Drought Impacts Local Environment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Drought Impacts Local Environment
Evergreen, CO – June 21, 2012

As throughout the rest of Colorado, the mountain community of Evergreen is experiencing drought conditions. Due to the extreme low flows in the Bear Creek Watershed, watering restrictions are being enforced by our local water district to manage this precious resource.

Environmental impacts from these historic low flows may include fish mortality. “Overall, the fish population and aquatic life in the Bear Creek Watershed are healthy,” reports Evergreen Trout Unlimited (ETU) president Mike McGinnis, “but when the level of water in the lakes and streams is too low, it really stresses the fish. If they don’t have enough cool, oxygenated water, they can die.”

The Bear Creek Watershed Association (BCWA), working with partners such as Evergreen Trout Unlimited and Evergreen Metropolitan District, protects and restores the water quality in the watershed. BCWA requests that if anyone finds six or more dead fish within a 100-foot area of water in the Bear Creek Watershed, please photograph the incident if possible and immediately call 303-674-4112 to notify Chris Schauder with BCWA and the Evergreen Metropolitan District. The incident will be recorded, the water quality will be sampled if necessary, and the fish will be properly disposed of.

What residents should do in these drought conditions:

•Call 911 to report any illegal dumping (fuel, oil, grease, concrete slurry, etc.) to streets, ditches or creeks.
•Wash cars at the car wash. This conserves water and keeps soaps/degreasers out of drainageways.
•Avoid fishing streams with low or no flow. This stresses the fish population further.
•Don’t apply fertilizers or herbicides to lawns or algaecides to ponds during periods of extreme drought.

The Bear Creek Watershed extends from Mt. Evans in Clear Creek County to Bear Creek Lake in Lakewood. The main bodies of water – Summit Lake, Evergreen Lake, Bear Creek, Turkey Creek, and Bear Creek Lake – drain into the South Platte River.

“Water quality protection efforts are always important, but even more so when there is less water in the natural system,” says Alan Searcy, stormwater quality coordinator for Lakewood where Bear Creek Lake is located.

Says Russ Clayshulte, BCWA manager, “Some water quality impacts, especially those associated with land use, development, and human activity, can be managed, but Mother Nature controls the weather. We have no other inflow options for the Bear Creek Watershed.”

CONTACT INFORMATION:
Bear Creek Watershed Association, Russ Clayshulte, Manager @ 303-638-4931
Evergreen Metropolitan District, Chris Schauder, New Services & Environmental Manager @ 303-674-4112
Evergreen Trout Unlimited, Mike McGinnis, President @ 303-229-8222
City of Lakewood, Alan Searcy, Stormwater Quality Coordinator @ 303-987-7190

Didn't we have fishing restrictions last time we had a drought like this? Water temps were getting too high so they asked people not to fish during the middle of the day?

They did it in Steamboat Springs this week.

http://wildlife.state.co.us/NewsMedia/PressReleases/pages/pressrelease.aspx?PressId=7788

http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/DM_state.htm?CO,W

Colorado Parks and Wildlife has closed Bear Creek to fishing due to the stress of low water and high temperatures on the fish. Please respect the closure.

You can still fish Evergreen Lake. I would advise against it if you are not keeping what you catch. Maybe try early morning before 8:00 from a belly boat when the aerators are on.

There are plenty of small lakes and creeks at higher elevations that would love to have you visit them. Shelf Lake or Gibson Lake are on my list for this next weekend.

At least in a lake the fish can go to the middle. I would just wait til fall if you can. I know it is hard.

http://www.wbur.org/npr/155777834/as-co ... s-the-pain

As Colorado River Dries Up, The West Feels The Pain

http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2012/06/26/4_wide.jpg?t=1340738061&s=4

http://www.predictiveservices.nifc.gov/ ... utlook.pdf

Worsening drought conditions in the West are leading to low moisture fuels. Check out the Wildland Fire Outlook for July.

Link to stream flow above Evergreen:
http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/uv?06710385

Check out the ramp up from friday 4/6 afternoon (7.5 cfs) to Saturday 4/7 night (160 cfs).

Whoa!!

Thanks CG and PS for the links. Have been keeping track.