Colorado Springs Utilites: Watershed Access Considerations

I recently ran across a copy of the following letter by a guy I know and respect, Mark Swan, that I wanted to share here:

**Danger of wildfire precludes public access

As a crew boss on a local wildland fire crew, I have responded to wildland fires in the vicinity of the South Slope. Access to the South Slope takes about one-and-a-half to two hours on a good day. To put any significant firefighting resources on the South Slope to fight a major fire would take days. During the height of the fire season, a wildland fire has to be several thousand acres in size before national resources are committed. As we have seen from past fires such as the Hayman in 2002 and the Mato Vega in 2006, wildfires can become extremely intense, consuming several thousand acres in just a few hours.

The South Slope is particularly vulnerable to fire because of its location and topography. If we add the human element by allowing public access, the risk becomes unacceptable.

The Denver Water Board is having problems dealing with Hayman- Fire-generated silt in its Cheesman Reservoir ("Mud, ash sliding into Cheesman," Metro, Nov. 25). And this is five years after the fire was extinguished. This contamination of our water sources causes significant operational problems in water treatment and significantly increases treatment costs. Even with the added treatment processes, water quality suffers; it is still safe to drink, it just "tastes funny."

Critics of the Colorado Springs Utilities' plans for the South Slope point to other watersheds that are open to the public. Most, if not all, of these areas do not have the access problems nor the vulnerability to fire the South Slope has.

I enjoy hiking, backpacking, hunting and fishing in Colorado's wild spaces as much as anyone. But I also enjoy clean, uncontaminated, fresh water to drink.

Springs Utilities is taking the reasonable and prudent course in maintaining its policy regarding public access on the South Slope.

Mark Swan
Colorado Springs