GREG POSCHMAN, DEMOCRAT
Pitkin County Commissioner - District 3 Candidate
If you could enact one water policy change in Colorado, what would it be? (250 word limit)
Being a lifelong resident of Aspen and the Western Slope, and an advocate for healthy rivers, streams and riparian areas, given carte blanche, I would redirect Colorado water policy to enhance minimum stream flows and increase protections for our threatened headwaters. Senior agricultural and municipal interests are decimating the river I grew up on, the Roaring Fork, which is seriously affected by short-sighted or outdated water policies going back to the early 1900s. Water quality in the Roaring Fork has gone down as the quantity of water has declined, and under current rules the front range water companies can, and have plans to take more. We experienced the first fish kills in my lifetime, due in part to toxic concentrations of pollutants in Grizzly reservoir, and elevated toxicity releases during reservoir maintenance in Lincoln Creek. Rivers are our lifeblood, and our future depends upon healthy streamflows. As a county commissioner, I believe my focus is primarily on the streams flowing in Pitkin County, but I am also active in regional water management and advocacy organizations like NWCOG’s QQ ( Quality and Quantity) Commission, RWAPA ( Ruedi Water and Power), and I have a direct interest in the Colorado River District, Pitkin County Healthy Rivers and Streams and the Colorado Water Roundtable through my work on the Board of County Commissioners.
What outcomes of Colorado River negotiations would you advocate for during your term? (250 word limit)
The Colorado River negotiations are being conducted at a level that I am not directly involved with, and I do not consider myself to be an expert, although I have an interest in the outcomes like all residents of the headwater states. I advocate for reducing the influence of special interests, increasing conservation throughout the lower and upper basins of the Colorado river and for smart planning and decision making processes unfettered by antiquated and inaccurate assumptions made in century-old water agreements. We have modern predictive science and conservation mechanisms today that we did not have when the Colorado River Water Compact was negotiated in 1922, or even at the end of the last century. While our population in the west has dramatically increased, we have not kept up with best practices for managing water and distributing it equitably throughout the natural watersheds and to thirsty populations. Native American tribes may have received the worst end of the deal on water negotiations, and that must change. My hat is off to all the dedicated people who are working on this critically important issue, regardless of their advocacy. This is one of the most complex and critical issues of our lifetimes. There is no doubt in my mind that Colorado water users will be curtailed in the future- and there will be water scarcity for the upper as well as lower basins.
Thankfully some of our best water wonk minds are working on the most benign solutions possible.
Jeffrey Woodruff, DEMOCRAT
Pitkin County Commissioner - District 4 Candidate
If you could enact one water policy change in Colorado, what would it be? (250 word limit)
Our rural recreational resort economy depends on water. But our economy is under threat. Lower groundwater tables result in increased irrigation use by our farmers and ranchers and built landscapes. Instream flows are waning just as we are readying for winter recreation.
I applaud the efforts of the County in managing calls, managing in-stream flows. I applaud irrigators working to protect our watersheds. I applaud open space and trails stewarding both our land and water portfolio. We need the same water stewardship from our growing community.
One policy to enact - reduce consumption through the landscape. Stop overconsumption for aesthetics; reduce non-native grass use. Stop overhead irrigation use eight months of the year. Stop permitting water loss through vanity (non-irrigation) ponds. Reduce domestic water use, plant native species and use water wise irrigation and technology, in order to keep water in the Upper Basin rivers and tributaries.
Nature controls supply, communities manage demand.
What outcomes of Colorado River negotiations would you advocate for during your term? (250 word limit)
The 1922 river law resulted in regional comity. Today our water use has exceeded our allotment. We must protect our wildlife, our habitat and our economy. One of our first priorities should be agricultural vs the growth of municipal and industrial use. We can save water, in the Upper and Lower Basins, by producing more food locally.
Why? Growing food closer to the headwaters is more efficient. Growing food locally reduces system losses in the tributaries and reservoirs. Local agriculture additionally preserves our rural character, open spaces and leaves wilderness unchanged. By not allowing for the conversion of agricultural to municipal or industrial uses we preserve and protect open space and rural character. We conserve water through the use of low water plantings and organic mulch. We conserve land in our basin through planning. Eighty-five percent of Pitkin County land is federal and state lands. Like the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management we need to be environmental stewards of our green fields.
The Colorado River Agreement negotiations must be grounded in changes in use by the Upper Basin. Solve the structural deficits in supply by reducing diversions, adapting to changing ecological conditions and utilizing the melting snowpack closer to the headwaters. New industrial uses and municipalities should be reduced in favor of growing an agricultural base in Colorado. We need to prepare for challenging water years and control our own food production.
Local turnips over trans-basin diversions.
FRANCIE JACOBER, DEMOCRAT
Pitkin County Commissioner - District 5 Candidate
If you could enact one water policy change in Colorado, what would it be? (250 word limit)
As a newly appointed member of the Board of Directors for the Colorado River District, I have been steeped in water issues. I would hope that the Bureau of Reclamation would include the tribal nations in all compensation awards related to forbearance of water left unused in our rivers and include the tribes in all future guideline discussions for the Colorado Compact. In addition, I would promote compensation for all water rights owners who voluntarily and temporarily leave their share of the water in the rivers to maintain in-stream flows and protection of their rights for the future. This would include compensation for fallowing when needed for downstream users or in-stream flow.
What outcomes of Colorado River negotiations would you advocate for during your term? (250 word limit)
I would support efforts to keep waters from our rivers on the West Slope. As a County Commissioner, my jurisdiction includes the Roaring Fork, Frying Pan, and Crystal Rivers. I will continue to work towards a successful designation of the Crystal River as Wild and Scenic. In addition, in negotiations about the flows of all three rivers, I will advocate for policy directions that protect our ability to maintain reasonable water levels that support fish and other riparian species, our recreational uses, and access to the rivers for our wildlife. This could include serious consideration of water availability when considering new developments. When our aquifers are depleted by wells, river flows are adversely affected. Low flows negatively impact aquatic microorganisms, animals, and plants. I am committed to preventing development from creating these negative affects to our rivers.
After several attempts to contact candidates via email and Facebook over a three week period, we did not receive comments from the following candidate for Pitkin County Commissioner: Toni Kronberg (District 5)