions from this waterway that already has problems with stream health and low flows.
In the news report, Beckwith points out, "Denver's customer base has said over and over that they want to find ways to live with less, rather than going for more water." A detailed study done in 2005 made a convincing case that Denver could generate huge water savings if it implemented a Cash for Grass-type water conservation program.
While Denver Water still wishes to press ahead with plans for more diversions from west of the Continental Divide along with building additional storage, Beckwith claims that if just 20 percent of Denver Water customers replanted only half their yards, the amount of water saved would equal the new diversion on the Fraser River requested for Denver's Moffat Firming project.
See the full video report here.
"Protecting the Lifeline of the West" Report Connects Fate of Western Water to Climate Policy
A new report shines a brighter spotlight on what western water managers already know: climate change threatens western water supplies, and energy and water planning are on a collision course. The report, “Protecting the Lifeline of the West: How Climate and Clean Energy Policies Can Safeguard Water” urges federal legislators to act now to preserve western water resources in the face of increasing demand and diminishing supplies. Click here to read the full report. An executive summary is also available.
WRA Applauds selection of Jim Lochhead as Denver Water's New Leader
Denver Water, the largest water utility in the state of Colorado, reached across the Continental Divide to chose the new head of their organization. In selecting Jim Lochhead as their new leader, Denver Water brought a sense of balance to an agency that is one of the largest diverters of water out of the Colorado River Basin. Read WRA Water Program Director Bart Miller's statement on the appointment.
AVEDA honors WRA with Earth Month Partnership - Again
In the 1960s, a senator from Wisconsin traveled around the United States on “conservation tours” in hopes of bringing attention to environmental issues. What Senator Gaylord Nelson found on his travels was that “the people were concerned, but the politicians were not.”
Inspired by the anti-war demonstrations of the late 60s, Senator Nelson believed that aligning people’s environmental concerns with the power of public demonstration would finally put environmental issues on the national agenda. He announced that, in the spring of 1970, there would be a one-day national grassroots demonstration expressing the public’s environmental concerns. It succeeded beyond the Senator’s wildest dreams: 20 million demonstrators across the United States gathered on behalf of the environment on April 22, 1970 for the first Earth Day. By Earth Day’s 20th anniversary in 1990, over 200 million people in over 141 countries were promoting the importance of environmental issues on the global agenda.
Among the growing crowd were new-found Earth Day supporters at the Aveda Corporation. For Aveda, what began as a day of support for environmental consciousness in 1990 has now turned into a month-long international effort to raise awareness, educate customers, and contribute funds to promote a healthy environment. Aveda has grown into a global corporation that is dedicated to an ethical approach to business, which includes a steadfast commitment to addressing environmental issues.
For 2010, the Aveda Corporation’s Earth Month campaign focuses on access to clean water, and Western Resource Advocates is proud to be named as one Aveda’s international Earth Month partners for the forth year in a row! Throughout April, more than 150 salons across the Interior West will hold charity events to benefit our water program, which focuses on meeting human water needs while also protecting the West’s rivers, streams, and aquifers. Finding this balance is especially challenging and important in the arid Southwest, where population is rapidly increasing.
Local Aveda Salons and Spas will engage in multiple walks for water, cut-a-thons, Earth Day parties, gift basket raffles, and silent auctions to raise funds for Western Resource Advocates. Aveda's grassroots support not only brings in funding, but also recognition for WRA and its mission. WRA thanks Aveda and all its partner salons and spas for their work during Earth Month!
"It's the Same Water" Education Program Connects Public with Their Water's Sources
Many residents of the West have no idea where their water comes from. Some areas rely upon local water supplies, while many others use water that travels hundreds of miles, often from other river basins, to get to their faucets. Water links us all together.
Several western Colorado groups have joined together to educate residents of Colorado’s Front Range to understand where part of their water supply originates. The “It’s The Same Water” program is using billboards along I-70 to let people travelling to the mountains that the snow they will play on or the waters they will fish may eventually be coming out of their spigots in Denver, Fort Collins, and Colorado Springs.
For a decade, Western Resource Advocates has been fostering awareness and promoting water conservation--with water utilities, legislatures, and state agencies-- as a means of protecting western rivers, preserving water quality, and supporting local communities. We commend our partners for their educational outreach.
WRA to Army Corps of Engineers: Million Pipeline Water Unaffordable
In a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, WRA points out that water pipeline proponent Aaron Million failed to demonstrate a need for his project because parties interested in the water Million hopes to sell won't be able to afford it. At costs estimated to exceed $2,200 per acre-foot annually, farmers and ranchers would balk at the cost and most cities would find it unaffordable. Million was able to provide letters to the Corps from organizations desiring new sources of water, but the letters held off on making a commitment until costs and terms are understood.
The proposed project would ship water 500-600 miles from southwestern Wyoming to Colorado's Front Range, requiring 16 pump stations to lift water uphill 3,000 feet. Million hopes to provide 250,000 acre-feet of water, more than Denver provides to its 1.4 million customers and what may amount to most, if not all, of Colorado's remaining entitlement to Colorado River Basin water.
Read the Letter to Corps here.
Read the press release here.
Two Water Supply Studies can do More to Get it Right
WRA is working hard to improve two on-going State studies that attempt to quantify Colorado’s future water demands and craft strategies to meet future needs. We submitted in-depth comments that critique the State's analysis. As a result, these plans should do a better job of protecting Colorado's rivers, water-based recreation, and quality of life.
Our comments on the future demands report spell out key revisions to improve its accuracy and usefulness for future water planning. Specifically, we suggest: (1) integrating conservation into water demand projections, (2) applying consistent water use values (and methodologies), (3) using more up-to-date population projections, and (4) correcting other data errors.
Our comments on the water supply strategies report, joined by partner organizations Trout Unlimited and Colorado Environmental Coalition, illustrate that the report does not yet provide a balanced analysis of the water conservation, agricultural transfer, and transbasin diversion strategies. The report focuses mainly on the financial and engineering aspects of large, new water supply pipelines--proposals that would be expensive, controversial, and environmentally damaging. The report ignores smaller-scale Front Range incremental strategies, like shared infrastructure/system integration, water reuse and aquifer storage.
New Study Suggests Much Drier Colorado River Basin
A nearly 500-page draft Colorado River Water Availability Study suggests that climate change will have a far-reaching impact on western slope river flows, and casts serious doubt over the assumed availability of additional west slope water to meet Front Range demands. This study is one of several funded by the Colorado Water Conservation Board that aim to quantify Colorado’s future water needs, determine the availability of future supplies, and craft solutions that meet future demands. A presentation done last December by the researchers conducting the study touches on the salient points addressed in greater detail in the report.
In general, the report describes how increased temperatures and decreased summer precipitation caused by climate change will lead to earlier runoff from rivers and a significant reduction in river flows. A warmer future will increase agricultural irrigation needs and decrease flows available for new appropriation. The study forecasts that the available supply of the Gunnison River at Grand Junction could decrease by more than 400,000 AF/yr. Notably, the existing analysis does not take into account the impact conditional water rights would have on water availability if they are put to use, like those owned by the oil shale companies (see WRA's Water on the Rocks report), and does not include currently planned projects like Denver Water’s Moffat Expansion or Northern’s Windy Gap Firming Project.
WRA sees these initial results pointing to the necessity of incorporating climate change impacts into all future water planning processes. River health, and other uses for water such as recreation, are going to suffer under climate change, making water conservation efforts by Colorado cities an even more essential task in the face of declining raw water supplies. Clearly, the State needs to act cautiously toward any plans for additional diversions of water out of the Colorado River Basin, including current proposals like the Windy Gap Firming Project and Moffat system, because additional large-scale development of Colorado River water complicates how we will meet our legal obligations to downstream states.
NPR Consults with WRA on Story About Water Conservation
National Public Radio contacted WRA's Drew Beckwith when they wanted expertise on conservation-oriented water rate structures. Check out Drew's comments on this Weekend Edition story. Drew's one of the many experts on WRA's staff contacted by reporters for their knowledge on issues affecting the West.
Water rate structures play an essential role in communicating the value of water to customers, and increasing block rate structuresmost effectively communicate this value. Through an increasing block rate design, the unit price for water increases as the volume consumed increases, with prices being set for each “block” of water use. Customers who use low or average volumes of water are charged a modest unit price and rewarded for conservation; those using significantly higher volumes pay higher unit prices. This type of pricing structure leads to the long-term efficient use of our scarce water supplies.
WRA has demonstrated effective leadership in promoting conservation-oriented rate structures,releasing our first of three papers on Western water rates in 2004. We continue to advocate for effective water pricing across the Interior West by participating in utility rate studies and partnering with local community organizations.