In the Rockies today, the news is awash with water.
Another study released Monday predicts much lower flows along the 1,400-mile Colorado River by 2050, and much harder decisions confronting those who decides who gets water and who doesn't.
The researchers in this study are the same ones who predicted last year that Lake Mead had a 50-50 chance of running dry by 2021.
In Colorado, the state high court ruled that coalbed-methane operators had to ensure that water discharged during drilling operations didn't affect senior water rights holders, and that if operations do affect water supplies, companies must come up with a plan to replace that water.
And in Wyoming, coalbed methane discharge water is getting new scrutiny after landowners said the state Department of Environmental Quality's discharge permits for such water were based on flawed calculations and that the sodium-laced water was imperiling the land on which it was discharged.
Rockies today
Climate researches predict Colorado River shortages by 2050
Two climate researchers at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California at San Diego predict that, by 2050, hotter, drier weather in the West will lead to less water in the 1,400-mile Colorado River and that flows in that river will be unable to meet allocations 60 to 90 percent of the time.
Arizona Republic; April 21
Colorado high court rules coalbed methane water must be regulated
A decision from the Colorado Supreme Court on Monday said that water discharged during coalbed methane drilling operations is not wastewater, and that companies that pull the water out of underground seams must defer to senior water rights holders and must replace water they use when that water is owned by others.
Denver Post; April 21
Wyoming landowners cite flawed science in CBM water request
According to soil scientists from the University and Wyoming and New Mexico, several coalbed-methane water discharge permits issued by Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality were based on a flawed calculation and bogus science, and now a group of Wyoming landowners are asking the state to withdraw those permits and adjust their calculations to protect agricultural land in the Powder River Basin.
Casper Star-Tribune; April 21
Federal appeals court sides with EPA on Four Corners power plant
A three-judge panel of the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency's 2007 implementation plan on Arizona Public Service Co.'s 2,040-megawatt, coal-fired Four Corners Power Plant in northwestern New Mexico should stand, rejecting claims by the utility that the plan was too restrictive and claims by environmental groups that the plan didn't go far enough.
Santa Fe New Mexican (AP); April 21
EPA scrutiny of mercury will put Nevada rules to test
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is expected to make a decision on regulating mercury emissions from gold mines this summer, and it's not known yet whether Nevada's state rules on such emissions will be the gold standard for federal regulations or a launching point.
Las Vegas Sun; April 21
Wireless plan for Yellowstone National Park is released
National Park Service officials released the final plan for wireless coverage in Yellowstone National Park that will add a tower to the Lake Village area and relocate the tower at Old Faithful to a less conspicuous place.
Jackson Hole Daily; April 21
Montana doctor pitches contraception plan for wild horses
Jay F. Kirkpatrick, director of the nonprofit science and conservation center at ZooMontana in Billings, wants to use porcine zona pellucida, or P.Z.P., to control wild horse populations in the West, but the Bureau of Land Management said its too costly and time-consuming to use the annual drug, and conservation groups said the use of the drug often leads to off-season births, which can sometimes be fatal to both foals and mares.
New York Times; April 21
Opinion
Wyoming-Colorado water project a bad idea
Colorado businessman Aaron Million's plan to pump water from southwestern Wyoming to Colorado's Front Range cities will only invite more development in an over-developed area with too little water.
New York Times; April 21
NRA's stance on guns in parks has nothing to do with self-defense
The Obama administration's decision to do a full environmental impact analysis of a rule change that would allow concealed, loaded guns in national parks and refuges, as long as the states in which those parks and refuges are located allow such, is a good one.
Casper Star-Tribune; April 21
Montana should pass bill classifying hydroelectric power as renewable
Hydroelectric power is as green as it gets, and Montana lawmakers should pass legislation currently before them that allows utilities to include hydroelectric power in their renewable-energy portfolios.
Great Falls Tribune; April 21
Beyond the Region
Hydroelectric power generates hot debate in Washington Legislature
Proponents of a bill before the Washington Legisltaure that classifies hydroelectric power as renewable said the bill corrects an oversight in a voter-passed initiative that requires utilities to get a certain amount of electricity from renewable resources that left hydroelectric power out of that mix, but environmental groups said the initiative intentionally excepted hydroelectric power to encourage more development of solar, wind and geothermal power resources.
Tri-City Herald; April 21
Oregon gets $2.63M in federal grants for imperiled species
The Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund, administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, awarded Oregon $2.63 million in grants to buy or manage land in four counties to assist the northern spotted owl, coastal coho salmon, marbled murrelet, Oregon silverspot butterfly and several wildflowers--the state's most imperiled species.
Portland Oregonian; April 21
U. of Washington in line for $300M slice of federal stimulus funds
The federal stimulus package contained $21.5 billion for research and development, and University of Washington officials estimate their school could get $300 million.
Seattle Times; April 21
Clinton, Bush to meet in Toronto for 'conversation' next month
On May 29 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, former U.S. Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, will appear together for a two-hour moderated conversation.
Toronto Globe and Mail; April 21
|
