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GLENWOOD SPRINGS, Colo. — As energy development on the West Slope ratchets up demand for water to run power stations and heat up oil shale, water managers worry about already strapped water resources.
Enacted last June, the Colorado Water for the 21st Century Act created roundtables in each of Colorado's eight river basins and one each in Denver's north and south metro areas, intended to reach agreement on water distribution among the river basins.
State legislation also allocated funds for projects initiated by the roundtables. In December, the Colorado River Basin Roundtable considered eight proposals for project money ranging from water availability studies on the Roaring Fork to development of a whitewater kayaking park near Palisade.
One of the proposals, which will be submitted to the Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB) for funding, is an assessment of potential water needs for energy development in the northwest corner of the state.
"The big concern as energy develops in the state is where the water will come from," said Dave Merritt, chief engineer with the Glenwood Springs-based Colorado River Water Conservation District.
The Yampa/White River and Colorado River roundtable groups joined forces on the project proposal. The collaboration made sense, given the current levels of oil and gas production within those basins, in Rio Blanco and Garfield counties, as well as expected oil shale development.
"There is a fair amount of urgency to move forward with (the study)," said river district project development manager Dan Birch.
Energy development, whether natural gas, oil shale or coal, will require huge amounts of water. According to the project's grant application, water will be needed for development of the resources, especially for oil shale and electrical generation.
BLM recently issued five research, development and demonstration leases to Chevron, EGL Resources and Shell, all of which are experimenting with a process to release the oil trapped within oil shale by heating the rock to high temperatures.
The U.S. Water Resources Council estimates oil shale development alone will increase demands on the upper
Colorado River by 150,000 acre feet per year. An acre foot - enough water to cover an acre of land one foot deep - is equivalent to the average amount of water a family of four uses in a year.
For the short term, while the research continues on the BLM leases, power will come from existing plants, Birch said. But when the companies go to commercial production, energy requirements will grow exponentially, necessitating on-site coal or natural gas-fired electrical plants.
Demands on local towns and cities will also increase with the expected influx of thousands of energy workers. According to the grant application, which cited an estimate by the U.S. Department of Energy's National Technology Laboratory, oil shale will bring in 70,000 new workers to Colorado and Utah where that development is expected to take place.
"People assume the West Slope's (water) needs are small," said river district general manager Eric Kuhn. "We're looking at hundreds of thousands of acre feet of water (for energy development). Some people are talking 500,000 acre feet." And future water storage projects will likely be needed to meet those demands.
Future energy needs could also cause problems for agriculture, especially in rural Garfield and Rio Blanco counties. "My concern is, in dry periods agriculture becomes the cushion," said Gunnison rancher and river district board president Bill Trampe. Public policy now gives priority to city and industrial water needs over agriculture.
When shortages arise, "they won't shut down municipal and industrial (uses) but they'll shut down agriculture," he said.
Contact Donna Gray: 945-8515, ext. 16605
dgray@postindependent.com
Post Independent, Glenwood Springs Colorado CO
Enacted last June, the Colorado Water for the 21st Century Act created roundtables in each of Colorado's eight river basins and one each in Denver's north and south metro areas, intended to reach agreement on water distribution among the river basins.
State legislation also allocated funds for projects initiated by the roundtables. In December, the Colorado River Basin Roundtable considered eight proposals for project money ranging from water availability studies on the Roaring Fork to development of a whitewater kayaking park near Palisade.
One of the proposals, which will be submitted to the Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB) for funding, is an assessment of potential water needs for energy development in the northwest corner of the state.
"The big concern as energy develops in the state is where the water will come from," said Dave Merritt, chief engineer with the Glenwood Springs-based Colorado River Water Conservation District.
The Yampa/White River and Colorado River roundtable groups joined forces on the project proposal. The collaboration made sense, given the current levels of oil and gas production within those basins, in Rio Blanco and Garfield counties, as well as expected oil shale development.
"There is a fair amount of urgency to move forward with (the study)," said river district project development manager Dan Birch.
Energy development, whether natural gas, oil shale or coal, will require huge amounts of water. According to the project's grant application, water will be needed for development of the resources, especially for oil shale and electrical generation.
BLM recently issued five research, development and demonstration leases to Chevron, EGL Resources and Shell, all of which are experimenting with a process to release the oil trapped within oil shale by heating the rock to high temperatures.
The U.S. Water Resources Council estimates oil shale development alone will increase demands on the upper
Colorado River by 150,000 acre feet per year. An acre foot - enough water to cover an acre of land one foot deep - is equivalent to the average amount of water a family of four uses in a year.
For the short term, while the research continues on the BLM leases, power will come from existing plants, Birch said. But when the companies go to commercial production, energy requirements will grow exponentially, necessitating on-site coal or natural gas-fired electrical plants.
Demands on local towns and cities will also increase with the expected influx of thousands of energy workers. According to the grant application, which cited an estimate by the U.S. Department of Energy's National Technology Laboratory, oil shale will bring in 70,000 new workers to Colorado and Utah where that development is expected to take place.
"People assume the West Slope's (water) needs are small," said river district general manager Eric Kuhn. "We're looking at hundreds of thousands of acre feet of water (for energy development). Some people are talking 500,000 acre feet." And future water storage projects will likely be needed to meet those demands.
Future energy needs could also cause problems for agriculture, especially in rural Garfield and Rio Blanco counties. "My concern is, in dry periods agriculture becomes the cushion," said Gunnison rancher and river district board president Bill Trampe. Public policy now gives priority to city and industrial water needs over agriculture.
When shortages arise, "they won't shut down municipal and industrial (uses) but they'll shut down agriculture," he said.
Contact Donna Gray: 945-8515, ext. 16605
dgray@postindependent.com
Post Independent, Glenwood Springs Colorado CO
