The Water Information Program

As a line formed for lunch at the River Walk Cafe, 12 of Colorado's most saavy water chieftains held a historic meeting in a back room. They came from the east and the west of the state, gathering on what's considered neutral ground in Colorado's increasingly fractious water world. At issue: whether a $4 billion, 227-mile pipeline should be built to carry 300,000 acre feet of water annually from the Yampa River in northwestern Colorado to the Front Range and fast-growing communities on the West Slope. Six men in the room were from the South Platte River Basin east of the Continental Divide; six from the Yampa and White river basins on the west. It marked the first time under a new state law that formerly hostile interests have met voluntarily to discuss a water project before any money has been spent, before any decisions have been made, before lawsuits have been filed.

To view the full article, visit the Rocky Mountain News. For a copy of the original article contact the WIP at (970) 247-1302 or stop by the office at 841 East Second Avenue in Durango.