Hi Poudre River Lovers, We killed it once, but Thornton's ZOMBIE pipeline is back again! Next week on April 10th, there will be a hearing at the Larimer County Planning Commission. On April 22nd, there will be a final hearing in front of the Larimer County Commissioners. We have dissected the application and provided comments to the Planning Commission. Our comments are posted here. A summary of our comments: This new application has changed very little from the previous application in 2018. It's a waste of Larimer County's time to even consider this application when there is no significant benefit to the County. Further, the former Larimer County Commissioners denied the application, and then Thornton lost in court, twice. This new application should meet the same demise. Larimer County's Land Use Code requires that applicants must "FIRST AVOID" negative impacts to the County, its citizens, and its natural resources. Instead of avoiding those impacts, Thornton's application tries to "mitigate" impacts. Using the "Poudre River Option," Thornton must send its water down the Poudre River instead of putting the water in a pipeline, an option that would AVOID all impacts in Larimer County. Thornton could've sent its water down the Poudre River 10 or 20 years ago WITHOUT even needing a permit from Larimer County, and so its not Larimer County's fault, or Save The Poudre's, that Thornton doesn't already have this water. The application provides almost no material benefit to the County and its residents which is required by the Land Use Code. Thornton must choose the "Poudre River Option" which sends the water down the Poudre and would provide the following benefits to help restore and heal the Poudre River: The river water would be cooler which would benefit native fish and people recreating in the river. The higher flow would help flush sediment and mud out of the river channel. Trout could more easily spawn in a cleaner riverbed of sand and gravel. Less algae would grow on the riverbed and on rocks, making the river safer for people. Less water treatment and expense might be needed by the City’s wastewater treatment plant, and city-wide stormwater runoff would have less negative impact on water quality in the river. Wetlands would be helped to flourish along the river providing more bird and wildlife habitat. Cottonwoods and willows would be helped to flourish along the river. Recreational opportunities, including those at the new Whitewater Park, would be enhanced. Flooding impacts may decrease. The river would be more beautiful. Hearing dates with the Planning Commission and County Commissioners: Sign up to speak through the Larimer County website here. Planning Commission - Wednesday April 10 Board of County Commissioners - Monday April 22 All meetings will start at 6 p.m. and will have a hybrid format. In person: 200 W. Oak St. and via Zoom (link to be provided) In addition to showing up for the Hearings, writing letters to the Planning Commission and the County Commissioners is important! Write letters to John…
Poudre River Update:
Hello Poudre River Lovers! Thank you for your support!
We are pushing hard on every single lever to protect and restore the Cache la Poudre River.
First, NISP DOES NOT HAVE A PERMIT TO BEGIN CONSTRUCTION!
Many of you have reached out to see what’s going on with the apparent construction in the valley where Glade Reservoir might be built. Please know that we are paying close attention and consulting with our legal team constantly.
The digging at the proposed site for Glade Reservoir is deemed by the Army Corps of Engineers to be “pre-construction” and “test hole drilling” that does not require a permit from the Corps. NISP is doing this work on land that NISP owns, and while it is very concerning to everyone, including all the neighbors, we talked at length with our legal team and there’s no way we can stop it.
Northern Water, which is building the Chimney Hollow Reservoir west of Loveland right now, did similar pre-construction work at that site. After we filed the lawsuit against Northern and the Corps’ after the permit came out, all of the construction at Chimney Hollow stopped.
We are very vigilant about everything that’s going on at the Glade site, and we are in constant communication with our legal team. We are nearly 100% likely to file a lawsuit against the Corps and Northern when the NISP permit is released. We expect the Corps to release the permit any day, and our legal team is poised with pens ready to fight and file.
Second, recall that we sued the former Larimer County Commissioners for giving a permit for NISP, and that lawsuit is still playing out in state court in Larimer County. We believe we have a strong case and our legal team is fighting hard to get the best outcome.
So far, the judge has not acted on any motions, and hasn’t issued any kind of rulings. It could take a year or more for this lawsuit to play out.
Third, our intervention in the lawsuit to stop the proposed Thornton Pipeline recently had a hearing in front of the state court of appeals in Denver. We are expecting a ruling in the coming weeks or months. Recall, the Larimer County Commissioners denied a permit to Thornton, then Thornton sued the County. Thornton lost in state district court and has now appealed to the state court of appeals.
Fourth, we continue to be engaged in the preparation of the City of Fort Collins’ new “1041 regulations” that will apply to NISP. We’ve provided many comments to the Council and the staff, and we are waiting for a final draft that will be on the City Council agenda in October or November. These regs are very important to protect the Poudre River as well as the Natural Areas all the way through Fort Collins.
PLEASE KNOW – Your past support has made all of the difference in our ability to engage in these battles, and your current and future support is what will keep us fighting hard. We’ve been girding for this legal action for 19 years.
Every $25 or $50 makes a real difference. If you can afford $100 or $250 or more, that’s great too! All donations are tax deductible
Please donate on our website at:
http://www.savethepoudre.org/take-action/donate/
Thank you for your support!
Mark Easter and Gary Wockner, Save The Poudre