Black Canyon Water Rights

The Gunnison River is the big winner as government agencies, water users, and Trout Unlimited and a coalition of its conservation partners reached an agreement settling the more than 30-year dispute over water rights to protect flows in the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.

The state water court for the Gunnison River basin has entered a decree formally adopting an agreement among the parties that will recognize and protect water rights for river flows through the Black Canyon. The settlement, now ratified through the water court, creates a more natural flow regime that includes annual peak flows and shoulder flows - tiered to natural water availability - in addition to a year round base flow of 300 cubic feet per second.

This more natural flow pattern is important in supporting the river's overall ecosystem, which has been significantly affected by flow changes from the three federal dams immediately upstream of the Park. The flows will create a healthier environment for the Gunnison's world-class trout fishery, cleanse sediment deposits that have clogged habitat and worsened whirling disease problems, maintain the river channel, and improve the aesthetics of a flowering river for the hungereds of thousands of visitors that travel to the Park each year from around the world.

In 2003, Trout Unlimited, through the Colorado Water Project, worked with other conservation groups to challenge an ill-conceived agreement between the State of Colorado and federal agencies that would have resulted in a Black Canyon water right lacking in any meaningful protections for the river's ecosystem. We challenged the federal-state agreement on four grounds:

Violation of the preservation obligations in the Park Service and Wilderness Acts
Failure to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act
Illegal disposition of federal property
Illegal delegation of federal agency responsibilities

In late 2006, the federal court issued its decision with conservation interests winning on all four counts. The decision set aside the federal-state agreement and ordered the Department of the Interior to take action that will satisfy its obligations to protect the Gunnison River through the park. That 2006 victory set the stage for the negotiations that led to the final settlement on flows to protect the Black Canyon.

Along with Trout Unlimited, other conservationists who were involved in the case and the water rights negotiations include Environmental Defense Fund, High Country Citizens Alliance, National Parks Conservation Association, The Wilderness Socity, Western Colorado Congress, Western Slope Environmental Resource Council, and Western Resource Advocates. The law firm of Hogan & Hartson provided pro bono assistance, helping the environmental coalition to win a landmark victory for the protection of rivers in our National Parks.