Wednesday, May 09, 2007

The Pueblo Chieftain Gives a Dam…

...a good rep.

It’s good to see the Chieftain giving a dam on the Fountain a good write-up this morning.

Monday’s little New Orleans in Pueblo, vis-a-vis the break in the old levee. Reminded me of the old levee in New Orleans that failed when they had their storm problem.

And we can all be thankful that this problem manifested itself now, while it was relatively small, instead of later, when it could have been so much worse….think 1921.

Global warming is a fact. [Note: Human contribution to it is an issue, to be discussed in a different venue/thread.] The effects of it are up for considerable discussion. But it seems we’re getting a bit more water here, along the Front Range.  And, with all the construction that has gone on in Colorado Springs, we’re getting more flow down the Fountain than we had some 50 years ago.

As a result, we certainly need to pay more attention to the way the Fountain is ‘growing’ and the levees we have in place to manage that growth.

However, the articles and editorials in the Chieftain are highlighting an interesting train of thought on that management. A dam on the Fountain.

I’ve thought this to be a great idea since I mentioned it to the Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy meeting a few years back. This, during their public forum period. I think it interesting that one of the impanelled subject matter experts started scribbling notes when I mentioned the idea.

At any rate, a dam on the Fountain, between here and C’Springs would serve a multitude of purposes.

[1] Flood prevention.
[2] A settling pond for effluent form C’Springs.
[3] Back-up water supply.
[4] Reuse of water.
[5] Recreation.

These are obvious. However, less obvious are the additional benefits.

Take, for example, what happens to the water coming out of such a dam.

More...