On October 7th, U. S. Senators Michael Bennett, John Hickenlooper, and four U. S. representatives from Colorado co authored a letter to the Bureau of Reclamation about the Shoshone Permanency Project. The lawmakers offered their support to the Colorado River Water Conservation District's application for federal funding to purchase two of the oldest water rights on the Colorado River.
Zane Kessler from the Colorado River District had this to say.
"This really is an opportunity to protect our state's namesake river in the face of a hotter, drier future. If you look at the climate predictions we're going to expect less water in this river in the years to come. So this is really a timely effort, and I think the support of the the federal delegation is going to be really important to ensuring that the federal government is a financial partner in this effort as well."
Proponents of the project say purchasing the water rights will benefit the ecosystem during dry years and preserve critical habitat for endangered fish. More information on the Shoshone permanency project can be found at coloradoriverdistrict.org.
