The rebirth of a Colorado river begins this month, as water officials start to put the landmark 2008 Black Canyon of the Gunnison settlement into effect.
On May 7, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) operators made the first release in a new flow regime that is expected to help restore the Gunnison River canyon ecosystem and return it to a more natural state.
“After years of hard work by Trout Unlimited and other conservation groups, this is the payoff,” said Drew Peternell, director of Trout Unlimited’s Colorado Water Project. “With these renewed flows, the Gunnison River through the Black Canyon will experience a rebirth, and its priceless natural resources will be safeguarded for generations to come.”
After 30 years of uncertainty and nearly a decade of contentious legal wrangling, a Colorado court earlier this year approved a final settlement that set up enhanced flows to protect the natural resources of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, including its world-famous trout fishery.
Under the Bush administration, the National Park Service had attempted to abandon some of its water right in the Park. But a team of conservation groups, including Trout Unlimited and Western Resource Advocates, challenged the decision in federal court and won—and the historic 2006 ruling for the first time established the U.S. government’s responsibility to maintain the park’s water right and natural resources.
Two years later, the state water court approved an historic settlement that guarantees the river a year-round minimal base flow of 300 cubic feet per second and higher annual peak flows and shoulder flows, the size of which would be tied to natural water availability each spring. These variable flows will help restore the balance of the river’s habitat and ecosystem.
This spring, the settlement will be implemented for the first time. In the coming week, water releases from the Aspinall Unit will increase each day until reaching a peak flow of about 6,000 cfs in the Black Canyon on May 13, after which the releases will begin to drop until leveling off at approximately 1,900 cfs in the Black Canyon and Gunnison Gorge on May 21, according to BOR officials.
Among other benefits, the higher flows will help flush out sediment deposits that have caused whirling disease and other problems for trout, clear out encroaching vegetation and woody debris, and help maintain the river channel.
“2009 is an important milestone,” said Bart Miller, attorney for Western Resource Advocates. “It marks the year when flows in the Gunnison strike a new balance. The new flow regime shows what dedicated stakeholders can do when they put their heads together—meet important ecological needs as well many other water uses in the basin.”
In coming months, TU and other groups will monitor the new flow regime for compliance with the settlement. And they will watch closely as a renowned Colorado river gets a new lease on life.
The conservation groups involved in the effort were Trout Unlimited, Western Resource Advocates, Environmental Defense Fund, High Country Citizens’ Alliance, National Parks Conservation Association, The Wilderness Society, Western Colorado Congress, and Western Slope Environmental Resource Council. In addition to in-house attorneys at Trout Unlimited and Western Resource Advocates, the law firm of Hogan and Hartson provided pro bono legal service to the conservation team.
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Trout Unlimited is the nation’s largest coldwater conservation organization, with 140,000 members dedicated to conserving, protecting, and restoring North America’s trout and salmon fisheries and their watersheds. In 2009, Trout Unlimited celebrates its 50th anniversary
Western Resource Advocates is a regional conservation group working to protect the West’s land, air, and water.