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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019.05.16 OSTB-HRSB Joint minutes_S MINUTES OPEN SPACE AND TRAILS BOARD HEALTHY RIVERS AND STREAMS BOARD JOINT REGULAR SESSION May 16, 2019 Basalt Town Hall 101 Midland Ave, Basalt OSTB Present: Graeme Means Howie Mallory Amy Barrow Michael Kinsley Wayne Ives Dist. 1 Dist. 2, Chair Dist. 3 Dist. 4 Dist. 5 Absent Vice Chair Absent HRSB Present: Andre Wille (chair), Ken Neubecker, Chris Lemons, Lisa Tasker, Chris Wheatley, Bill Jochems Staff Present: Gary Tennenbaum, Paul Holsinger, Lindsey Utter, Liza Mitchell, John Ely, Laura Maker, Lisa MacDonald BOCC Present: George Newman, Kelly McNicholas Kury Andre Wille called the meeting to order at 4:22 p.m. DISCUSSION Members of both boards introduced themselves. Gary Tennenbaum said understanding the differing missions of the Open Space and Trails and Healthy Rivers and Streams programs will help the programs collaborate. He summarized the OST mission. Wayne Ives explained the OST Biodiversity Policy and how it works with the program's mission. Andre Wille noted the HRSB spends a lot of its time on water rights and agricultural water rights and how they are used. Wille and Lisa MacDonald explained the HRS program's mission. Ken Neubecker noted HRS helps fund improvements in the efficiency of agricultural diversions and curbing the wasting of water. Most people don't understand water rights or foregoing the taking of water that is not necessary, he said. Graeme Means noted OST purchases properties that need to be irrigated. HRS could help OST showcase efficient use of water to leave more in the river, he said. Means noted the City of Boulder's effort to understand their water assets and how to use them. He asked if it's a program Pitkin County should consider implementing. A local water rights assessment has been discussed, Tennenbaum said. The county controls a significant amount of water, he noted. Paul Holsinger explained the City of Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks looked at all of its water rights and came up with potential tools to protect historic flows. Pitkin County could undertake a similar effort with the goal of figuring out how the water can be used most efficiently and in a manner that is most ecologically beneficial. It would be something OST and HRS could collaborate well on—it fits within both programs' missions, Tennenbaum said. It could change the way the county manages water significantly, especially on open space properties, he said. 05/16/2019 OSTB-HRSB Joint Regular Session Minutes Page 1 of 4 The agricultural community on the Western Slope is already doing this, Ken Neubecker said. It will be necessary across the state to address infrastructure and efficiency in water use, he predicted. Graeme Means asked about staff time and funding for an effort to assess all of the county's water rights. Boulder leveraged funds from Great Outdoors Colorado for their project, Holsinger said. Consultants did the actual assessment. Assessing the county's own water rights is something that has been discussed for a long time, Lisa Tasker said. Colorado is assessing agricultural water rights,Neubecker added. What do you do with the results once you get them, he mused. It is sensitive to make the results public; it could make irrigators reluctant to participate, he said. Neubecker said that concern shouldn't prevent the county from doing the assessment. Means asked if staff should come up with ideas about what the assessment would look like, what the benefits would be and what costs and staff time would be involved. Amy Barrow said she thinks it's worth exploring. How the county would use the outcome of the assessment should be considered first, she said. Tasker said the information would be valuable in allowing the county to think creatively about its use of water. Bill Jochems asked if OST tracks what acreage is being irrigated and what crop is being grown. It is not tracked in a detailed inventory, Holsinger said. Neubecker asked if OST has made efficiency upgrades on its properties. It has done some improvements to headgates and agricultural lessees have made improvements to irrigation efficiency, Holsinger said. Long-term leases allow lessees to access Natural Resources Conservation Service funding for improvements and encourages investment in the properties, he said. Jochems suggested an inventory of what type of irrigation is being used on each property be done. Board members also discussed the advantages and problems associated with automated headgates. The outcome of the assessment could include options for controlling ditches, Tennenbaum said. Irrigation systems need to be flexible to meet a grower's needs, he said. Working on efficient systems for growers is one place HRS can work with OST, Wille said. Some growers on county property don't want to invest in a better system; the county would have to provide the investment, Tennenbaum said. That's something that could be done without the overall assessment, Holsinger said. Amy Barrow asked if there's an opportunity for funding to come from HRS for more efficient irrigation. Yes, Wille said. Wayne Ives said improved efficiency could result in more water in a river. If the county decides to proceed with the water rights assessment,Neubecker said a strong degree of public outreach will also need to occur. There are citizens who question the diversion of river water for certain types of local agriculture, he said. That discussion is part of HRS outreach, said Lisa MacDonald. Wille noted HRS efforts include the Youth Water Leadership Program and the whitewater park in Basalt. Graeme asked how much the park is for river health versus recreation. It's mostly for river health through a recreational water right, Wille said. Jochems also noted the HRS/county attorneys' work in preventing proposed reservoirs on places like the Maroon Creek and Crystal 05/16/2019 OSTB-HRSB Joint Regular Session Minutes Page 2 of 4 River valleys, and keeping more water in the Fryingpan River versus a diversion to the Front Range. Graeme asked if HRS is involved in hands-on restoration. North Star restoration (with OST) was one such project. An improvement to the Robinson Ditch diversion is another planned HRS project, Wille said. Other ditch diversion projects are on the HRS program's radar, he said. HRS is also involved in the Crystal River Restoration Project, Lisa Tasker said. HRS does a lot of work in partnerships. The HRSB is also interested in a restoration project on the Roaring Fork at Phillips Curve, she said, and has been involved in the Crystal River Restoration Working Group. The whitewater park also had a restoration component, Wille noted. The HRSB recently funded several grants, including for the Roaring Fork Conservancy's study of the Fryingpan, an Aspen Global Change Institute drought study and an Aspen Valley Land Trust film trailer. OST does not fund grants, Tennenbaum said. Wille said HRS is also involved in a Three Mile Creek project in partnership with the city of Glenwood Springs. HRSB hasn't had to focus solely on Pitkin County but rather, works throughout the watershed. Another HRS partnership project involves looking at the nitrogen in Cattle Creek. Chris Wheatley asked about involvement in soil moisture monitoring; OST is involved in that effort in conjunction with Aspen Global Change Institute, Tennenbaum said. OST has funded monitoring stations on open space parcels, he said. Barrow said she appreciated the joint meeting to find out more about what HRSB does. Better communication should be a goal,Wille said. Members of each board could attend the other board's meetings, he said. A joint float down North Star occurred previously. More such gatherings should be considered,Wille said. Ives said new property purchases and management plans are a good opportunity to look at the water aspect and collaboration. Members of both boards agreed they'd like to hear more about the potential for pursuing the water rights assessment. Tennenbaum offered to have Holsinger show HRSB members the OST properties that have water rights. ADJOURN The OSTB-HRSB Joint Regular Meeting of May 16, 2019 adjourned at 5:52 p.m. Approved: Attest: Amy Barr w, Vice Chair y Utter Pitkin Cou ty Open Space &Trails Board itkin County Open S e &Trails Planning and Outreach Manager 05/16/2019 OSTB-HRSB Joint Regular Session Minutes Page 3 of 4 /A-1 Jp1 Urquhart Atkin County Open Space &Trails Stewardship and Outreach Coordinator 05/16/2019 OSTB-HRSB Joint Regular Session Minutes Page 4 of 4