tfife@mavs.coloradomesa.edu

The CMU Water Center and the Grand Mesa Water Conservatory District are holding the Surface Creek Water Meetings on Tuesday and Thursday. Anyone interested in learning about an overview of the Surface Creek Valley system, Colorado River system and the role of water in Colorado, is welcome to attend.

“The basic intent for the meeting is to keep the level of information pretty general,” Grand Mesa Water Conservatory President Austin Keiser said. “We are not going to get down into water or ditch rights on an individual basis.”

Both meetings hold the same agenda, which includes presentations from various agencies on their role of water management and how decisions are made. There will also be a presentation from local water providers on the water outlook for the upcoming year and different challenges faced when dealing with water issues.

Some of the issues: storing enough water for the upcoming grow season in case of a short winter and negotiating water rights with users farther down river.

“Part of our mission is education and some of it is to start dialogue about rights and issues,” CMU Water Center Coordinator Hannah Holm said.

The Water Center is giving a presentation at the meetings on the overview of water supply challenges the state faces. The center is also holding a water course on campus next month, which spans three different days and covers a variety of topics.

Each day of the course covers different topics ranging from the history of Colorado water, salinity control in the Grand Valley, riparian restoration and new oil and gas rules. There will also be a presentation on the South Canal Hydroelectric Project, which is a proposal to gain power from several hydroelectric generators set up along the south irrigation canal in Montrose.

Canal hydroelectric projects are becoming increasingly popular, as they do not disturb natural flows or environments.

“These meetings are meant for the farmer or average homeowner to come out and learn something,” Keiser said.

For more information on any of these events visit the Water Center website at www.coloradomesa.edu/WaterCenter.