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<i>Download a map of the county showing watershed trouble spots by clicking on the pdf file under "Web Extras" to the right.</i>SUMMIT COUNTY - Protecting important headwaters is a top priority in Summit County. With political will and the ability to dedicate resources to the job, strides some vexing water issues are being addressed.
But there are also signs of trouble in the Blue River Basin, including recurring fish kills, a crackdown on well-water users and a widespread lack of controls over dispersed pollution sources like runoff from construction sites backcountry roads. Several local streams have long been on a list of "impaired waters," indicating that they don't meet standards mandated by the federal Clean Water Act.
<b>Fish kills</b>
A number of fish kills in local streams shows water quality is an ongoing concern. Most recently, the trout population was wiped out in a section of the Snake River at Keystone. Wildlife officials said a surge of acid mine drainage from Peru Creek was the cause, but a lack of timely data prevented experts from making definitive conclusions.
Local fishing guides were also concerned when a number of dead fish were found in Silverthorne's North Pond. The trout may have been mishandled by anglers, but Colorado Division of Wildlife biologists also said the deaths may have resulted from an algae bloom and subsequent oxygen deprivation.
Whirling disease continues as an ongoing issue in the Blue River watershed. The parasitic spores decimated local rainbow trout populations when they were accidentally introduced into the state.
There is some indication that low-flows resulting from diversions, as well as the buildup of sediment from urban runoff, contribute to the persistence of the worms that serve as intermediate hosts for the disease-causing parasites.
<b>Snowmaking diversions</b>
Across the watershed, stream depletion is the most widespread problem. Snowmaking diversions during the late fall, when streams are already at their lowest levels, place additional stress on trout.
The Blue River, the Snake River, the North Fork and Tenmile Creek are all tapped for snowmaking. In some cases stream flows drop near and even below levels set by the state to protect the aquatic environment to a "reasonable" degree.
The Blue River between Breckenridge and Dillon Reservoir is another area hit hard by snowmaking diversions. At times during November and December, flows in certain reaches don't meet state-mandated flows because senior water rights trump the state's protective in-stream flow rights.
Low flows also exacerbate the impacts of pollution from mines and other sources. When there is less clean water available for dilution, concentrations of toxins like heavy metals increase. The cumulative impacts from those simultaneous diversions across the Blue River watershed have never been fully evaluated and disclosed publicly.
<b>Highway sand and runoff</b>
Water quality has improved in Straight Creek, where local groups and the Colorado Department of Transportation have made a concerted effort to reduce or capture highway traction sand.
But other streams in the county, notably the pristine North Fork of the Snake River, are completely off the radar screen when it comes to controlling sediement buildup.
Fine-grained highway sand can degrade the stream-bottom habitat needed by trout to spawn, and also kills acres of wetlands and forests by choking the roots.
The North Fork, providing some of the cleanest dilution flows to the impacted Snake River, is marked in scores of places where traction sand spills off U.S. Highway 6 nearly unchecked. The impacts range from the alpine zone near Loveland Pass, where high elevation willow wetlands are turning to desert, on down to the steep canyon between Arapahoe Basin and Keystone, where sand spills have covered acres of forested ground.
<b>National Forest issues</b>
Sediment runoff is also an issue at Summit County ski resorts. The Forest Service and ski area operators work hard to try and control the impacts from ski trail clear cuts and service roads, but often struggle to meet the agency's own stream standards.
Similar issues are widespread across National Forest lands in Summit County, where runoff from unpaved roads impacts numerous streams. Many Forest Service roads do not meet the agency's own construction and maintenance standards. Walking along Forest Service roads in areas like Montezuma makes it clear that the agency doesn't come close to having a handle on controlling runoff from the far-flung network of backcountry roads.
A dramatic increase in logging during the next few years will exacerbate this problem unless logging roads are monitored and maintained to the highest possible level. And the vast areas of dead forest left in the wake of the pine beetle infestation will present another huge water quality challenge.
<b>Blue River flows, reservoir levels</b>
Trans-mountain diversions to the Front Range mean that the Blue River below Silverthorne often flows at near-minimum levels for extended periods of time. The river always meets the state-set instream flow, but that level (about 60 cfs) may not be adequate to sustain a healthy aquatic ecosystem in the long run.
Optimizing habitat for trout means mimicking the natural flows at least to some degree, with rising flows in the spring and early summer, in order to provide good spawning and growth conditions for fish.
During the past few years, there has been enough water in the system to meet these needs to some degree, and Denver Water has worked hard to balance its domestic water needs with recreation and environmental concerns.
But emerging Denver Water plans to divert even more of the Blue River to the Front Range in coming years could mean the river will flow at near-minimum levels for even longer periods of time.
Similarly, growing demand for water and changing operations of various reservoirs in the system will likely affect water levels in Dillon Reservoir, potentially with earlier draw-downs that could leave local marina operators high and dry.
Any extended period of drought would quickly intensify these issues.
<b>Non-point source pollution</b>
Summit County and local towns have adopted stringent rules on controlling runoff from construction sites, but the rules are only loosely enforced. Only about 10 percent of local sites meet all the permitting requirements, according to an expert who inspects erosion control measures. Efforts focusing on education and voluntary compliance have been partly successful, but widespread runoff from construction sites is still a source of a cumulative impact on local streams.
Runoff from the paved areas in the county's increasingly urbanized towns is also a potential source of water pollution.
<b>Water quantity</b>
Theoretically, at least, there is enough water in the Blue River Basin to meet local needs at build-out. But this summer's crackdown on well-water users indicates that state officials are concerned about the overall amount of water available in the basin.
The State Engineer's Office issued several hundred warnings to local residents who were violating the terms of their well permits by using water outdoors for landscaping or hot tubs.
According to the state, those uses have a cumulative impact on the availability of water to senior water users downstream in the system. For some officials, the crackdown is a clear sign that the area's overall water supplies are stretched to near a breaking point.
<b>Pumpbacks</b>
In recent years, several pumpback projects have been discussed locally, including a plan to shunt water from near Dillon Reservoir back up to Breckenridge. On an even bigger scale, engineers are currently studying the feasibility of bringing water from Green Mountain Reservoir back up to Silverthorne, or even all the way to Dillon Reservoir.
Advocates have said the pumpbacks could help address both water quality and quantity concerns.
But the projects could also have unanticipated consequences downstream, and create a reliance on "new" sources of water that might not be available when the next drought hits.
<i>Bob Berwyn can be reached at (970) 331-5996, or at bberwyn@summitdaily.com.</i>
