PRESS RELEASE: SAVE THE POUDRE TAKES LEGAL ACTION TO STOP NISP!

For Immediate Release August 1, 2018 Contact: Gary Wockner, Save The Poudre, 970-218-8310 Fort Collins, CO: Tonight, the Larimer County Commisioners "TABLED" the Thornton Pipeline application until December 2018. After multiple meetings and public process and testimony, the Commissioners voted unanimously to TABLE Thornton's 1041 permit to run a massive pipeline across northern Larimer County carrying Poudre River water. All three Commissioners said that Thornton did not consider alternatives, especially the 'Poudre River Option'. The Commissioners want more public outreach and information. "Thornton now has a tremendous opportunity to work with, not against, the people of Larimer County and do the right thing for the Poudre River by choosing the 'Poudre River Option'", said Gary Wockner of Save The Poudre. "We'd be delighted to work with the City of Thornton -- as we have told them for 10 years now -- to see them run their water down the Poudre River thereby providing great benefits to the river and the people of Larimer County while still ensuring Thornton's future water supply." **end**   -- Gary Wockner, PhD, Director Save The Poudre: Poudre Waterkeeper Author: "River Warrior: Fighting to Protect the World's Rivers" (2016) PO Box 20, Fort Collins, CO 80522 http://savethepoudre.org http://www.facebook.com/SaveThePoudre https://twitter.com/savethepoudre 970-218-8310

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

April 13, 2020 For Immediate Release Contact: Gary Wockner, Save The Colorado and Save The Poudre, 970-218-8310 Will Colorado's Cratering Economy Impact Ponzi Growth-Scheme Dam Project Financing? Fort Collins: Last week, due to the cratering of Colorado's economy by the coronavirus lockdown, the City of Broomfield, Colorado, announced that it was "furloughing" about 25% of its City workforce (see Broomfield Enterprise story here). At the exact same time, Broomfield is on the financial hook for a massively expensive proposed dam project that would further drain the Colorado River called the "Windy Gap Firming Project". The Windy Gap Firming Project proposes to drain a new 9 billion gallons of water every year out of the Upper Colorado River, and pipe that water to rapidly growing suburbs north of Denver, with Broomfield being the biggest participant in the project. Broomfield's share is 29.4%, wanting 26,464 acre feet of the proposed 90,000 acre feet of water storage in the project (see participants' shares here). Recently, the Longmont Observer (see story here, Longmont is also a participant in the project) reported that the Windy Gap Firming Project applicant, Northern Water, announced that the total cost of the project has now soared to $575 million, which would bring Broomfield's share to $169.05 million. Many of the project participants intend to issue debt, via revenue bonds, that would be paid back by future growth and ever-rising water rates on residents. "The debt financing for this and other dam projects in Colorado is all based on a ponzi scheme of growth," said Gary Wockner, Director of Save The Colorado. "With the cratering of the economy, and a likely recession with stalled growth, all of these projects may face huge financial headwinds as well as continued legal challenges." The Windy Gap Firming Project is currently being litigated and still pending in federal district court in Denver. Back in October of 2017, six conservation organizations, led by Save The Colorado, filed a lawsuit against the agencies that gave the project permits -- the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. One of the claims in the lawsuit is that the cost of water conservation and alternatives to the dam project were not adequately considered in the federal Environmental Impact Statement process. "Water conservation, reuse, and recycling is cheaper, easier, and faster than any new dam project," said Wockner. "And, those alternatives require little or no debt financing, aren't subject to boom-and-bust ponzi growth-schemes, and don't get challenged in court by environmentalists because they don't drain and destroy rivers." Other dam projects in Colorado may be at even more risk. The proposed "Northern Integrated Supply Project" (NISP), which would further dam and destroy the Cache la Poudre River through Fort Collins, is even more expensive -- estimated to be at least $1.2 billion -- and would serve small towns mostly in Weld County which has experienced a complete economic meltdown because of the crashing of oil prices. Weld County is the most heavily drilled and fracked…