Why the Forest Service did not take all the water rights when it acquired Sweetwater Lake, Colorado’s newest state park
Garfield County commissioners remain sour about the Sweetwater Lake deal and question why all the water rights didn't transfer to U.S. Forest Service
The Colorado Sun
Hugh Carey/The Colorado Sun
SWEETWATER LAKE — When the U.S. Forest Service acquired Sweetwater Lake in 2021, the agency did not pick up all the water rights associated with the property that is slated for development as Colorado’s newest state park.
The Conservation Fund, which acquired the property in 2020, retained water rights that did not transfer over when the conservation group sold the property to the Forest Service last year.
That troubles Garfield County’s commissioners, who are demanding details of the complex deal that landed the private acres in federal hands and how the new state park will be managed.
Read the rest of the story at coloradosun.com
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