None The Nature Conservancy in Colorado Press Releases Search All Press Releases Christine Broda-Bahm Phone: (720) 974-7002 Cell: (303) 910-5427 E-mail: cbrodabahm@tnc.org Dan Luecke, Ph.D., Western Resource Advocates Phone: (303) 443-5815

Fish and People have Cause to Celebrate Enlarged Elkhead Reservoir

CRAIG, COLORADO — July 9, 2007 — On July 11, Elkhead Reservoir State Park will be the site of a public celebration of a remarkable effort to protect water for both people and nature. The event will mark the reopening and enlargement of Elkhead Reservoir, in the Yampa River Basin in northwestern Colorado. The enlarged reservoir will provide 5,000 acre-feet of water permanently and up to another 2,000 acre-feet of leased water annually to augment flows for federally endangered fish in the Yampa River during middle and late summer, a time when low flows can reduce their habitat and make them vulnerable to non-native predators.

“Elkhead Reservoir shows that daunting conservation challenges can be solved if the right people get together with the best information and the will to craft a solution,” said Tom Iseman of The Nature Conservancy’s Colorado Chapter. “We are very grateful to the local community, the Colorado River Water Conservation District, and the many Recovery Program partners for the tenacity and ingenuity that have made this effort such a model for others.”

The Nature Conservancy and Western Resource Advocates are conservation representatives to the Upper Colorado River Endangered Fish Recovery Program (the ‘Program’), a voluntary, cooperative program that includes state and federal agencies, water and power users, and conservation groups, which seeks to recover endangered fish while allowing water use to continue. The Program has spearheaded a range of recovery actions, including non-native control, habitat restoration, rearing and stocking, and flow augmentation throughout the Upper Colorado River Basin. 

The Elkhead Dam and Reservoir enlargement is one of several actions included in a management plan for the Yampa River Basin developed after nearly a decade of close collaboration among Program partners, the Yampa River Basin Partnership, and other Yampa Valley residents.  The plan addresses endangered species recovery and water development in the Yampa River Basin in Colorado and Wyoming and includes projected water needs in the Yampa through the year 2045.

 “In supporting the enlargement of Elkhead Reservoir, The Nature Conservancy and Western Resource Advocates have shown their willingness to work cooperatively with water agencies and other groups to improve the chances of native fish recovery in the Yampa and Green rivers, the most important native fish habitat in the Upper Colorado River,” said Dan Luecke, a water expert with Western Resource Advocates.

This base-flow enhancement complements efforts throughout the Upper Colorado River Basin to restore peak flows. For example, when snowpack is above average, water users in the Upper Colorado River collaborate to restore a snowmelt peak to the Colorado River through Grand Junction, under a standing program called Coordinated Reservoir Operations. Similarly, in 2006 the Bureau of Reclamation changed operation of Flaming Gorge Dam on the Green River to improve spring flows. Similarly, there is significant work still ahead to replicate these flow restoration efforts on the Gunnison River in central Colorado.

These fish live nowhere in the world but the big rivers of the Colorado basin. By restoring high flows in peak water years, fish spawning habitat is scoured, creating the clean rocky spaces that these fish prefer for egg-laying. Over time, the native fish population contracts and expands just as it has for the last 3 million years, but restoring these key processes gives them the best chance for survival over the long-term. 

“The collaborative plan for integrating endangered fish recovery and water management on the Yampa River also calls for control of non-native fish alongside the expansion of Elkhead Reservoir,” said Bart Miller, Water Program Director for Western Resource Advocates. “The strong partnership for taking these steps simultaneously is critical to the success of both the Yampa plan and the larger partnership behind the Recovery Program.” 

Examples like the Elkhead Reservoir are inspiring action around the globe. Only a fraction of 1% of Earth's water is available as freshwater, and sophisticated management of this resource has taken on a new emphasis. The growing human population is placing ever-greater demands on available freshwater supplies. In many parts of the world, available water resources will need to be further developed to grow food, support cities and industrial production, and generate electricity. Elkhead reservoir expansion shows that human needs can be met while benefiting the health of the natural systems upon which all life depends. “What is good for the Yampa River should also be good for the local community and the whole Upper Colorado River Basin,” said Robert Wigington, Western Water Policy Counsel for The Nature Conservancy.

The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. To date, the Conservancy and its more than one million members have been responsible for the protection of more than 15 million acres in the United States and have helped preserve more than 102 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the Web at www.nature.org.

Western Resource Advocates is a nonprofit conservation organization dedicated to protecting the Interior West’s land, air, and water. With more than 22 employees and offices in Colorado, Utah, Arizona, and Nevada, we promote river restoration and water conservation, advocate for a clean and sustainable energy future, and protect public lands for future generations.  We meet our goals in collaboration with other environmental and community groups, and by developing solutions appropriate to the environmental, economic and cultural framework of this region. Visit Western Resource Advocates at www.westernresourceadvocates.org.