Press Releases

For Immediate Release
January 18, 2021

Contact: Gary Wockner, Save The Poudre, 970-218-8310

Save The Poudre Sues Larimer County Over NISP Decision

Fort Collins: Last week, one day before the new Larimer County Commissioners were sworn in, Save The Poudre and co-plaintiffs No Pipe Dream and Save Rural NoCo served Larimer County with a lawsuit alleging that:

• First, Commissioners Donnelly and Johnson had publicly advocated for NISP for a decade, and thus they were biased and should not have participated in, or voted on, the NISP 1041 permit. That bias violates both the Larimer County land use code and the Colorado Constitution which requires “unbiased” decision-making on 1041 permits.
• Second, the decision by the two-member majority of the Commission (Donnelly and Johnson) to give NISP a permit violated multiple criteria of the Larimer County land use code.

The lawsuit is posted here.

Larimer County Commissioner John Kefalas, who was appointed to be “Chair” of the Commission the day after Save The Poudre served the lawsuit, voted against the permit. Further, the new Commission – including Kefalas and newly elected Commissioners Kristin Stephens and Jody Shadduck-McNally – will now manage the County’s response to the lawsuit.

“We are suing Larimer County because Donnelly and Johnson should not have participated in, or voted on, the NISP permit, as well as their final illegal ruling to approve the NISP 1041 permit,” said Gary Wockner of Save The Poudre.

Similar to a change of administrations when a new President gets elected, as is occurring right now in the U.S., the new Larimer County Commission has many options for how it can handle the illegal actions and decisions of the previous Commissioners as well as lawsuits against the County.

“We call on this new Larimer County Commission to reconsider the illegal actions and decisions of the previous Commission,” continued Wockner. “NISP would be the biggest and most environmentally damaging project in Larimer County history, and throughout the County permitting process over 90% of public comments opposed NISP.”

This press release is posted here.

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November 4, 2020
For Immediate Release
Contact Gary Wockner, 970-218-8310, Save The Poudre

Save The Poudre Will Sue To Overturn Larimer County’s Biased NISP Decision

Fort Collins: Today the Larimer County Commission finalized its “Findings and Resolution (posted here)” (“F & R”) for the 1041 permit for the Northern Integrated Supply Project (NISP). On a 2 – 1 vote, the F & R was ratified by biased, lame-duck Commissioners Tom Donnelly and Steve Johnson, with Commissioner John Kefalas opposed.

Also today, Save The Poudre directed its legal team to accelerate the legal battle against Larimer County to overturn this illegal and biased decision by these two commissioners.

First, Save The Poudre will continue pursuing its lawsuit against Commissioners Donnelly and Johnson, arguing their bias in the decision process. In violation of the Larimer County Land Use Code and Colorado Constitution, both Donnelly and Johnson voted on the NISP permit — a quasi-judicial decision process — when they had already and repeatedly stated their biased support for NISP.

Second, Save The Poudre will soon be filing a new lawsuit against the County, arguing that the County’s 1041 permit for NISP violates the Larimer County Land Use Code on multiple grounds.

Third, in the coming weeks and months, Save The Poudre will seek all available remedies to overturn the County’s illegal and biased NISP decision.

“NISP would drain and destroy the Cache la Poudre River through Fort Collins, and is thus the most disastrous and environmentally destructive project in Larimer County history. Any decision about NISP should reflect the future of the County, not the past,” said Gary Wockner, director of Save The Poudre. “We will do everything possible to overturn this illegal, biased decision by these two lame-duck commissioners.”

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September 2, 2020
For Immediate Release
Contact: Gary Wockner, Save The Poudre, 970-218-8310

Save The Poudre Will Sue To Overturn Illegal Larimer County Permit For NISP

Fort Collins, CO: Tonight after 17 years, the Larimer County Commissioners voted 2 – 1 to “approve” the 1041 application for the Northern Integrated Supply Project (NISP). The Commissioners’ vote defies over 95% of public comments opposing NISP and requesting a denial, and defies all the science and scientists engaged around the Poudre River weighing in against NISP. Further and most importantly, the vote occurred under clear and compelling evidence that the application violated the Larimer County Land Use Code.

Further yet, the two Commissioners who voted for the project — Johnson and Donnelly — had already been asked to recuse themselves, and were sued when they refused to recuse themselves, because they had publicly and loudly supported the project for at least a decade while sitting as elected Larimer County Commissioners. (The court ruled that the lawsuit should take place after tonight’s vote.) Both the Larimer County Land Use Code and the Colorado Constitution require that County Commissioners sit in a “quasi-judicial” position (as judges) during 1041 permit process and are thus not allowed to publicly take a position about a project.

Commissioner John Kefalas voted to deny the permit.

“The Poudre River will be irrevocably damaged if NISP is built,” said Gary Wockner. “In addition, the Commissioners were given clear evidence that the NISP application violates the land use code, including several of the 12 criteria, and as such this application absolutely should have been denied.”

“Further,” continued Wockner, “it’s also clear that Commissioners Johnson and Donnelly should not have voted at all, because doing so violated the Colorado Constitution as well as the Larimer County Land Use Code, given their prejudice and bias in favor of the project over the past decade.”

“Finally, because it violates the land use code, this decision to throw the public, the science, and the Poudre River under the bus is subject to ‘judicial review’,” said Wockner, “and as such, we fully expect to challenge this illegal decision in state district court as soon as possible.”

This press release is posted here.

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-- 
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
Tweets by SaveThePoudre
970-218-8310

August 14, 2020
For Immediate Release
Contact: Gary Wockner, Save The Poudre, 970-218-8310

Citizen Groups Say Larimer County Commissioners Donnelly and Johnson Must Recuse From NISP Vote

Fort Collins, CO: Today, citizens groups including Save The Poudre, No Pipe Dream, and Save Rural NoCo informed the Larimer County Commissioners that Commissioners Donnelly and Johnson must recuse themselves from the hearings for the 1041 permit for the Northern Integrated Supply Project (NISP). The hearings are set to commence on August 17th.

The 1041 permit process is “quasi-judicial” and as such both the Larimer County land use code and the Colorado constitution prohibit sitting commissioners from taking a position on NISP prior to the hearings because they have to “judge” the permit application from an unbiased viewpoint. Both Donnelly and Johnson have supported NISP in public statements, attended NISP rallies, and endorsed the project for at least a decade.

The citizens groups filed a “petition” with the commissioners that included a letter, a formal listing of the legal background including a lawsuit filed in Larimer County district court, and 26 exhibits where Commissioners Donnelly and Johnson made statements supporting NISP. One exhibit includes a post from Commissioner Donnelly’s facebook page where he’s speaking at a NISP rally and commenting in support of NISP (left).

“Both the Larimer County land use code and the Colorado constitution require that county commissioners not have taken a position prior to a hearing and quasi-judicial 1041 permit,” said Gary Wockner, director of Save The Poudre. “Both Commissioners Donnelly and Johnson have public supported, and been listed as endorsers for, NISP for at least a decade, and therefore are biased. As such, they must recuse themselves from the hearings.”

The citizen groups argue that when the hearings commence on August 17th at 6:30pm, the first order of business will be to address the petition that requires the recusal of both Donnelly and Johnson. The groups also argue that the County should delay the hearing process until after the 2020 election when two new commissioners on the 3-member board are seated replacing both Donnelly and Johnson who are term-limited.

This press release is posted here.

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June 11, 2020
For Immediate Release
Contact: Gary Wockner, Save The Poudre, 970-218-8310

Fort Collins: Last night, the City of Fort Collins “Land Conservation and Stewardship Board” (LCSB), which advises the City Council on the management of the City’s thousands of acres of protected Open Space and Natural Areas, sent a tersely worded memo (link here) to the City Council advising the Council take urgent action to oppose the massive proposed dam called the Northern Integrated Supply Project (“NISP”).  The memo describes staggering negative impacts that NISP would cause to the Natural Areas along the Poudre River including:

• “NISP’s removal of water from the river will, quite simply, dehydrate our Natural Areas’ ecological resources and degrade them; hundred-year-old trees will die, understory plants will shift to more drought tolerant species, biodiversity will decrease, and forest- and wetland-dependent animals will disappear.”

The memo reminds the City Council that the citizens of Fort Collins tax themselves to buy these Natural Areas, most recently by a city-wide vote in 2014 with 82% supporting the taxation. The memo further states:

• “The citizens of Fort Collins, as they have invested in Natural Areas, have believed that those areas and their ecological resources and recreational opportunities would be protected in perpetuity. In the opinion of this Board, perpetuity ends on the day that NISP bulldozers arrive to divert water from the Poudre River.”

Finally, the memo calls for “urgent” action by the City Council to “actively oppose NISP”:

• “Active opposition, led by City Council, is urgently needed. If there is no change in position, and if NISP is implemented, then ecological and recreational treasures will be injured beyond repair. Fort Collins can join other entities in opposing NISP under Federal and State permitting processes, and this Board urges Council to do so without delay.”

“The Land Conservation and Stewardship Board is entrusted to manage and watchdog these great resources for the future of all citizens,” said Gary Wockner, Director of Save The Poudre. “Active opposition to NISP is needed right now — through the County, State, and Federal permitting processes — and we strongly urge the Fort Collins City Council to take the Board’s advice.”

Permit Status Update:

1. The Colorado State permit was given to NISP in January 2020. Save The Poudre has appealed that decision to the Colorado Water Quality Control Commission. The final hearing is scheduled for November.
2. Larimer County has begun its permit process with hearings in June, July, and August (see hearing schedule here).
3. The Record of Decision from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permitting process is expected in later 2020.

“We’ve been fighting to stop NISP for 17 years and we’re going to sprint through the finish line with enormous support from the people of Fort Collins and Larimer County, with a great team of scientists and attorneys, and with the vision for protecting the river in perpetuity for the entire community to enjoy,” said Wockner

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April 20, 2020
PRESS RELEASE
Contact: Gary Wockner, Save The Poudre, 970-218-8310

Save The Poudre and Neighborhood Groups Challenge Larimer County’s “Completeness” of NISP Application

Fort Collins: On Friday, April 17, Save The Poudre and two neighborhood groups — Save Rural NoCo and No Pipedream — filed a formal appeal with the Larimer County land use director requesting a reversal of the County determination that Northern Water’s NISP application is “complete”.   (the appeal is posted here). The 10-page appeal lists numerous issues completely ignored by the NISP application that Save The Poudre and neighborhood groups claim are required by Larimer County’s land use regulations.

The issues ignored in the application include a broad range of serious violations of regulations, including the evaluation of:

• the lack of  a permit for the “realignment” of Highway 287,
• the lack of water rights to operate the project,
• inconsistency with the County Master Plan,
• the complete lack of an alternatives analysis,
• the impact on public health and safety,
• the inability of the County to fund the project,
• the impact on the Cache la Poudre River of draining vast amounts of its water,
• the project relies on a huge farm-buying scheme that the Army Corps said was not feasible and too expensive,
• noise caused by power boats and recreation at the proposed Glade Reservoir,
• and the lack of mitigation.

The challenge requires that the County Director of Community Development, Lesli Ellis, respond and either reverse the completeness determination or counter the challenge with justifications.

“Everything NISP does continues to be a half-baked billion-dollar boondoggle,” said Gary Wockner, Director of Save The Poudre. “Larimer County will be held to the strict letter of the law in its own land use regulations if this permit process moves forward.”

Just last week, Save The Poudre challenged and appealed the State’s “Water Quality Certification” for NISP. The 17-year battle over NISP will likely reach its peak in 2020, with potential legal battles at the County, State, and Federal level.

“We’ve been girding for this battle for 17 years,” said Gary Wockner. “We intend to run through the tape in a full sprint to keep the Poudre River healthy and flowing.”

***end***

April 15, 2020
For Immediate Release
Contact: Gary Wockner, Save The Poudre, 970-218-8310

SAVE THE POUDRE TAKES LEGAL ACTION TO STOP NISP!

Fort Collins: Today, Save The Poudre took legal action to stop the Northern Integrated Supply Project (NISP) by filing an “appeal” against the State of Colorado which gave NISP a “401 Water Quality Certification” in February. The State permit is one of three permits NISP needs, the other two have not yet been granted from Larimer County and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Save The Poudre’s appeal (posted here) alleges thirteen violations of State regulations. The Top Five violations are:

1. No water rights – plan to fill Glade Reservoir requires buying hundreds of farms in Weld County, whereas only a few farms have been bought.
2. Fails to take into account climate change and its reduction in streamflow in the Poudre River.
3. Mitigation won’t occur until full build-out, maybe 30 years in the future.
4. Mitigation doesn’t allow for peak flows to clean out the river and restore the riparian forest through Fort Collins.
5. Fails to quantify any requirements to meet state water quality standards and relies on nebulous “adaptive management”.

“NISP is a half-baked billion-dollar boondoggle,” said Gary Wockner, Director of Save The Poudre. “We’ve been fighting this project for 17 years and we are proud to take legal action today to stop it.”

A Press Release Video is posted on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=657579431749602

The State permit was given by the staff at the Water Quality Control Division. The appeal now goes to the “Water Quality Control Commission” appointed by Governor Polis. The appeal process will play out in the coming months.

NISP is proposed to drain tens-of-billions of gallons of water out of the Poudre River through Fort Collins, specifically during the peak flow months of May and June where up to 50% of the water would be drained out including at the new Whitewater Park in downtown Fort Colins. The river already has about 65% of its water drained out — if NISP is built, the river would increasingly resemble a slow-moving ditch through Fort Collins.

This press release is posted here.

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April 13, 2020

For Immediate Release
March 24,2020
Contact: Gary Wockner, Save The Poudre, 970-218-8310

PRESS RELEASE: Larimer County Unleashes 42-Day Permitting Process For Massive Proposed Dam Amidst Pandemic

Fort Collins: Today, the Larimer County Commissioners created a 42-day permitting process for the biggest, most environmentally destructive, most controversial project in Larimer County history, all amidst the global coronavirus pandemic that has paralyzed Colorado’s government and economy. The first public hearing is set for May 6th.

The permitting documents made publicly available today include 62 highly technical documents totaling 911 pages (see County webpage here), which is the culmination of a 17-year process to create a permit for the proposed “Northern Integrated Supply Project” (NISP), a massive proposed dam and pipeline project that would further drain and destroy the Cache la Poudre River through Fort Collins.

NISP proposes a massive dam and reservoir near homes that adamantly oppose it, a highway relocation near neighbors that oppose it, and two huge pipelines, one of which would go through neighborhoods that vehemently oppose it.

In fact, just last year, hundreds of neighbors and Fort Collins citizens turned out for multiple public hearings against the Thornton Pipeline which would have gone along the exact same route proposed by NISP (Above: a photo of public participants at one of the hearings). The Larimer County Commissioners unanimously denied the Thornton Pipeline and the project is now in court.

The permitting process for NISP — called a “1041 permit” — is proposed exactly when Governor Polis has ordered statewide “social distancing” and the closure of businesses, and when — just yesterday — the Larimer County Dept of Public Health said it was considering a county-wide “shelter-in-home” order (see Coloradoan story today here).

“The Larimer County Commissioners must indefinitely suspend this 1041 permitting process for NISP until the pandemic passes and the public engagement process can be normalized,” said Gary Wockner, director of Save The Poudre. “The public participation window of 42 days is insanely short for this massive technical project, and creating this public process for this extremely controversial project during the coronavirus pandemic violates all standards of government ethics and transparency, and likely violates Larimer County landuse regulations requiring public participation.”

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July 14, 2019
For Immediate Release
Contact: Gary Wockner, Save The Poudre, 970-218-8310

Judge Allows Save The Poudre To Intervene Against Thornton Pipeline

Poudre River, Colorado: Today, State District Court Judge, JUAN G. VILLASEÑOR, issued an order allowing for Save The Poudre to “intervene” in the lawsuit the City of Thornton is waging against Larimer County about the proposed Thornton Pipeline (the order is posted here). Thornton opposed Save The Poudre’s intervention and formally motioned the court against it. The neighborhood group, “No Pipedream”, was also allowed to intervene in the same order.

“We are pleased with the court’s decision and, to the best of our ability, we will defend the Larimer County Commissioners’ decision to stop the Thornton Pipeline and send the water down the Poudre River through Fort Collins,” said Gary Wockner, director of Save The Poudre. “The Poudre River is already degraded by dams, diversions, and pipelines — adding this water to the river will increase the river’s health and make the river cleaner for all Larimer County residents to enjoy.”

The court case is expected to play out of the next 6 – 12 months as attorneys for Larimer County, Save The Poudre, and No Pipedream will all now defend the decision by the Larimer County Commissioners. Thornton has fought a bitter, expensive, and so-far losing battle to build their pipeline while other alternatives exist including the “Poudre River Option” which was discussed at length during the year-long permitting battle that Thornton lost.

“We should all be collaborating about how Thornton can get water and how we can restore the Poudre River, rather than fighting in court,” said Wockner. “Thornton is wasting millions of dollars of its citizens’ money, continuing to anger Larimer County residents, and wasting everyone’s time.”

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