Mount Evans Summit Lake. Mount Evans is reflected in the cool waters of Summit Lake. By David Hannigan. Division of Wildlife. Photo taken 8/5/2013.
Pay Dirt: It’s harvest time for much of the country and also a time to plan for the season ahead. For a growing number of farmers, that will mean planting something called "cover crops"—plants that control erosion, conserve water, build healthy soils, and reduce the need for fertilizers and pesticides—all while maintaining yields. As H2O Radio reports, the "soil health movement" is shifting the ground beneath farmers' feet—for the better. Read more in the article: How Farmers Are Using Less Water, Avoiding Pesticides, and Building Healthy Soil—All While Maintaining or Increasing Yields.
Eleven-year-old Gitanjali Rao from Lone Tree, Colorado, inspired to find an easy, quick test for lead in water by the Flint water crisis, has been named the winner of the 2017 Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge for her development of "Tethys," described as a sensor-based device that can detect lead in water faster than other current techniques. Read more HERE.
The Colorado Foundation for Water Education, first founded in 2002 by an act of the state legislature, is introducing a new look that comes with a new name: Water Education Colorado. Tasked with the mission to help Coloradans understand that water is a limited resource and to help them make informed decisions, the organization’s next chapter aims to engage and inform more Colorado residents by building on the programs and trust it has developed among the water community over the last 15 years. Read more HERE.
Colorado Awarded $1.3M for Arkansas River Water Quality: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has awarded $1,293,010 to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment to help protect human health and the environment through a Nonpoint Source Program Clean Water Act Section 319 cooperative agreement. This grant is given to states to implement environmental programs that address nonpoint source pollution in surface water and groundwater in order to improve and protect water quality. Read more HERE.
Aquatic nuisance species (ANS), plants and animals that invade lakes, reservoirs, rivers and streams, pose an increasing threat to Colorado’s water resources. The major threat is from zebra and quagga mussels invading water bodies across the state. Other nuisance species include New Zealand mudsnails and rusty crayfish. Colorado Parks and Wildlife has an inspection protocol in place since 2009 that has prevented the establishment and spread of ANS. The challenge is to develop stable annual funding sources to sustain the successful Colorado inspection program which has set the standard in the West for prevention of these invasives. Read the entire article HERE.
Groups File Lawsuit to Stop New Diversion and Protect Flows in Colorado River
Suit seeks to halt Windy Gap Firming Project and force alternatives. A coalition of environmental groups today filed a lawsuit in federal court to prevent additional diversions from the already struggling Colorado River. The suit questions the need for the Windy Gap Firming Project, which is a plan to divert on average an additional 30,000 acre-feet or 9 billion gallons of water annually from our state’s namesake river to pipe, store, and use on the Front Range. Save the Colorado, Save the Poudre, WildEarth Guardians, Living Rivers and Waterkeeper Alliance challenge the environmental review and approvals by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that gave the green light for this new diversion. Read more HERE.