May 2, 2002
By Jerd Smith and John C. Ensslin, News Staff Writers

Colorado's mountain snowpack melted this week to a historic low of 19 percent of normal, another sign the state faces a water crisis this summer.

"It looks like this may be the worst year on record," said State Engineer Hal Simpson, referring to weather records dating back to 1900.

A warm, dry April affected snowpack conditions across the state, but especially so in southwest Colorado, Simpson said.

The hardest hit areas were the San Juan and Rio Grande basins, where the snowpack levels stood at 6 percent of their average levels for May 1.

The bad although not unexpected news came on the same day that a state Water Availablity Task Force delivered a report to Gov. Bill Owens, with recommendations aimed at ensuring enough water for firefighting and public drinking supplies.

"This is dismal," taskforce member Brad Lundahl said of the snowpack numbers. "Statewide the snow is gone except in some extremely high elevations."

The snowpack is critical because it provides much of the state's water as it melts.

"I've never seen numbers this low," said Tony Tolsdorf, who tracks the snowpack for the Natural Resources Conservation Service.

This week's snowpack figures were the dryest measured by the conservation service in the 34 years it has been tracking the data.

Several small towns may see water supplies dry up early this summer, said Simpson.

As state engineer, Simpson is responsible for ensuring the water in Colorado's reservoirs, irrigation systems and rivers is allocated fairly.

"This is a significant shortage," Simpson said. "Competition for water is going to be extreme. We're shutting off head gates (on irrigation ditches) that haven't been closed since 1977. People are going to be shocked and dismayed."

In 1977, the most recent drought year on record, the snowpack measured just 43 percent of average statewide. In May 1981, it registered at just 21 percent. But subsequent heavy rains in June that year effectively ended the drought, Lundahl said.

The current drought is more worrisome because it follows three years of below average snow packs, he said.

Another sign of how dry it is in Colorado is the ease with which people are using the word drought, said Nolan Doesken, a climate researcher at Colorado State University in Fort Collins. Sometimes, water managers are reluctant to use the term for fear of impacting tourism and other business.

"This is one of the few times when I've been in Colorado where there is enough agreement about the drought situation where people aren't afraid to use the word, Doesken said.

While snowpack levels in Northern Colorado are not as severe, they are of concern, said Brian Werner, spokesman for the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District.

"April was a dog for us," Werner said. "We need some major storms in May just to stay even and even is not good enough. This is the kind of year that you never wish for, but where everybody pays attention to what you're doing with water."

The Denver Water Board, the agency that supplies drinking water to 1 million metro-area residents, will decide next week whether to ask people to voluntarily conserve water this summer.

"We had a very dry April and the May 1 snow pack measurements look even worse," said Bob Steger, a water resource engineer at Denver Water.

"We could decide next week, after we finish our calculations, to go into a Phase 1 response and ask people to voluntary reduce water consumption by 10 percent," he added.

Denver's 10 reservoirs are currently at 73 percent of capacity, said spokeswoman Trina McGuire-Collier.

"We're not going to run out of water this year," she said. "But if we have another year like this, we might be looking at much more stringent restrictions."

Aurora's eight water reservoirs are at 60 percent capacity, but last weekend, usage was up 40 percent above the same time last year.

"We're seeing water demands now that we normally don't see until May or June," said Peter Binney, utilities director for Aurora. "It's not in the direction where we need to be, given the snowpack conditions."

Englewood's water comes from the South Platte River and some from the Western Slope.

So far, it hasn't had to draw down on its reserves at the McClelland Reservoir and a city well.

"We have concerns because this is a severe drought," said Stu Fonda, utilities director.

"We may go down to mandatory (outdoor) water restriction when we have to draw down on the reservoir," Fonda said. "But it depends on how much we get from the river, and the river is very low right now."

In Highlands Ranch, Metro district spokeswoman Sherry Eppers said water supplies are adequate, however, residents have been asked to voluntarily cut back.

In nearby Parker, officials this week will ask residents to cut back on usage through the summer.

"We have a finite amount of water, and people need to know how to conserve it," said Frank Jaeger, manager of the Parker Water and Sanitation District.

Last week Gov. Bill Owens asked the federal government to declare a drought statewide, a move that would provide some emergency assistance.