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White River call ‘significant’ for water users
A water conservancy district has put a call on the White River, an action that has the potential to alter the system for other water users. On Dec. 1, the Rangely-based Rio Blanco Water Conservancy District placed a call for its water right of 620 cubic feet per second at the Taylor Draw Dam hydroelectric plant, which the district owns and operates. It is only the second-ever call on the White River. A call occurs when a water rights holder isn’t getting the full amount of water to which they are entitled and upstream water users are shut off or “curtailed” so that the downstream user can get their full amount.
Data dashboard: Roaring Fork Basin snowpack up 38% since last week
Aspen Journalism is compiling a data dashboard highlighting metrics of local public interest, updated weekly. Snowpack at Indy Pass has increased by 45% since last week. Snowpack in the Roaring Fork basin reached 120.5% of average for Dec. 4 with 4.7 inches of snow-water equivalent, according to NOAA. SNOTEL sites...
With $2.4 million purchase, nonprofit is testing ‘intervention model’ to keep trailer parks out of private equity’s hands
A Carbondale-based social justice nonprofit group this week went under contract to buy a 20-unit mobile-home park outside of Glenwood Springs for $2.4 million in an attempt to buck the trend of displacement and affordable-housing destruction at the hands of private-equity groups buying Colorado parks. The Roaring Fork Community Development...
Studies tackle water-replacement options for shortages on Crystal River
A study of a water replacement plan on the Crystal River is looking at nature-based solutions, but experts say some type of storage will also probably need to be built to solve shortages in dry years. Wendy Ryan, an engineer with Colorado River Engineering who is heading up an analysis...
Data dashboard: Basin snowpack is 106% of average as temperatures chill
Aspen Journalism is compiling a data dashboard highlighting metrics of local public interest, updated weekly. Snowpack in the Roaring Fork basin reached 106% of average for Nov. 27 with 3.4 inches of snow-water equivalent, according to NOAA. SNOTEL sites that monitor snowfall throughout the winter measured the snowpack at Independence...
Habitat for Humanity eyes manufacturing homes locally as future housing solution
Habitat for Humanity of the Roaring Fork Valley is attempting to build a modular home manufacturing plant so that it can scale up its pace of affordable housing development and more aggressively combat the housing crisis rippling from Aspen to Parachute. The initiative, for which Habitat is now seeking investors,...
Lift One Corridor hotel developers say they are working together
Editor’s note: This story is the result of a collaboration between Aspen Journalism and Aspen Public Radio. The four major stakeholders in the Lift One Corridor project at the base of Aspen Mountain have long agreed that construction of the two planned hotels, a new lift, a new base area on city land and ski museum should be sequenced in a way that minimizes the disruption to the skiing public.
RWAPA unveils valley-wide outdoor watering standards
In an effort to unify the Roaring Fork watershed, a local agency has developed valley-wide outdoor watering standards that its board members hope will be adopted by municipal water providers. Last week the Ruedi Water and Power Authority board, which is made up of representatives from local towns and counties,...
Four things to know about the lower Colorado River basin
Staff and board members from the Glenwood Springs-based Colorado River Water Conservation District, along with other water managers from across western Colorado, this month visited the lower basin states — Nevada, Arizona and California — on what they called a fact-finding trip. The tour took participants by bus...
Data dashboard: Early snowpack remains above average
Aspen Journalism is compiling a data dashboard highlighting metrics of local public interest, updated weekly. Snowpack in the Roaring Fork basin reached 147% of average for Nov. 13 with 2.8 inches of snow-water equivalent, according to NOAA. SNOTEL sites that monitor snowfall throughout the winter measured the snowpack at Independence...
Aspen’s water use stays steady
Since 2017, the city of Aspen’s water use has remained steady, illustrating the difficulty of reducing consumption through voluntary conservation measures amid continued growth and the effects of climate change. According to numbers provided by city staff, total metered accounts for water use between 2017 and 2021 hovered between...
Data dashboard: Snowpack is back and above average in the Roaring Fork basin
Aspen Journalism is compiling a data dashboard highlighting metrics of local public interest, updated weekly. Early Roaring Fork Basin snowpack is above average and up from last year. After last week’s snowfall, snowpack in the Roaring Fork basin reached 185% of average for Nov. 6 with 2.6 inches of snow-water...
Data dashboard: September occupancy in Aspen and Snowmass hotels is down from 2021
Aspen Journalism is compiling a data dashboard highlighting metrics of local public interest, updated weekly on Tuesdays. September occupancy in Aspen and Snowmass down from last year. Paid occupancy in Aspen reached 68.4% in September, slightly down from 68.5% last year. Snowmass recorded 50.5% paid occupancy, down from 2021’s 56%,...
Out-of-district fundraising a key source for Boebert, as Frisch gains ground in third quarter
In the race to represent Colorado’s Western Slope in Congress, contributions from outside the sprawling, mostly rural 3rd Congressional District, have powered incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, while challenger Adam Frisch has relied heavily on his hometown of Aspen, as well as his personal wealth, to fund his campaign. But an acceleration in donations for the Democrat in the third quarter showed that he too can raise significant sums from outside the district.
Data dashboard: Construction skews car count data, but July numbers were down
Aspen Journalism is compiling a data dashboard highlighting metrics of local public interest, updated weekly on Tuesdays. September 2022 saw the lowest vehicle counts of the past 20 years due to construction. While the city counted more cars this winter passing through the intersection of Highway 82 and Cemetery Lane...
Data dashboard: Aspen’s September precipitation was below average
Aspen Journalism is compiling a data dashboard highlighting metrics of local public interest, updated weekly on Tuesdays. September’s 1.3 inches of rain was just below average, as measured at Aspen airport. Precipitation measured at Aspen airport was below average in September 2022, with a total of 1.3 inches compared...
Recreation groups ask for more inclusion in state Water Plan
Colorado’s river recreation community is asking for more recognition in the update to the state’s Water Plan. In a Sept. 30 comment letter addressed to the Colorado Water Conservation Board Director Rebecca Mitchell and Gov. Jared Polis, a group of recreation, environmental conservation organizations and local businesses ask for river recreation to play a more prominent role in the roadmap for Colorado’s water future.
Data dashboard: Lake Powell’s elevation has gained one foot
Aspen Journalism is compiling a data dashboard highlighting metrics of local public interest, updated weekly on Tuesdays. River levels in the Roaring Fork basin dropped over the last week as dry conditions returned to the region. Below Maroon Creek, the USGS gauge measured streamflow at 132 cfs on Oct. 9,...
Stream restoration projects focused on beavers present ‘unsettled’ issue
State officials are working to address a tension that has arisen alongside the growing popularity of stream restoration projects that aim to keep water on the landscape by mimicking beaver activity. There’s no doubt that North America’s largest rodent is good for riparian ecosystems. By building dams that pool water,...
Data dashboard: River levels rose this weekend after recent rainfall
Aspen Journalism is compiling a data dashboard highlighting metrics of local public interest, updated weekly on Tuesdays. This weekend’s rainfall boosted local streamflow. River levels in the Roaring Fork basin spiked on Oct. 2 as rain fell on the valley. Below Maroon Creek, the USGS gauge measured streamflow at...
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