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…
PRESS RELEASE: With Compromise Denied, Save The Poudre Files Federal Lawsuit Against Army Corps For Giving Permit To NISP
1/26/2024
For Immediate Release
Contact: Gary Wockner, Save The Poudre, 970-218-8310
With Compromise Denied, Save The Poudre Files Federal Lawsuit Against Army Corps For Giving Permit To NISP
Fort Collins: Yesterday, Save The Poudre filed a lawsuit in federal district court in Denver against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (“Corps”) for giving a 2023 permit to the Northern Integrated Supply Project (“NISP). The lawsuit comes in the 20th year of bungled and massively delayed permitting for the NISP boondoggle which was proposed to cost $143.9 million in 2005 permitting documents, but was recently revealed to cost $2.25 billion in a 2023 Colorado Open Records Act filing.
NISP proposes to divert a very large amount of water out of the Cache la Poudre River in Larimer County which would cause severe damage to the River, the aquatic life in the River, the new Poudre River Whitewater Park in downtown Fort Collins, as well as to the riparian corridor through Fort Collins and downstream. In some months and years, NISP would divert 65% of what water is left in the River which is already heavily diverted by farms and cities.
The lawsuit alleges that the Army Corps violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Clean Water Act when the Corps gave a permit to NISP. Throughout the nearly 20 years of the federal permitting process, NISP claimed that it required 40,000 acre feet of water, and thus screened out many smaller and less environmentally damaging alternatives that could’ve met the needs of the participants, including conservation alternatives proposed by Save The Poudre.
The lawsuit is posted here.
And then, in a 2021 hail-Mary attempt to get a massive $464 million bailout from the U.S. taxpayer through a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) loan program, NISP revealed in the application that it only needed 20,000 acre feet of water and could get by building only half of the project for now. A smaller half-sized project would’ve required a completely different NEPA analysis revealing smaller and much less environmentally damaging alternatives, including more conservation options.
The half of the project that would be built with the EPA loan was the Glade Reservoir complex in Larimer County, while the other half of the project, the Galeton Reservoir complex in Weld County, would be put on hold due to the exorbitant cost overruns. The cost overruns that catapulted NISP to $2.25 billion didn’t even include the cost of buying, or buying out, thousands of acres of irrigated farms in Weld County for Galeton Reservoirs’ so-called “water secure” program. The loan application to the EPA was filled out and signed by the NISP project manager, and it included declaring that any false information in it was subject to criminal prosecution.
In 2022, Save The Poudre publicly announced a “compromise” that would allow NISP to be built if it sent all of its water downstream in the Poudre River in Larimer County instead of draining the river and diverting the water out into pipelines. Save The Poudre deemed the compromise a “nature-based solution” that would protect the River in Larimer County but allow the water to be diverted out of the River in Windsor and/or Greeley. NISP refused to compromise and stuck to its 20-year old plan to further drain and destroy the Poudre River in Larimer County.
“It’s outrageous that NISP refuses to compromise to benefit the River and the vast majorities of people of Fort Collins and Larimer County who love the River,” said Gary Wockner, director of Save The Poudre. “After 20 years, we now have no choice but to file this lawsuit and let it play out in court which will likely take several more years.”
NISP still needs a 1041 permit from the City of Fort Collins to run a massive pipeline through the City’s Natural Areas, a permit that was denied back in 2021 by the City’s Planning Commission. The City’s 1041 permit process hasn’t even started yet. The Fort Collins City Council has voted to oppose NISP several times, most recently in 2020. Save The Poudre is also in state court against the former Larimer County Commissioners who gave a 1041 permit to NISP in 2020.
Save The Poudre is represented in this case by the public interest law firm Eubanks & Associates, PLLC.
This press release is posted here.
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