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Colorado News :: Environment and Conservation

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1/5/2009

GJSentinel.com: Outdoor recreation plan will lead to grant funds

http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2009/01/03/010409_6a_parks_plan.html Colorado’s 42 state parks attract more than 11 million visitors every year, and a new comprehensive statewide plan released last week will help guide state agencies in managing those lands. It also will bring needed additional funds to park coffers. A wide-ranging group of public and private organizations, representing environmental and sporting groups of every sort, worked with state governmental agencies to craft the five-year Colorado Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan. In addition to help guiding management of state parks, it will unlock needed conservation grant funds administered by the Colorado State Trails Program.

The Pueblo Chieftain Online :: Consultant: Make plan to manage lake

http://www.chieftain.com/articles/2009/01/04/news/local/doc49605721a3ddd694773251.txt Pueblo County’s land-use consultant and water attorney Ray Petros is suggesting a lake level management program in connection with the proposed Southern Delivery System. The program would establish target levels for lakes in the same way that flow programs have established guidelines for the Arkansas River, both above Lake Pueblo and through Downtown Pueblo, where a whitewater park has been built. “I suggested it because I didn’t see any consideration for it in the environmental impact statement,” Petros said. “There has to be some flexibility in when you run the water up to the terminal storage reservoir.”

State’s generous snowpack expected to grow - The Denver Post

http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_11368340 Temperatures are expected to reach 20-below zero by morning in northwestern Colorado, with the High Country poised for more snow and cold in the week ahead, according to the National Weather Service. The Front Range, meanwhile, has a relatively warm work week in its forecast. The central and northwestern mountains could see another foot of snow by Tuesday night from a storm that rolls in Monday, followed by a warm-up, then another snowstorm by the weekend, according to the forecast. The region continues to dig out from this weekend's storm that left six to nine inches of new snow across the mountains. Snow has been generous so far this year. The statewide snowpack is at 115 percent of its 30-year average.

Boulder’s 2008 was chilliest in a decade : Weather : Boulder Daily Camera

http://www.dailycamera.com/news/2009/jan/04/boulders-2008-was-chilliest-decade/ Brrrrr. What was that chill? Why, it was 2008, the coldest year in Boulder in more than a decade. At an annual average of 51.2 degrees, last year turned out a little on the nippy side compared with the 10 years that preceded it. The last time the city saw a cooler year was 1997, when the thermometer registered an annual average temperature of 50.4 degrees. Boulder weather historian William Callahan said he doesn’t have an explanation for the slight cooldown, much of which was driven by a particularly frosty December and a summer that never reached 100 degrees. “I was surprised, but one year doesn’t a trend make,” he said, anticipating the glee of global-warming skeptics.

Book digs into hydraulic mining | SummitDaily.com

http://www.summitdaily.com/article/20090104/NEWS/901049955/1001/NONE “Golden Gulches,” a book recently published by the Breckenridge Heritage Alliance, shines the spotlight on the area’s hydraulic mining, an antiquated technique in which entire hillsides were washed away in search of gold. Despite its devastating environmental effects, hydraulic mining proved a highly successful method for retrieving gold from areas around Breckenridge like Iowa Hill from the 1860s to the 1930s. “It’s probably one of the best hydraulic mining exhibits in the West,” town historian Rebecca Waugh said of Iowa Hill. “You can walk through and actually see how it worked.” The monitor station, giants and boardinghouse are among features included in the historic-site tour and the book, which describes their functions.

More stories in National/Media | Colorado/Media

Tidy up yuletide trees before recycling them - The Denver Post

http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_11368694 Still need to get that Christmas tree out of the living room? Lucky for you, many cities are offering Christmas tree recycling. Please observe the following requirements when dropping off your tree: all lights, ornaments, garland, tinsel, nails and stands must be removed; flocked trees, leaves, branches and other refuse will not be accepted at recycling sites; if you take your tree to the recycling site in a plastic bag, the bag must be removed.

12/19/2008

The Pueblo Chieftain :: Could SDS pipeline take on more water?

http://www.chieftain.com/articles/2008/12/19/news/local/doc494b7771a1d69993308545.txt Increasing the use of a proposed water pipeline from Pueblo Dam to Colorado Springs would trigger a new federal environmental review and would also have to pass muster with pipeline sponsors. Pueblo County could have something to say about it, too. Concerns about the Southern Delivery System’s potential to enable more agricultural dry-up were expressed in comments in the environmental impact statement released last week by the Bureau of Reclamation. In any case, Colorado Springs is opposed to using the pipeline to take water out of the Arkansas Valley, said John Fredell, SDS project director. “It’s very much in our own interest to see that there’s no water taken out of the basin and pumped over the hill,” Fredell said. “Clearly, the pipe is not going over the hill.”

The Longmont Times-Call - County wants environment-friendly stimulus

http://www.timescall.com/News_Story.asp?id=13123 Any federal economic stimulus package for Colorado transportation projects should strive to be environmentally friendly, according to Boulder County’s commissioners. Commissioners Ben Pearlman and Will Toor on Thursday approved signing onto an effort to urge funding transportation projects that would help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and fossil-fuel consumption, as Congress crafts stimulus legislation. Boulder County joins several environmental organizations in arguing that federal stimulus funds coming to Colorado should include money for public mass transit and for alternatives to building new roads and bridges. “I think this is an important message to send” to Colorado’s congressional delegation, Toor said. A draft version of a letter from Boulder County and the environmental groups asks the state’s congressional delegation to ensure that any money Colorado gets from the transportation portion of a federal economic stimulus package include transit, bicycle and pedestrian projects proposed by the Regional Transportation District, the Colorado Association of Transit Agencies and local governments.

More stories in National/Economy | Colorado/Economy

Lynx, recreation pose conflict on Vail Pass | AspenTimes.com

http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20081218/NEWS/812189950/1002/NONE Several rare lynx that have set up home ranges between Copper Mountain and Vail Pass could trigger a showdown between government agencies. The cats, listed as a threatened animal on the Endangered Species List, have been living in the area for more than a year, according to wildlife biologists. If they stay in the area, it would be the first time the cats have established territories in this part of the White River National Forest. But their presence sets up a potential conflict, as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reviews plans for recreation at the Vail Pass winter-play area, administered by the U.S. Forest Service.

The Pueblo Chieftain :: Council to vote on Lake Minnequa purchase

http://www.chieftain.com/articles/2008/12/19/news/local/doc494b7a0b1e5fd729045778.txt Pueblo City Council is scheduled to vote Monday on a project that could bring an end to four years of planning and a start to a major public improvement in the Bessemer and Minnequa Heights neigh- borhoods. Council is set to vote on a resolution to complete the purchase of 243 acres of land from Evraz Rocky Mountain Steel, which includes Lake Minnequa and the parks and wetlands that surround it. City Planner Scott Hobson said that if council approves the vote, the city is set to complete the purchase by the end of the year and could be finished building the improvements at the lake by the end of 2009. The city is set to receive $2.3 million from Great Outdoors Colorado that will help pay for much of the land as well as the installation of a parking lot and to clean up the lake's shoreline. The city will use the GOCo funding along with $1.8 million from various other sources to help pay for the project.

Roaring Fork Valley-based nonprofit protects a resource for the future | PostIndependent.com

http://www.postindependent.com/article/20081219/VALLEYNEWS/812189964/1001/NONE During a hike in July, two backpackers along Snowmass Lake trail near Aspen found a box of 40-year-old dynamite. They contacted a member of the Forest Conservancy, a volunteer group formed in 2001 to help protect the White River National Forest for future generations. That volunteer later found what the backpacker had discovered and passed the information on to the U.S. Forest Service, which later detonated the active dynamite. “We are a visible presence out there on the trail,” said Marcia Johnson, executive director of the Forest Conservancy. “If a hiker comes across something odd, or may have questions, we are there readily available to assist. That is what happened to the box of dynamite.” The Roaring Fork Valley-based Forest Conservancy works in tandem with the Forest Service to help protect the White River National Forest by training volunteers to educate residents about the wilderness area, to inform visitors about its trails and to provide safety along those paths, according to the group. Those volunteers also collect forest health data and conduct minor trail maintenance.

Folsom recycling a success : CU News : Boulder Daily Camera

http://www.dailycamera.com/news/2008/dec/18/folsom-recycling-success/ The “Ralphie’s Green Stampede” campaign, announced this summer in advance of the CU football season, helped collect 40 tons of recyclable and compostable materials from Colorado’s six home games. That was a 199 percent increase over the amount of materials recycled or composted in the 2007 season. The campaign’s goal is to become the first zero-waste football stadium in a Bowl Championship Series conference. “We are extremely proud of the collaborative effort from the entire campus community in pulling this inaugural, nationally recognized effort together,” CU Athletic Director Mike Bohn said in a news release. “We salute all those visiting Folsom Field, including the students, fans and guests, for being so accepting and committed to ensuring that the University of Colorado’s commitment to sustainability remains on the national stage.”

New historic disctrict an old hamlet - The Denver Post

http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_11266967 Ron Graham still chuckles about the nickname his mom and her three sisters were given — "The Shawnee Girls." All joking aside, this week is one of immense pride for Graham, 75, and his 96-year-old mother, Minerva (Price) Graham. The town that Ron Graham's great-grandfather and grandfather helped found — Shawnee — has been designated a Park County historic district. A community potluck and unveiling of the official "historic district" marker will be Saturday. The community of 75, on the side of a hill in a picturesque valley 50 miles west of Denver, also has applied for designation as a national historic district.

County commissioners OK recycling plan for tire dump | Gazette.com

http://www.gazette.com/articles/tires_45054___article.html/site_colorado.html An "environmental catastrophe" waiting to happen would be converted into a source of energy cleaner than coal under a proposal given the green light Thursday by El Paso County commissioners. A 58-acre tire disposal site, with 30 million to 60 million tires about 25 miles south of Colorado Springs, will be taken over by Colorado Energy Recyclers, LLC, which plans to shred the tires and burn them in a cement plant south of Pueblo. The proposal to switch the landfill license from Midway Landfill, Inc., was enthusiastically supported by the Colorado Department of Health and Environment, which said the site has been in violation of environmental laws for years.

Residents up reward for deer poacher | Gazette.com

http://www.gazette.com/articles/division_45078___article.html/poacher_colorado.html Colorado Springs residents outraged over a poacher picking off deer in the Skyway neighborhood have armed the Division of Wildlife with a new weapon: cold hard cash. The division announced Wednesday that Operation Game Thief would offer a $1,000 reward for information leading to the capture of the poacher, who has used a bow to shoot three bucks in three weeks in the west side neighborhood, killing two and critically injuring one. Locals decided the poacher's head was worth more. So they've pledged another $13,100, including one anonymous individual who pledged $10,000. "We really need to get that bastard," said Emma Turley, a Broadmoor Glen resident who called the division Thursday to add another $1,000 to the reward pile.

12/18/2008

Salazar given interior post - The Denver Post

http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_11258047 President-elect Barack Obama officially picked Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar as his appointee for secretary of the interior Wednesday, a move intended to bring a more centrist — and ethical — approach to administering the nation's federal lands and shaping its energy policies. Salazar's departure with two years remaining in his first term leaves a gaping hole in the state's congressional delegation and puts enormous pressure on Gov. Bill Ritter to name a stand-out Democratic replacement who can adequately serve for two years and win election in 2010. The nomination comes with turmoil surrounding the Interior Department, which has been accused of corruption, malfeasance and rendering decisions based on politics. Obama said that the department "too often has been seen as an appendage of commercial interests as opposed to a place where the values and interests of the American people are served." "There have been too many problems and too much emphasis on big- time lobbyists in Washington and not enough emphasis on what's good for the American people, and that's going to change under Ken Salazar," Obama said at a news conference.

More stories in National/Energy Policy | Colorado/Energy Policy

Mixed response from environmental groups for Salazar nomination - The Denver Post

http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_11256044 Some conservation groups are welcoming the selection of Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar as interior secretary, but others are opposing him as head of the agency that oversees vast tracts of public land and endangered species. President-elect Barack Obama announced the nomination Wednesday. The choice of Salazar, whose Western roots stretch back to the 16th century, cheered groups that have fought to protect remote backcountry and pristine watersheds as oil and gas drilling has increased across the West. "On the whole, we're really optimistic that his appointment will translate into commonsense changes in the ways federal land is maintained in relation to fish and wildlife habitat," said Chris Hunt of Trout Unlimited's public lands initiative. Salazar, a former director of the Colorado Department of Natural Resources, has clashed with the Bush administration over oil and gas drilling on public lands. The Democrat temporarily blocked the confirmation of James Caswell as Bureau of Land Management chief last year to win more time for Colorado officials to review plans to drill on federal land on the Roan Plateau in Western Colorado.

Red pollution warning issued for Denver - The Denver Post

http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_11255390 The Colorado Department of Public Health and the Environment has issued a red pollution advisory for the seven-county Denver-Boulder metropolitan area effective at 4 p.m. today. The department said that air quality currently is poor or expected to worsen. Mandatory residential burning restrictions and requests to limit driving are now in effect until 4 p.m. Thursday. On red days, residential burning is restricted to approved stoves, fireplaces and fireplace inserts. Limited winds and mixing later tonight and Thursday are expected to lead to poor visibility and a violation of the state visibility standard on Thursday.

Pitkin County has concerns with forest travel management plan | AspenTimes.com

http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20081218/NEWS/812179941/1001/NONE Pitkin County doesn’t exactly want to create problems for the White River National Forest Travel Management Plan (TMP), which is now being drafted and will provide a regulatory framework for the forest that surrounds Aspen and Pitkin County. But the Board of County Commissioners wants its feelings known regarding items such as public access to the Little Annie Basin backcountry ski terrain; safe driving and parking conditions along county roads leading to heavily used parts of the forest; and allowing motorized travel on legalized “bandit” trails that lie within 300 feet of local creeks and streams — among other issues. The commissioners outlined a number of concerns and suggestions Tuesday in Aspen, directing staff members to draw up a list of comments to be submitted to forest officials prior to a Jan. 6 deadline.

News : BLM seeks comment on Dry Creek plan (Montrose, CO)

http://montrosepress.com/articles/2008/12/18/news/doc4949b45f980ed612327924.txt After two years' worth of work, the Bureau of Land Management unveiled proposed travel management plans for the Dry Creek area. Plans, developed with the input of several recreational and environmental groups, would overhaul off-highway vehicle designations and cover 110,00 acres of public lands within the area. The BLM has extended the public comment period to Jan. 14. "The main reason why we're doing this is the incredible growth in this valley," BLM Uncompahgre Field Manager Barb Sharrow said Tuesday.

The Pueblo Chieftain :: Pipeline OK comes with lots of strings attached

http://www.chieftain.com/articles/2008/12/18/news/local/doc494a0e4b64be9033651972.txt Colorado Springs and its partners in the Southern Delivery System have a lengthy list of compliance measures that would have to be met to obtain federal contracts for a proposed pipeline. A new chapter in the environmental impact statement for the project, released last week by the Bureau of Reclamation, lists about 90 environmental “commitments” SDS would have to comply with to maintain long-term contracts. In addition, no contracts could be issued for a pipeline through Pueblo County until SDS has approval from the Army Corps of Engineers under the Clean Water Act, the Colorado Division of Wildlife, the Colorado Water Conservation Board and Pueblo County, all listed as “examples” in Reclamation’s final environmental report.

The Pueblo Chieftain :: Ruling awaited on SLV water

http://www.chieftain.com/articles/2008/12/18/news/region/doc494a18489bda2125596681.txt Water Judge O. John Kuenhold said he hopes to issue a ruling regarding the fate of a proposed groundwater subdistrict before the new year. Following Tuesday's closing arguments, Kuenhold hinted that he would, in some form, remand the plan back to its authors. "Whether I remand it in its entirety or in part is another matter," he said, adding that any changes to the plan following a remand would be subject to review by the state engineer.

Pitkin County on ‘climate stabilization’ track | AspenTimes.com

http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20081218/NEWS/812189995/1001/NONE Pitkin County is on a “climate stabilization” track to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions at a rate of 5 percent per year over the foreseeable future, following adoption by the county commissioners of a resolution supporting the work of Energy Program Manager Dylan Hoffman. Hoffman’s department was created last March “in order to help guide the county to a sustainable energy future,” according to a memo from Hoffman to the Board of County Commissioners, and the BOCC subsequently adopted an Energy Action Plan with the stated goal of reducing the county’s “carbon footprint.” Among the target areas for the emissions-reduction plan are the county’s consumption of electricity, natural gas, vehicular fuel and water, as well as the number of “employee vehicle miles traveled as a result of commuting,” according to Hoffman’s memo.

The Steamboat Pilot - City, county collaborate to purchase and preserve land straddling Yampa River

http://steamboatpilot.com/news/2008/dec/18/city_county_collaborate_purchase_and_preserve_land/ In a deal scheduled to close Friday, the city of Steamboat Springs will purchase and preserve 35 acres straddling the Yampa River on the south side of Emerald Mountain. Public recreational use — including an expansion of the Howelsen Hill trail network — is planned for the property being bought for $1.3 million from Jay and Jamie Biedenharn. The property is being put into a conservation easement that will be held by the Yampa Valley Land Trust. The purchase was aided by $275,000 from Routt County’s Purchase of Development Rights Program and a $400,000 open space grant from Great Outdoors Colorado. The city’s share is $625,000. “The Biedenharn property is an important addition to ongoing conservation efforts in the Yampa Valley,” Lise Aangeenbrug, GOCO’s acting director, said in a written statement. “This project builds on open space, outdoor recreation and wildlife viewing opportunities in Routt County.”

The Longmont Times-Call - Landowner moves creek; EPA says put it back

http://www.timescall.com/News_Story.asp?id=13078 Larry Germann just wanted to put Left Hand Creek — which runs through his 12-acre property southwest of Longmont — back to where it had been when he bought the land. But Germann now is hoping to work with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to come up with a plan to restore the creek and stabilize its banks — and he’s hoping that work won’t cost him anywhere near the initial estimate of $50,000. “I’m still in shock from that,” Germann said Wednesday. The EPA issued a compliance order to Germann last week for violating the Clean Water Act by removing and replacing fill in the creek without a permit, EPA technical enforcement program director Diane Sipe said. The agency cited Germann for allegedly digging out material from a section of the creek, then putting a 5- to 8-foot-wide swath of fill elsewhere along about 300 feet of the creek.