River District official: CWCB approves Shoshone in‑stream flow; county urged to plan for funding and soil‑moisture monitoring

Carrie Denison, representing the River District, told Ouray County commissioners that the Colorado Water Conservation Board has accepted an in‑stream flow proposal for the Shoshone water right in Glenwood Canyon, calling the decision “pretty amazing news.” She said the approval received broad backing from the state’s 13 counties and several support groups.

Denison said the approval does not end the work: “Of course, we still need to figure out the funding of purchasing the the plant and how we’re gonna do all that and what where those funds are gonna come from because some of that was in the, I’ve now lost the term of what bill that was in from the Biden administration, but those funds are still frozen.” She warned there is a funding shortfall that will need to be addressed before purchases can be completed.

Denison also described a recently launched River District grant opportunity aimed at West Slope irrigators and ditch companies to assist with financial assessments of ditch systems and to help applicants prepare for larger infrastructure or irrigation projects. She emphasized new or recently formed ditch companies are eligible and highlighted a February 15 application deadline for that grant opportunity.

On local resilience, Denison urged county planning for drought by expanding soil‑moisture monitoring. She cited existing work by Colorado State University Extension, the Aspen Global Change Institute and the Yampa River Water Conservancy District as models and proposed a county‑led pilot program sited near irrigated pasture that would teach irrigators to use monitoring tools. She cautioned that initial installation costs are only one part of the expense: “finding the dollars to pay for them down the road can be very difficult,” she said, urging the board to consider long‑term maintenance in project planning.

Denison raised broader Colorado River concerns, describing a stalemate in negotiations to update the operating guidelines. She said upper‑basin and lower‑basin states remain far apart and that the Colorado River Water Users Association meeting that week would be a key venue for talks.

Why it matters: Denison framed the combined topics—Shoshone protections, irrigation grants and soil‑moisture monitoring—as part of local and regional efforts to preserve irrigation reliability, aquatic habitat and the recreation economy that depends on consistent reservoir and stream flows. She said the River District will continue outreach and expects to report back after its next meeting in January in Plymouth Springs.