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San Juan County backs $3.5M NRD funding strategy, appoints local representative to KEG
Summary
County officials agreed to support a proposed share of a roughly $3.5 million natural-resources damages settlement for wetland restoration, river corridor work and easements, voted to appoint Ken Ballaway as the county representative to the KEG, and asked staff for more detail before final allocations are submitted.
San Juan County officials voted to appoint Ken Ballaway as the county’s representative to the KEG and discussed a proposed allocation of natural-resources damages settlement funds that would direct local dollars toward wetland restoration, Animas River corridor improvements and land/easement purchases.
Anthony Edwards, a staff member who presented the item, told the board the pot of settlement money under consideration is “$3,500,000 in this funding realm,” and that San Juan County is negotiating how much of that sum the county and the town should request for projects inside the county. “The applications would go in in May. The questions to the state have to be in later in April,” Edwards said, naming the schedule: written questions due April 15, responses May 1 and final submissions May 31.
Why it matters: The funds come from a legal settlement intended for natural resources damages and could pay for habitat and access work along the Animas River watershed. County officials said they want a mix of restoration work and property easements to secure public river access; board members also raised the practical issue that some restoration is difficult before upstream remediation is underway.
Edwards outlined three locally focused funding components under discussion: a $300,000 wetland-restoration proposal for the upper watershed, a $1.72 million Animas River Corridor request to support trails, bridges and riparian enhancement from the Lackawanna area downstream, and up to $200,000 for county-held easements or land purchases to preserve access along the river. He said a possible RMPP transfer could be used as a local match and estimated that match value at “somewhere between … 1 and $2,000,000.” Edwards told the board that project funding would likely not be available until spring 2026 even if awards are announced this fall or winter.
Board members pressed for priorities and for clarification of which portions of the corridor the town would fund from its request versus which the county would reserve the $200,000 to acquire. Edwards said he planned to ask the town to allocate some of its $1.7 million toward easements or land purchases for the corridor so the county can hold the $200,000 for other locations outside the corridor. Edwards also said he and staff were negotiating with La Plata County and local partners to align allocations across jurisdictions.
On the procedural side, a motion to appoint Ken Ballaway as San Juan County’s representative to the KEG was made and seconded; the board recorded an affirmative voice vote (“Aye. Aye.”) and the appointment was approved. The motion text in the meeting was: “Appoint Ken Ballaway as our San Juan County Representative to the KEG.” The meeting transcript did not supply the mover’s or seconder’s names for the motion.
Edwards briefed the county on a few other points raised by partner counties and agencies, including a Durango Fish Hatchery request for matching funds and an Animas Valley riverbank stabilization request on the La Plata side. He also said he is negotiating a possible extension of a cooperative agreement and some road-base/mag-chloride contract matters; those contract negotiations may require separate, follow-up discussion with county staff.
Next steps: Edwards said he would return with a more detailed packet and that letters supporting applications would likely be drafted in mid-April; the board scheduled further consideration at an April meeting. County staff planned to work with La Plata and town staff to finalize allocations and cut sheets for the projects proposed within San Juan County.
Votes at a glance: • Appointment: Ken Ballaway — motion to appoint passed (voice vote recorded as “Aye. Aye.”). Mover/second: not specified in transcript.
(Reporting note: direct quotes and timing in this article are taken from staff remarks in the San Juan County meeting transcript; where the transcript omitted a speaker’s name for a motion or vote, the article records the action and notes the missing attribution.)
