In a regular year, the Shoshone Hydroelectric Plant in Glenwood Canyon has over fourteen hundred cubic feet of water flowing through every second. But due to statewide drought and a record low snowpack, Denver Water put the Shoshone Call Relaxation Agreement into effect in early March, effectively halving the flow. Lindsay DeFretes from the Colorado River District explains.
"It's designed to be an agreement that balances the needs of Denver Water to fill its storage pools and send water over to the communities on the Front Range with the needs of the communities, the agriculture industry, and the ecosystems here on the Western Slope. So the idea is that if certain drought conditions are met, both on the Front Range in Denver's storage system and on the Western Slope, then the Shoshone call can be reduced to allow certain storage pools to fill."
According to the agreement, Denver Water was only able to divert flow until May 20th, but that doesn't solve our larger problem. DeFrates says the Western Slope's largest reservoir or storage pool is the snowpack, and this year, runoff was triggered early.
"March was the hottest month on record for every county in the state of Colorado by several degrees. The water coming through the century-old plant powers thousands of Western Slope homes, and in a regular year, returns directly to the river to support biodiversity and preserve the river's historic shape. The Shoshone water rights keep the river as whole as it can be, and in drought years like this, that is especially important because we know that every drop of water that is taken across the mountains to Front Range communities is completely lost to all the communities and systems here on the Western Slope."
The Colorado River District is endeavoring to purchase, and preserve, the Shoshone right for $99 million, a deal brokered with Xcel in 2023. The Biden administration committed $40 million to the purchase under the Inflation Reduction Act, funding that was promptly put under review by Trump the following year. But on Friday, that money was released with bipartisan support. Prior to that announcement, DeFrates says the District was remaining hopeful.
"We have had congressional support across the board from our House of Representatives in Jeff Herd, uh, from our senators in Bennet and Hickenlooper, and also a large showing of support from the state. So we know that this is, is not just an interest of any one political group or any one water sector group because it benefits this entire Western Slope community. So we're still very hopeful that we're gonna see the federal government recognize that the Shoshone water rights are really a huge return on investment to them."
The River District has secured roughly $57 million in total, $20 million from the state, 20 million from its community partnership program, and a further $17 million from local entities. Now they’re roughly two million short of their $99 million goal
Much of northwestern Colorado is experiencing exceptional drought, the highest classification on the U.S. Drought Monitor. The Front Range runs from abnormally dry to severe drought. Beyond water shortage issues, experts are also bracing for a dramatic fire season.
