• Colorado River Water Conservation District President (CRD) and Delta County’s CRD representative, Tom Alvey, presented an update of the important and dire work the group is doing concerning water resources in Colorado in light of anticipate shortages. The group is in Phase III of a study that would look at the effects of a diversion of deliveries to Lake Powell and other basins if a “Compact Call” where to occur, an event that CRD believes is imminent, if the drought continues and data that support climate change continue on trajectory. (If water is needed, a “call” is made to upstream entities, like the headwaters, to demand water downstream. It’s called a Colorado River Compact call.)
The group is also developing a Drought Contingency Plan that could include strategies that water banking: The planned, voluntary and compensated reduction In use of water rights to allow the unused water to be sent downstream or stored.
Locally, work is ramping up on infrastructure improvements on the Fire Mountain, Fruitlands Reservoir and Uncompaghre systems. Delta County will see more than $20 million in system improvements over the next several years.
• Several board appointments were made: Kristen Green, Cedaredge District Cemetery Board; Laura Early, Delta County Public Library Board (an empty seat remains); Jessica Good and Sam Kimbriel, Delta County Tourism Cabinet; Hetty Todd, Crawford Cemetery Board
• Commissioners ratified a letter of support to re-locate National Bureau of Land Management office to Western Slope.