PRESSER: State Must Investigate, Reveal Cause of Fish Kill on Poudre River

For Immediate Release
Oct. 1, 2018
Contact: Gary Wockner, Save The Poudre, 970-218-8310

State Must Investigate, Reveal Cause of Fish Kill on the Poudre River

Fort Collins: Recent news reports have indicated that the fish kill on the Poudre River through Fort Collins has wiped out thousands of fish (see Sept 28 Coloradoan story here). Further, one of the prevailing hypotheses for the kills is warmer temperatures and lower flows in the Poudre River. Further yet, warmer temperatures and lower flows may be the exact future for the Poudre River as climate change intensifies and if the Northern Integrated Supply Project (NISP) is built.

“The State must fully investigate and reveal the cause of this fish kill,” said Gary Wockner of Save The Poudre. “If it is related to warmer temperatures and lower flows, then climate change and NISP could turn the river through Fort Collins into a muddy, stinking, dead ditch, not a river ever again.”

About 63% of the water in the Poudre River is already drained out by cities and farmers before the river reaches downtown Fort Collins. If the Northern Integrated Supply Project is built, about 40% of what’s left of the peak flow of water during May and June will also be drained out (see July 20 press release here). Even worse, the proposed ‘mitigation’ for the huge negative impacts on the health of the river wouldn’t extend downstream past LeMay Avenue in Fort Collins where the fish kill has occurred.

“NISP would basically kill the Poudre River through Fort Collins,” said Wockner. “The State and the Army Corps of Engineers must do a full analysis of the potential impacts of NISP including its low flows and interaction with climate change.”

October 4th is the deadline for comments to the Army Corps of Engineers on the Final Environmental Impact Statement for NISP.

The public can send in comments to the Army Coprs by clicking through to Save The Poudre’s ACTION PAGE HERE.

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Great News, Poudre River Lovers! NISP HAS BEEN DELAYED AGAIN! We recently found out that the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Northern Integrated Supply Project (NISP) has now been delayed until 2018. So, in 2018 that will be the FIFTEENTH YEAR we have been fighting and Stopping NISP. HOORAY! Thank you for all of the support for the last 14 years! Your support has made all of the difference, and we'd be grateful for your support again. Please click here to donate to Save The Poudre: http://savethepoudre.org/donate.html But the news isn't all good. Due to the Trump administration's lock on the federal government, we can almost guarantee that the permitting process for NISP will get fast-tracked in 2018. Further, it’s becoming increasing clear to us that the system is rigged. Over the 14 years of our fighting to stop NISP, we’ve been relentless in providing objective, scientific information to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. However, every time they come out with a new draft of the Environmental Impact Statement, they pretty much blow off our comments and agree with the NISP side of the story. More recently, we provided objective, scientific information to the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission, but they also blew us off and supported the “mitigation plan” for NISP which is filled with loopholes in the even minimal mitigation it proposes. All of that means we are likely headed to court. When our forefathers and foremothers in Congress in the 1960s and 1970s passed laws to protect the environment, they included provisions that allowed for citizens and groups like Save The Poudre to enforce the law. If we feel that the federal and state govt have violated the law, then we can enforce that law by filing lawsuits against those governments. But we can’t be successful without your help. Your financial support has and will continue to make the difference. Every time a public comment period is open in the permitting process, we throw ourselves into it – hiring outside scientific consultants and spending hundreds of hours packing the legal record for the eventual lawsuit. Over the next 12 months, there will be more critical periods where we will once again throw ourselves into it. You have been a great member of the Save The Poudre team for 14 years! We greatly appreciate your support, but more importantly, you’ve allowed us to speak for the Cache la Poudre River in this long, crazy battle to stop NISP and Save The Poudre. Every $10 or $25 makes a real difference. If you can afford $50 or $100 or more, that’s great too! CLICK HERE TO DONATE: http://savethepoudre.org/donate.html Thank you for your support! Mark Easter, Chair of the Board; Gary Wockner, Executive Director

For Immediate Release Save The Poudre: Poudre Waterkeeper Contact: Gary Wockner, Director, 970-218-8310 Groundhog Day On The Poudre River: With Release of NISP FEIS, Nothing Has Changed In 15 Years As Massive Dam Project Would Still Drain The Poudre Through Fort Collins Fort Collins, CO: Today, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released the long-awaited "Final Environmental Impact Statement (link here)" (FEIS) for the "Northern Integrated Supply Project" (NISP), a massive proposed new dam/diversion that would further drain the Cache la Poudre River through Fort Collins. Although 15 years has passed by, nothing has changed -- the project would still dramatically reduce river flows and have huge negative impacts on the river. In fact, right off the bat on page 15 (link here, image below), the FEIS indicates that the NISP "preferred alternative" ("2M") would drain 45% of the water out of the river in May during high-flow periods and 39% of the water in June, the two peak flow months in downtown Fort Collins. Further, these impacts would occur exactly where the City of Fort Collins will begin construction of a new whitewater park this Fall (See graph below for the "Lincoln Gage" which is right across the street from New Belgium Brewing). "It's Groundhog Day on the Poudre River," said Gary Wockner. "Every day for 15 years we've been waking up and nothing has changed -- and now this FEIS clearly indicates, again, that NISP would further drain and destroy the Poudre River through Fort Collins." Further yet, the Poudre River has already had 63% of its water drained out by farms and cities at the same point in the river, and thus this new diversion would dramatically decrease river flows compared to the river's natural state. The FEIS weighs in a 2,272 pages plus 23 additional "technical reports", but the Army Corps has given the public a paltry 45 days to review the massive document. "The first thing we will do is send the Corps a request to extend the public comment period," said Wockner. "And then our team of scientists and attorneys will dig in for our summer of reading." "We've been at this for 15 years, and we are digging in for the home stretch," continued Wockner. "We are bigger, stronger, and better funded than ever, and we will never stop fighting to protect the Poudre." This press release is posted here. ***end*** -- Gary Wockner, PhD, Director Save The Poudre: Poudre Waterkeeper PO Box 20, Fort Collins, CO 80522 http://savethepoudre.org http://www.facebook.com/SaveThePoudre https://twitter.com/savethepoudre 970-218-8310

State Must Investigate, Reveal Cause of Fish Kill on the Poudre River

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Great News, Poudre River Lovers! NISP HAS BEEN DELAYED AGAIN!

PRESS RELEASE: Groundhog Day On The Poudre River: With Release of NISP FEIS, Nothing Has Changed In 15 Years