OMAHA, Neb. -The Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works, Jo-Ellen Darcy, approved the water reallocation agreement for the Chatfield Water Reallocation Project in Lakewood, Colorado, in a memo sent to the Omaha District on September 30. Signature authority for the agreement was delegated to Omaha District Commander Col. Joel R. Cross.
The agreement will be between the Colorado Department of Natural Resources, Colorado Water Conservation Board and Department of the Army. Upon execution storage from the flood control purpose will be reallocated to joint flood control-conservation purposes in the Chatfield Reservoir under the authority of - Section 808 (Water Resources Development Act of 1986); River and Harbor Act of 1958.
The Chatfield Dam and Reservoir Project provides Denver Metropolitan area citizens with flood risk reduction from South Platte River, as well as numerous recreational opportunities. The State of Colorado's Statewide Water Supply Initiative estimates that by the year 2050, statewide population will likely grow to between 8.6 and 10.3 million citizens, up from 5 million in 2010. To help meet expected demand, the state identified reallocation of storage at Chatfield Reservoir as one of several potential sources of additional water that could be developed to meet current and future demands.
A feasibility study/environmental impact statement was approved and a Record of Decision was issued by Ms. Darcy May 29, 2014. The 20,600 acre feet of storage available under this agreement will be used for municipal and industrial water supply and other purposes including agriculture, environmental restoration, and recreation and fishery habitat protection and enhancement. One of the benefits of this reallocation project is its location on the South Platte allowing water to be captured in an existing federal facility. To off-set any impacts and to obtain use of the storage, the state will complete recreation modifications and environmental mitigation as outlined in the study.