To the Editor:

I want to sing the praises of the thousands of people in our County who raised their voices and demanded protection from the Moffat Firming Project. Our rally cry was “Save the Fraser River” and we have come a long way together. The agreement negotiated between Denver Water, Grand County and Trout Unlimited offers protections for the Fraser River for as long as Denver diverts. This is a very good thing. Thanks to the professional scientists, attorneys and staff working for Grand County and Trout Unlimited we have come up with a solution that puts the future of the Fraser River in the hands of scientists instead of politicians. Monitoring and adaptive management tied to the permit has been our goal from the beginning and the mitigation package being offered states clearly and strongly that this needs to be part of the permit as long as Denver diverts.

However, Denver Water, Grand County and Trout Unlimited asking for the monitoring and adaptive management clause in the permit does not guarantee that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will make that a permit requirement. In late April, the final Environmental Impact Statement will be released. Following the release of the final EIS will be one more public comment period. During this comment period, we all have one more chance to influence the Corps decision. We need all of Grand County to insist that the negotiated mitigation package be adopted as a requirement in the permit. To get everyone up to speed on what we need to say and who we need to say it to, the Colorado River Headwaters Chapter of Trout Unlimited is holding a seminar at the High Lonesome Lodge at the Devils Thumb Ranch at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 27. Please come and prepare yourself for our final step in assuring that the Fraser River will be saved.

Kirk Klancke

Colorado River Headwaters Chapter of Trout Unlimited

Fraser