Editor's Note: Headwaters News will not publish on Veteran's Day, Wednesday, Nov. 11.
In the Rockies today, a new reservoir in Colorado, and bison management in Montana and Alberta are in the news.
In Colorado, work is under way on a reservoir south of Denver, but as of yet, no water has been secured to fill that reservoir.
Parker Water and Sanitation District officials acknowledge that most of the water needed to fill the Rueter-Hess reservoir will have to be imported, but the source of that imported water is still under discussion.
The preferred source, according to Parker Water officials and a coalition of Wyoming-Colorado municipal water providers, is the Flaming Gorge Reservoir in Wyoming.
In Montana, a coalition of groups and individuals have sued the U.S. Forest Service and the National Park Service over management of bison that wander into the state from Yellowstone National Park, alleging that the slaughter and hazing of the bison violate those agencies' mandates.
And in Alberta, where Canada is proposing reintroducing bison into Banff National Park, province officials are opposing the plan, due in part over how to handle bison that wander out of the park.
Rockies today
Coalition sues USFS, NPS over Yellowstone-area bison
A coalition of individuals, American Indian tribes, and conservation groups including Buffalo Field Campaign and the Western Watersheds Project, filed a federal lawsuit in Montana against the National Park Service and the U.S. Forest Service, alleging those federal agencies violated their policies by hazing and slaughtering bison that wander out of Yellowstone National Park into Montana.
Jackson Hole Daily; Nov. 10
Alberta's not crazy about Canada's bison-in-Banff plan
The recently released draft management plan for Banff National Park calls for the reintroduction of bison into the park in Alberta, but Alberta officials are concerned about the plan and what will happen when the bison start to wander out of the park.
Toronto National Post; Nov. 10
Colorado reservoir south of Denver under construction
Taking a "if we build it, it will come" stance on future water supplies, the Parker Water and Sanitation District is building a reservoir south of Denver, but as yet has not secured the water rights to fill the reservoir, which is 180 feet deep and covers 1,400 acres.
Denver Post; Nov. 10
USGS study ranks Utah 2nd in nation in per-capita water use
The U.S. Geological Survey's latest report on per-capita water use ranked Nevada first in the nation in municipal and industrial water use per person in 2005, and Utah ranked second with 245 gallons per capita daily water use; Idaho was right up there, too, with 244-gallons per capita; Arizona reported 204 gallons and Colorado 198 gallons.
Salt Lake Tribune; Nov. 10
Proposed Mount Holly resort in Utah on the auction block
The plan to turn Elk Meadows ski area into the Mount Holly Club, Utah's version of Montana's Yellowstone Club--an exclusive resort with a private ski area and golf course--has vaporized and the property is now on the auction block.
Salt Lake Tribune; Nov. 10
Denver Post: Number of stimulus-created jobs in Colo. overstated
A Denver Post analysis of the 8,094 stimulus-created jobs in Colorado posted on the federal government's stimulus-spending Web page found the number of such jobs was overstated by at least 1,000, due in part to confusing reporting requirements and perhaps some over-reaching by reporting agencies.
Denver Post; Nov. 10
Navajo Code Talkers will be in NYC's Veterans Day parade
For the first time ever, Navajo Code Talkers, an elite Marine unit that used their native language to thwart the Japanese in World War II, will participate in the nation's largest Veterans Day parade in New York City.
Los Angeles Times (AP); Nov. 10
Opinion
Montana, N.M. senators' bill on open space funding a good idea
Montana Sen. Max Baucus and New Mexico Sen. Jeff Bingaman have proposed legislation that would protect the annual $900-million appropriation for the Land and Water Conservation Fund, an allocation that has been raided for deficit reduction nearly every year since it was set by Congress in 1977, and given Americans' enthusiasm for protecting open spaces, Congress should pass the bill.
New York Times; Nov. 10
Wyoming's split-estate law appears to be working as planned
When legislators passed the Wyoming Split Estates Act in 2005, some predicted the state would get buried in appeals of bonds required for developers of sub-surface mineral leases, but four years later, only 11 such objections have filed, providing proof that the state's law was done just right.
Casper Star-Tribune; Nov. 10
Utah needs to hold off on Snake Valley water deal with Nevada
A recent Nevada state court decision that found the Nevada state engineer acted arbitrarily and without scientific basis when he allocated water rights in another Silver State basin should give Utah Gov. Gary Herbert all the reason he needs to take a step back from an agreement to divvy up Snake Valley water with Nevada.
Salt Lake Tribune; Nov. 10
Beyond the region
As U.S. dollar falls, oil, gold, Canadian dollar soar
On Monday, the price of gold moved further into record territory, trading at $1,101.40 an ounce; oil moved up $2 a barrel to $79.43 a barrel; and the loonie gained .57 cents to 94.57 cents on the U.S. dollar, which was off more than a full percent from Friday's close.
Financial Post (Toronto); Nov. 10
Berkshire Hathaway to sell UP, Norfolk Southern holdings
Berkshire Hathaway, the conglomerate in which Warren Buffett holds a controlling interest, will sell off its holdings in Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern before it completes its $26-billion deal to buy Burlington Northern Santa Fe.
New York Times; Nov. 10
EPA warns 2 staff lawyers about critical YouTube video
Laurie Williams and Allan Zabel, two Environmental Protection Agency lawyers who are married and based in San Francisco, were told by the EPA to make changes to a YouTube video they had posted that criticized proposed cap-and-trade legislation favored by the Obama administration.
New York Times; Nov. 10
With homes in short supply in Canada, prices rise, building increases
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. said construction of new homes increased 5.4 percent between September and October, as market inventories fell and prices climbed.
Financial Post (Toronto); Nov. 10
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