2022
Summer Conference
The Steamboat Grand
August 23 - 25, 2022
August 23 - 25, 2022
On-Demand Viewing 2022 Summer Conference
August 23 Sessions
Conference Welcome from Yampa Basin Gary Suiter, Steamboat Springs City Manager and The Headwaters of the Colorado Project Pat O’Toole, Family Farm Alliance and Ladder Ranch The Headwaters of the Colorado is an agro-forestry project that will coordinate efforts to create a healthy forest, produce food, and ensure the viability of communities around the Routt and Medicine Bow Forests. In today's changing world. a healthy forest generates significant water, enhances biodiversity and brings stability to rural communities.
Republican Senate Candidate Joe O’Dea and Governor Jared Polis
Senator Michael Bennet and Republican Gubernatorial Candidate Heidi Ganahl
Water Professionals’ Guide to the 2022 Election Season Floyd Ciruli, Ciruli and Associates (remote presentation) Tying themes from the day’s speakers together with current trends, our speakers will highlight key points of relevance to the water community.
Republican Senate Candidate Joe O’Dea and Governor Jared Polis
Senator Michael Bennet and Republican Gubernatorial Candidate Heidi Ganahl
Water Professionals’ Guide to the 2022 Election Season Floyd Ciruli, Ciruli and Associates (remote presentation) Tying themes from the day’s speakers together with current trends, our speakers will highlight key points of relevance to the water community.
August 24 Sessions
Forest Health Moderator: Travis Smith, CWC Vice President and National Wild Turkey Federation Frank Beum, USFS Rocky Mountain Regional Forester Dan Gibbs, CO Dept. of Natural Resources Executive Director Shared Stewardship in action, shared goals, shared investment, shared responsibility in responding to and preparing for wildfire in Colorado by willing partners!
Dan Gibbs, Colorado DNR Executive Director and Frank Beum, Region 2 Forester will showcase the success, challenges and opportunities for stakeholders, Federal, State and local partners by working together to address our wildfire crisis!
Colorado Attorney General Candidate John Kellner and Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser
Senator John Hickenlooper
Rapid Topics Moderator: Kelly Romero-Heaney, CO Dept of Natural Resources Colorado and San Juan River Endangered Species Program Julie Stahli, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Colorado Airborne Snow Measurement Group Taylor Winchell, Denver Water
Water ‘22 Jayla Poppleton, Water Education Colorado Eliminating Lead in School Drinking Water Facilities Mike Beck, CO Water Quality Control Division
The Municipal Water Conservation Puzzle What Are the Next Pieces? Facilitator/Moderator: Laura Belanger, Western Resource Advocates Representative Marc Catlin Frank Kinder, Northern Water Catherine Moravec, Colorado Springs Utilities Over the past two decades, water conservation has proven a reliable way to manage water demands in Colorado. Reduced per capita water use has enabled some communities to serve growing populations with even less water. Much progress has been made on indoor and outdoor water savings through local retrofits, rebate programs and legislation that prohibits the sale of high water use plumbing and irrigation fixtures. But more can be done.
When it comes to efficient use and reducing municipal water waste, what will move the needle the most for our growing cities and towns? What are the broader policies and programs that will continue to drive water efficiency? These are big questions for water conservation across Colorado. In this session, our expert speakers will share how the State and local communities are taking important steps to implement landscape transformation approaches and focus on broad policies and programs that will ensure a resilient water future for Colorado communities.
Dan Gibbs, Colorado DNR Executive Director and Frank Beum, Region 2 Forester will showcase the success, challenges and opportunities for stakeholders, Federal, State and local partners by working together to address our wildfire crisis!
Colorado Attorney General Candidate John Kellner and Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser
Senator John Hickenlooper
Rapid Topics Moderator: Kelly Romero-Heaney, CO Dept of Natural Resources Colorado and San Juan River Endangered Species Program Julie Stahli, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Colorado Airborne Snow Measurement Group Taylor Winchell, Denver Water
Water ‘22 Jayla Poppleton, Water Education Colorado Eliminating Lead in School Drinking Water Facilities Mike Beck, CO Water Quality Control Division
The Municipal Water Conservation Puzzle What Are the Next Pieces? Facilitator/Moderator: Laura Belanger, Western Resource Advocates Representative Marc Catlin Frank Kinder, Northern Water Catherine Moravec, Colorado Springs Utilities Over the past two decades, water conservation has proven a reliable way to manage water demands in Colorado. Reduced per capita water use has enabled some communities to serve growing populations with even less water. Much progress has been made on indoor and outdoor water savings through local retrofits, rebate programs and legislation that prohibits the sale of high water use plumbing and irrigation fixtures. But more can be done.
When it comes to efficient use and reducing municipal water waste, what will move the needle the most for our growing cities and towns? What are the broader policies and programs that will continue to drive water efficiency? These are big questions for water conservation across Colorado. In this session, our expert speakers will share how the State and local communities are taking important steps to implement landscape transformation approaches and focus on broad policies and programs that will ensure a resilient water future for Colorado communities.
August 25 Sessions
2022 Aspinall Water Leader of the Year Award - (Postponed from the 2022 CWC Annual Convention) Each year, the Colorado Water Congress presents the prestigious Wayne N. Aspinall Water Leader of the Year Award to a Coloradan who has long demonstrated courage, dedication, knowledge and strong leadership in development, protection, and preservation of Colorado water.
Colorado River Modeling Results - Jim Prairie, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and Center for Advanced Decision Support for Water and Environmental Systems Reclamation’s Upper and Lower Colorado Basin Regions use a suite of models for annual, mid-, and long-term planning. The models contain “rule sets” that simulate operation of major reservoirs in the Colorado River basin including how water is delivered under various hydrologic conditions. Projections show the future state of the Colorado River system on a monthly basis. The models help policy makers understand hydrology, sources of uncertainty, impacts of key modeling assumptions, and likely outcomes of policy decisions. Following the Upper Basin Drought Response Operations Agreement that was triggered in January 2021, the Probable Minimum and Probable Maximum inflow scenarios are run every month. Jim will provide an overview of what the current modeling is telling us.
Wayne Pullan, USBR Upper Colorado Basin Regional Director
The Colorado River Panel Moderator: John McClow, Upper Gunnison River Water Conservancy District Speakers Tom Buschatzke, Dept. Director, Arizona Dept. of Water Resources Rebecca Mitchell, Colorado Commissioner, Upper Colorado River Commission Colby Pellegrino, Southern Nevada Water Authority (remote) Gene Shawcroft, Colorado River Commissioner of Utah Our speakers will review the latest thinking regarding policy decisions on the Colorado River.
Colorado River Modeling Results - Jim Prairie, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and Center for Advanced Decision Support for Water and Environmental Systems Reclamation’s Upper and Lower Colorado Basin Regions use a suite of models for annual, mid-, and long-term planning. The models contain “rule sets” that simulate operation of major reservoirs in the Colorado River basin including how water is delivered under various hydrologic conditions. Projections show the future state of the Colorado River system on a monthly basis. The models help policy makers understand hydrology, sources of uncertainty, impacts of key modeling assumptions, and likely outcomes of policy decisions. Following the Upper Basin Drought Response Operations Agreement that was triggered in January 2021, the Probable Minimum and Probable Maximum inflow scenarios are run every month. Jim will provide an overview of what the current modeling is telling us.
Wayne Pullan, USBR Upper Colorado Basin Regional Director
The Colorado River Panel Moderator: John McClow, Upper Gunnison River Water Conservancy District Speakers Tom Buschatzke, Dept. Director, Arizona Dept. of Water Resources Rebecca Mitchell, Colorado Commissioner, Upper Colorado River Commission Colby Pellegrino, Southern Nevada Water Authority (remote) Gene Shawcroft, Colorado River Commissioner of Utah Our speakers will review the latest thinking regarding policy decisions on the Colorado River.
Sponsor and Exhibitors