 I'm very excited except I just I've sort of had it I was like booking everything like you know we use the firemiles like Good afternoon, and welcome to the Longmont Museum We're a center for culture in northern Colorado where people of all ages explore history Experience art and discover new ideas through dynamic programs Exhibitions and events my name is Justin Beach. I'm the manager of the museum Stuart auditorium and I curate public programs Thanks for being patient and waiting for us as we sort of navigated various technical issues where we are recording and Livestreaming this this afternoon. So we were we experienced a couple bumps in the road with the live stream. Anyway, I Would like to thank all the folks who make our programming possible the scientific and cultural facilities district the Stuart family foundation the friends of the Longmont Museum and our museum donors and especially our museum members any museum members with us Thank you We simply can't do all that we do without you So thank you for your support if you're interested in finding out more about what it means to be a member of the Longmont Museum Please stop by the front desk on your way out the door and they'll tell you everything there is to know about Supporting the Longmont Museum and be sure to pick up one of our season brochures There's a lot. We're doing this winter and spring and I don't think you want to miss out Tonight's or this afternoon's program is part of our climate action Sunday series Which is co-presented with the museum and the city of Longmont sustainability office This is the third event that we've offered as part of our climate action Sunday series and it's designed to engage and inform the community about various climate change Issues and to provide you to arm you with That information and to provide you with practical ways that you can make an impact how you can make an impact Have an effect on combating climate change Tonight's pro this afternoon's program. I keep saying tonight because we usually do these in the evening is Dedicated to water and so we have a great panel who will be joining us here I'd like to but first before we launch. I just want to recognize the the organizations who are out out there in the atrium Tabling this afternoon sustainable resilient Longmont St. Vrain and left-hand water Conservancy the citizens climate lobby snow apparel They're members of the city's equitable climate action team and Anima arts who are next door occupying some children while adults listen to climate change Info without further ado, I'd like to invite Hillary Rossner our moderator for the panel this afternoon She's the assistant director of the Center for Environmental Justice Journalism excuse me at CU Boulder and our panelists. Please welcome our panelists and Hillary Rossner Well, thank you all for being here on this Sunday afternoon My name is Hillary Rossner. I am a long-time science journalist based in Boulder And I'm also the acting director of the Center for Environmental Journalism at CU Boulder and we do We teach classes we train Students journalists of tomorrow to cover environmental issues and we also have a program where we bring in Professional journalists from around the country and sometimes around the world to spend a year learning about environmental issues Something called the Ted Scripps Fellowship. So I oversee that. I'm very happy to be here today and We have some great panelists here. So we have Matt bitters who is The who is an ecologist with the watershed Center and then we have Gabriella Galindo Who is a Colorado water fellow and assistant program coordinator for the CU flows program? And then we have Casey Davenhill who is the executive executive director of the Colorado watershed assembly So they'll each Introduce themselves and talk a little bit and then I have some questions for them And then we will open it up to questions from you all So not do you want to start? Sure. Thanks everyone for being here and thanks to the Longlap Museum for putting this on So I'm originally from New Jersey Where everything is green and I remember I originally came out to Colorado for college And I must have been on the wrong side of the airplane because flying to DIA. It was just a Desert really and I was just wondering what I had gotten myself into because that was the first day Day before classes started When I got to Colorado and that kind of set me on this journey thinking about water Water availability and wildfires. So I did my undergrad in PhD at CU Where I was looking at the effect of disturbances like habitat loss on various species in 2020 that kind of changed My research was done in Australia and our field site which had been going on for over 30 years burned down and Overnight we all became fire ecologists. So that kind of Further set me on this path of thinking about fires and especially how that affects our water So for the past year, I've been the ecologist at the watershed Center The watershed Center is a nonprofit based out of Boulder County We do all of our work within Boulder County from up in the subalpine all the way down through the plains and we're really interested in how forests and rivers interact and You know, how how we actually get our clean water and I think the most rewarding thing working for the watershed Center is just Thinking about how water moves through the landscape Water isn't confined to one jurisdictional boundary and as a nonprofit We're able to work with various local governments and figure out what everyone is doing and get people talking to each other because We've kind of all been working in silos and we're trying to help break those silos down and get people working together to help get us clean water and enough water Great. Thanks Matt Gabriella. Thank you. Buenas tardes. Good afternoon Thank you. I'd like to just take a moment and honor our fire water earth and air as You know elements that really sustain all life on earth My name is Gabriella Galindo Soto. My family is from Mexico from what is now Mexico and the southern US And we've been here for for a very very long time and my journey is long but After high school I went into the military and I came back to Colorado and I studied nutrition at MSU Denver and I went on to offer nutrition education and breastfeeding support for mothers and young children And there I really started to understand like wow everything is so important for our health the music that we listen to the words that we speak Our environments our family in our community. So I really shifted more to holistic health And really valued like Emotional spiritual and mental health in addition to physical health So I worked as an holistic health guide at the largest apothecary in Denver so we really focused on herbal medicine and Afterwards I moved to Boulder and I befriended and a Rappahoe and Mexica woman And she started inviting me to native communities and ceremonies. And so there I really started healing and understanding Our deep relationship and interconnectedness with nature and with water and with land So that's brought profound healing to myself and and you know, I continue walking with this accountability to all life and in flows I joined as a community member and have like a paid volunteer in 2019 and I started learning about water policy and Just kind of how water flows in and out of Colorado and how we support the Colorado River supports the surrounding six states and also about local and regenerative agriculture and In nutrition, you know, the emphasis was like on working in hospitals and clinics but what felt right to me and the reason I didn't pursue nutrition in a clinical setting was because You know, I was like, it's just as easy as us going going back to earth and in growing our own food And I realized that I was always talking about that, but I didn't know how to do that So last year I apprenticed at front-line farming. It's a black indigenous and person of color led farm group and advocacy group and We also toured around different farms around the state of Colorado particularly Farms that were led by people of color and started learning more about the inequities in that local small farmers face the barriers of access and access to water so last year I also Became part of the Colorado water fellowship to learn about further about water policy and the Colorado water plan And in August of last year I joined Foundations for leaders organizing for water and sustainability. It's a really long title, but blows and we are also a BIPOC organization and What we do we do quite quite a number of things, but we really center Elevate and promote the voices of people of color in climate justice spaces Because so often we're left out of these conversations. That's so greatly impact our communities So I thank you for the invitation for being here and showing my voice and thank you for your presence Thanks so much. Hi. Yes. My name is Casey David Hill. I am the executive director of the Colorado watershed assembly I was born and raised in South Dakota. I grew up on a dairy farm there Came to Colorado. I like to say I got her as quick as I could my my children are natives and My background is in accounting that my that is my degree. I worked in public accounting For a number of years. I've worked with a variety of small businesses And and I do have my youngest son to thank for my sort of you know, the little Different trajectory of my of my career at a point in time It was just fascinated to be fascinating to be outside with him he would find every critter and twig and animal and he had so much curiosity that it sparked my own and it also Kind of led me into some volunteer work that that I began to do I was with Mayor Wellington Webb's Commission on the South Platte River in Denver and in that capacity I also Worked a lot with youth and these were kids when I was when I was young if I got in trouble I had to go out in the ditch and pull weeds and we had a river that really needed a lot of help and I had a School group that I was working with these kids needed to Do cord-ordered restitution so we went out in the ditch and we pulled weeds and we Worked and we got in touch with the earth and it was the greatest experience that that I Was transformative to me. We started a native plant propagation program And I just watched the the the serenity and the peace that Working with plants working with soil working near the river Working together on projects that you could look at when you were done and see that you had made progress And that that inspired me Then I started getting all kinds of solicitations to save the Arkansas save the pooter save this save that and I thought What are all these water organizations doing and with my accounting background I had the opportunity to Basically start to do bookkeeping for various nonprofits and I found that Most nonprofits have a passion. It's typically not for bookkeeping. And so I was able to learn a lot about how the nonprofit world works about how how local government works and and again as Max was saying start to connect the dots and It's a little frustrating sometimes when you see the silos and you Think that it they should have figured it out by now But that's why we're here and and I'm happy to be here. I currently Am I serve on them the the South Platte River basin round table and Also on the metro round table and I want to explain a little bit Some of you may have heard about the Colorado water plan. It's just mentioned a moment ago I encourage you to to look into that and learn more about that about 20 years ago when the drought was Holding on and it didn't look like we were gonna get any relief from the from the drought that began really in 2000 some pretty smart people Led by the governor at the time Bill Owens Put together legislation that created what they called the Interbase and Compact Committee Water has always been a scarce and valuable resource in Colorado and the rapid growth along the front range was setting up the potential for conflict within our own state between the West slope where a lot of our water comes from and the East slope where our population is in fact a About 90% of the population of Colorado lives on the East slope We have 20% of the natural water supply 80% of the precipitation in Colorado falls on the West slope and so we divert considerable amount of money or money at well water and as a result money to from the West slope and It was time to To start to look at how we can work together as communities within the state Watershed boundaries were also mentioned earlier Colorado fits very conveniently on a placemat, but the eight watersheds or nine or eleven depending on how you Count them Don't fit on a rectangular Placement so the way the water flows and the responsibilities and the benefits that come from that Again, it's it's another way of looking at how we live together in Colorado and so the legislation that created the Interbase and Compact Committee also created watershed roundtables that are made up of representatives of the major watersheds in the state of Colorado and That information is is available elsewhere, but I just kind of wanted to set that as the stage And also, I think it's comforting to know that we have some very capable very engaged People in the public and private sector who are looking at water issues in Colorado and throughout the region and That process is available and open to the public and and I encourage you to learn more about that I'll talk more specifically about that later. Great. Thanks so much. So obviously we've heard about a lot of different issues already in a short time Water touches on pretty much everything and it's all interconnected, right? We've heard about you know forests and agriculture and climate justice and Youth groups and all of these things are part of the whole kind of water landscape Also, of course climate change and water are inextricably linked And clean and reliable water is arguably our most precious resource. So I'd love to hear from each of you Whether you think that we treat water as the precious resource that it is and Maybe why or why or why not Gabriella? Do you want to start sure? Okay So for me, it depends on who you ask and who you are Right in American culture. It's a resource. It's privately owned It's commodified and it's sold and it's meant to be extracted mostly for human and economic gain and Having some farming experience. I know that it's essential to crops and to animals for feeding people's and family and for their business But there are also people who value water not as a resource but as a source of life and rivers are and Water are into our excuse me interwoven into origin stories into culture into traditions into dance and song So for native peoples including myself It's about water for all not just for human needs and gains and it's not water for people It's people for water Native people are stewards and guardians of water like the water protectors is standing rock and all throughout Minnesota and the Minnesota State Capitol protesting to stop and bridge line three and Who haven't continued to exercise all means to stop these pipelines from devastating their homelands and their drinking water and the fish and their cultures These pipelines run beneath the rivers and through their tribal lands So mothers fathers children and elders literally put their lives on the pipeline and Are violently harmed by military and police forces and arrested and imprisoned? Because if you ask energy mining and oil corporations water is a means to an end It doesn't matter that there that the surrounding states are going through your lungs drought They will ask for permits and use millions of gallons of water to extract their products and they're granted those permits But they will rarely face any accountability or responsibility in the devastation that they cause on these communities So these corporations in partnership with Legal systems and the protection of the government and through policy carry out and allow this violence to occur on native communities and people of color So governments and corporations value water when it's convenient for them and for certain bodies of water and for certain communities So again, it depends on who you asking who you are Because there are many people who see it as a resource and For the economy and as a means to an end and there are people who honor Respect and vow to protect water for its own sake and for life on earth Present in future and so there's a big difference Thank you Matt. I Agree, I think we like to say that we value water, but when you really look at it I don't think we do The Watershed Center is very project focused our mission is to protect and restore these watersheds that we inhabit And so our main goal is art It's to fix things to fix problems in our ecosystems in Boulder County And if we use the 2013 floods as a reference point, which we'll talk about in a little bit Before those floods, I don't think there were a whole lot of projects going on in terms of restoring rivers to their natural functions and Then when the floods came along there was a lot of money and people were Restoring things which was awesome, but that has kind of dried up now and there's not a lot of those river projects going on So to me it seems like we're a little bit reactive and not proactive in protecting water We protect it when and value it when there is a problem But it's a lot easier to to be proactive and kind of look forward For these solutions instead of just trying to deal with the problems after they happen That said I think We are maybe Thinking about water a little bit better now at least in terms of its connections of forests so Wildfires are a huge problem here. They're not going to go away. They're becoming more intense and more frequent due to climate change In this drought that we're in When you have a forest that burns in these steep slopes that we have in these really large rain events Vegetation gets burned away soils can become hydrophobic So then when it rains all that sediment and ash is just washing into the rivers So now that we're kind of moving from rivers into forests and focusing on restoring our forests to their natural functions Which is great We're starting to think about how that will affect the rivers and trying to find strategic areas and rivers that we can Try to restore their function and catch sediment before it flows into Longmont through left-hand Creek in the same rain Creek so I Think we could be doing a better job at valuing water But we might be Might be on the right way Thanks, Casey sure my my experience with Public values and water It comes down to to a very basic level a lot I hear often that people Don't know where their water comes from they just turn on the tap and it comes out and that's fine with them But I do think that we all have that responsibility to understand where our water comes from there are some great resources that exist The communities along the the front range have had extensive education programs for the last 25 years easily from the city of Fort Collins that's really been a pioneer in Natural resources management and and water management Everybody knows Denver waters Logos and signs and recognizes those but I mean I encourage everyone who's who's in the audience today To just Google as I just did Where does the city of Longmont get their water and you will learn then that all of your water is? essentially surface water and And That is coming primarily from st. Brain Creek and through trans mountain diversions from the Colorado and Frasier River So I think that is the first step to understand where your water comes from and I don't know when if if we talk about the value of water We all love water and we enjoy it. We recreate it We we want it there for our families. We We rely on it and it and it brings us it connects everything but it's so complicated in Colorado and so a lot of times the message gets kind of Pardon the pun, but it gets kind of watered down to be something like well, you know, I heart water so There's really a lot more to know about it and I think that starting in your own community is the best place to start Where does your water come from? And and and start there and and it'll just explode from there. You will find many many connections I encourage you to check the south plat basin comm website We have a video That talks about the river about the South Platte River And that's our basin. That's where we are. So that that's another another good place to kind of build your vocabulary and and of course we value what scares and for For better or worse, we tend to respond to I Don't know the next bright shiny thing or the next scare the next You know the next problem that we that we need to deal with and I think we can find some comfort if we if we start to build that basis of Understanding within ourselves and I also absolutely agree It's not necessarily going to happen by sitting in a building It's going to happen when you're outside when you are in in touch with the elements When you are looking up at this beautiful sky in Colorado that we have and out on the plains and and see in the vast expanse understanding the grasses and the interaction of Agriculture and rangeland and just all of the economic activity That is taking place in eastern Colorado that is made possible by some Feets of engineering at the turn of the last century that are truly remarkable And I'm sure that there's some information about that here at this at this museum, but yeah getting to know your history your culture and For me, it's just get outside And and enjoy this great resource Thanks. Yeah, you know, it's interesting I mentioned to somebody recently that the Boulder reservoir Was Colorado River water and they were like what are you talking about? They had no idea and I think it's very true like we just are like oh here's a reservoir and I'm gonna Swim in it or boat in it or you know camp next to it and have no sort of sense of how that water actually got there and the Vast infrastructure that is in place and all the history of that infrastructure and how it's tied up and you know Culture and sometimes genocide and all kinds of things that interact So yeah, I think that's a great point like just learning about where your water comes from and and how Okay, well switching gears a little bit This fall this September will mark the tenure anniversary of the flood of 2013 I remember it well because my son was I think 10 days old when that flood happened So there has been obviously a ton of Watershed work since then but I'd love to hear you all Just talk briefly about what you think we've done well in response to that flood And what else we could be doing to protect our watersheds and cities from future floods, which will inevitably happen Matt, I also remember that flood. Well, I was in college then and I remember shoveling sand into bags Because our flow our house flooded That and I remember we got like three days off of school and it's funny. That's what I remember from it Our organization and so many other watershed groups in this area did so many projects our rivers were really in not great shape after the floods and Like now we're finally seeing the effects of strong resilient rivers That has been in the process for the past 10 years, which is really great to see thinking forward I think future restoration projects need to be thinking about kind of have like a climate adaptation approach If you just restore the river to how it was before there's gonna be another flood and potentially a bigger flood and it might not fare so well so Thinking about how to spread out the energy of the river. I think is is a really good idea We're doing that and other groups are doing that now where space allows To change the way the channel the river channel actually moves and instead of one single main channel carrying all the water We try to turn it into a wetland complex We don't have beavers here anymore or that many beavers But we're basically trying to mimic what nature has been doing for forever That's kind of the goal with that also Thinking about which plants will grow here in the future It's drier it's hotter than it ever has been been before that we've been here So thinking about what plants will actually be able to survive when we bring in new things to bear in soil So kind of just thinking about how the landscape is gonna look like in the next 10 or 20 or 100 years and Trying to restore to those future conditions rather than restoring to how we have previously been living Thanks Gabriella Yeah, thank you. I share similar similar thoughts and I also want to speak about how we can make our communities flood resilient right Supporting and emerge emergency preparedness training education and resources You know supported by the government like how do people know what to put in their emergency kids? Who can they contact? Are they in a flood zone and where high ground areas? So I think we can really Pressure or ask the government for that support and also support support each other collectively programs that help low-income families have access to those resources and Similar to Matt was saying, you know, definitely relying on nature based and ecological solutions Such as planting and caring for native trees and plants where it's appropriate, right trees whole tree roots hold water and soils that are cared for and nurtured and organic lawn care and and No pesticides and really well taken care of they can absorb that water and some of the problem especially with big farm and agriculture is that they're destroying soil and so The what the soil can't absorb that water and it's just running off when there's a lot of rain It just it just runs off. And so we're losing soil So we can nurture soils and governments can promote and fund regenerative local agriculture and small farmers and We can continue moving to organic and regenerative community gardens instead of global food systems We also need more green infrastructure Right, I am learned from Michelle Gabriel Parish who is the founder of flows and she said it's not the problem That we don't have enough water. It's just that everything is Design all the buildings and all of the concrete and everything is just designed to move water As fast as possible into storm water But we're growing grass, you know, we're not growing gardens So if we just made some changes into green infrastructure and took advantage of the snowmelt and the water We could really have prosperous and and flourishing gardens and food locally available As well as minimizing flood damage and by the way, there's two by the ways here by the way, all of this will help in mitigate minimizing and mitigating the impacts of climate change as well and fires and Second by the way is that all this is intergent intergenerational knowledge that indigenous people have been practicing for millennia It isn't until recently that these practices are renamed permaculture or regenerative agriculture We haven't had necessarily words for it or called it anything. We just knew that everything It's important to give back. It's important to have a reciprocal relationship with nature rather than just simply always taking it's also a black history month and Dr. George Washington cover who was a scientist and an Agriculture research was also saying this a hundred years ago And I've been reading this book from when on a la Duke It's to be a water protector and it's sad and it's devastating. She talks about the implications of dams and you know, we're talking about massive geoengineering feeds of Bringing pipe massive pipe water pipelines from across the state to here to the cities But there's actually major contributors to floods massive floods that have been deadly to fish populations to the aquatic life and to the ecosystems surrounding these dams So We're driving fish population to extinction So we really got to think about how You know, it's we are part of nature and You know, there's there's like extreme ends of like conservation of we're not meant to be here and to touch it And there's a time and place, but we also have to question how these massive Engineering feeds are actually further contributing contributing to the problem Thanks, Casey Well, this has all got me thinking about how my husband and I often contemplate the advantages of aging and I guess what we've been able to come up with is that we do have kind of a sense of history and And I would say that it's been kind of a long and painful process but if any of you have the opportunity to Read Timothy Egan's book the worst hard time It's a story of the dust bowl and the creation of the conservation movement back in the 1930s We really screwed up in the 30s farming practices were out of whack Immigration practices were out of whack. We destroyed the grasslands and What came out of that was the conservation movement Colorado and other Western states are represented by Conservation districts the soil conservation service was created. It's now the natural resources conservation service So if you are a property owner And you have a farm or a ranch you have the resources of the natural resources conservation service available to you the Clean Water Act in the 70s Was a was a similar water shed moment The Cuyahoga River had caught fire we were experiencing loss of natural habitat and Awareness had just come to the point that Congress took action we have the Environmental Protection Agency as a result and when the Clean Water Act was was created There was another another cycle of local watershed based engagement the goal during the 1980s was to create Watershed plans not necessarily for giant rivers like the Colorado River, but for tributaries Rivers like like the pooter like that my Home is in the Cherry Creek watershed little tributaries to the South Platte River for example So in Colorado the Colorado Watershed Assembly came about in Response to the fact that we had this this burgeoning number of nonprofits that were being created to become these Watershed organizations to create the watershed plans to bring in the local engagement the community values the community perspectives into play and These nonprofits were being created with grant money which as Max referred to the grant money is great to get started But when the grant money the federal grant money goes away You'd better have a base of support in the community or There really is no future so building a strong base of support in the community and local support for watershed organizations and engagement with conservation districts, I think is is really important to understand and Specifically in 2013 when the federal disaster money was announced in response to the flood the devastating floods That came through this community. There were 13 Non-governmental organizations created and the bookkeeper in me was just thinking oh man These people are really going to need some help and and they did because the money that comes comes to do projects Typically, so what we need is that kind of local base of support to know, you know, who's got some fence posts Who's got some logs who's got a backhoe who can you know, where are the resources in the community? to really Mobilize and and put the the typically influx of outside money to the best work. I Also say this to kind of hopefully be somewhat reassuring The process to undo damage that we have created Mistakes that we realize we have made in the landscape has been going on since the dust bowl We have I absolutely agree that flood control for a very long time was Get it out of here get that water out here as fast as possible put it in a concrete line ditch and It's somebody else's problem But that has that started to change back in the 80s and 90s and the Cherry Creek watersheds a great example of it they've been able to invest in What might loosely be called process-based? Reclamation but giving the creek room to spread out giving the creek space to function as As it should and I also want to give a little encouraging note to say that You know beaver are making a comeback people especially in the headwaters Which are extremely important? All the way downstream People are Going out in the field and pretending to be a little beaver and they are setting up what is our best guess of what a beaver would do and Then hopefully waiting and see if beaver move in and take over that process And that is that is happening in the upper watersheds It's going to happen on willing private property owners land or it's going to happen on on public land Beaver are a little more problematic when she get into the cities with with the infrastructure That we have to deal with but I I know for a fact the beaver are everywhere and we see traces of them all the time So so that I think is is another piece of good news and and then I have recently Been very encouraged to to be exposed to What I would just broadly call? Indigenous ecological knowledge Scientists don't know everything. I mean you gotta love them but people who have been working on the land for generations and Some for hundreds if not thousands of years. They have a pretty good sense of of space and place as well and working with native plants that are adapted to The extremes in Colorado absolutely agree. That's another thing for us to To keep in mind and I and again want to be Hopefully reassuring to say that is very much in the forefront of the most innovative practices that that are being employed right now Great. Thanks. So I'll just ask one more question and then we can see if there's any questions from the audience So this event is all about climate action and the future of our water and I would love to hear from each of you very briefly What are two or three actions that you recommend that individuals or Businesses or governments could take to safeguard our water supplies Gabriella do you want to go first? Sure. Yeah, we had four questions now. We're at three. So I kind of mix makes my answers here, but And I think maybe some more practical solutions will be shared I'll kind of share about the big picture and You know, there's a lot of solutions a lot of scientists engineers working with with native people and Sometimes overseeing the people that have had this knowledge bridge for millennia But the most important thing I think is that it's it's really crucial that we shift our personal and collective narratives around water Right, if it's our water if we're advocates, then let's be that, you know, we can't be about She's saying, you know, there's western there's the farmers that are now fighting against the urban population and we're being pitted against each other and you know Unfortunately because water is is it's supposed to be for the people but it is privatized and I do encourage people to learn about water rights and policy But it is incredibly complex So how did something that we're stewards of and we're guardians of be so complicated to relate to? And so we've got a shift From this this water is mine. This water is ours to What can I do for the water and how can I be of service to water in nature? And until we're really out there on the earth and the land and understanding where our water comes from and finding more natural solutions That are really benefiting the entire environment and ecosystems then it doesn't In the short term it doesn't matter what solutions we find or massive You know geo engineering feeds like cloud seeding like making it rain when it's not really supposed to rain That's just going to continue further imbalances in our ecosystems And then I'll tie in my last answer. So going back to water policy It has to change. I mean it was It's the Colorado water compact was you know, it's it's an interstate Deal that was made a hundred years ago on a really wet year And like Michelle says if they had only consulted with the people that knew the land so deeply with the indigenous people They would have known it was a wet year. So That you know that deal Started with a debt already and kind of been in water debt ever since so Water policy isn't equitable and it's not easy to understand and it has included has excluded many people From having access to water including small farmers tribal nations and So whether that's something that the government does or water board organizations make more equitable and more accessible Or whether that's pressure from us to to really push like I need we need to understand our water We need to understand the water policy. We need to change it. It needs a drastic drastic change because as I'm hopeful but seeing how you know states are already preparing and and You know legal battles over water and we're really going to see the implications of that for many years to come we really have to start unifying and I would say giving the water back to people and and us for be for us to be responsible stewards of the water of our water Thank you Casey I would Like to encourage everyone to Take that personal action to get to know your watershed get to know the history of The the cultural history of the area and and then also make Make the effort to get to know your local Decision makers your local representatives and make sure that they know um how important this issue is to you and Also with that knowledge that there is a process There are numerous processes in place But there are places to nobody likes to feel like they're at a disadvantage when it comes to knowledge and coming into the water world I guarantee you they people talk in acronyms all the time. You don't you won't know what They're even talking about if if you can't slow them down and ask them to explain that but it's worth the effort um Be prepared to be confused Um But I that would be my um encouragement to you. Please keep an open mind when you go into it know that there are so many different forces at work and But yeah get to get to know your watershed Thanks Matt I think everything that's been said is awesome and I would say take it one step further and provide your input um A lot of these projects that happen They will request public input or a mining company wants to restart mining operations or go through tailings or something like that A big forest mitigation project With the forest service they all request your input and you don't need to be a scientist So you don't need to be a government employee to be a water advocate We all drink water and we all use water You're qualified to give your personal opinion on What you think should happen with these projects and that happens once you Take a look at these other things and value your water understand where it comes from Um, understand that we get our water from snow, which is Happening less and less here year to year. So it's water is a finite resource in colorado Great, thanks so much. Um, so we have time for a few audience questions If you want to just raise your hand and ask a question and then I can repeat it Um, yeah over here Okay, great just to recap the question so the question is um, should we here be thinking about Doing things that they're doing in other cities in the west and maybe ripping out lawns and doing something else with that space Yeah, kasey As long as we can protect our soil Um soil also has water saving capacities water holding capacities And I think again, it's it's important to kind of have the big picture there I'm going to use an an acronym now. I'm going to encourage you to take a look at A website engage cwcb Dot com That is a website where you'll find a lot of information on the regional Conversations that are going on colorado is a headwater state Um, we're the only state in the continental united states that that is true of our water Comes from the heavens and it flows out We have legal agreements with other states and um And we're all being impacted by drought and so again, I think it's encouraging to know that we've got um some very serious competent people um Holding those regional discussions and we should pay attention to that. We should do everything that we can um and outdoor water savings are Going to be our biggest bang for the buck. So so good on you for taking that action and Anyone else want to address that? Yes Great question. And I was actually going to touch on um going back to local food systems I mean so much of climate crisis and water crisis is caused by global food systems and massive agriculture and it It goes with what you're saying, right? We're growing grass instead of of native plants and And trees that can be growing here. We also have to change Going back to a local food system and changing our palates, right? We're we're getting food from all over the world at all seasons and that's actually my nutrition background That's not very healthy for us. You know, we shouldn't be eating food at um That's not in season All the time. So if we can adjust to what grows here locally and change our palates and you know, I love avocados And I love my tacos, but if it's something that I have to give up in order to keep um fossil fuels down and keep the water here and That's something that we have to do Yeah Matt, do you want to add anything? Just to say that my lawn is also dead and um I don't have to water anymore, which is nice um I see more and more people changing to zero escape lawns and and rain gardens with Native plants and catchments on the roofs that direct the water that does fall to their gardens Which is great and it's improving and I think We're we're not going to go backwards. There's not going to be more people planting Kentucky bluegrass lawns. So Um, I think that's pretty good All right, great. Thanks. Yep Okay, so the question is um who I guess here in longmont are here on the front range in boulder county Is making the decisions about our water? Oh, well, gosh, that's a pretty big question. But I mean we have a a series of um, We have a water court in the state of colorado We have a lot of water lawyers in the state of colorado Decisions are made um in water court Other decisions are made in the state legislature Decisions are made at the local level the city of aurora recently passed an ordinance that That Basically forbade Cool season grasses. So those are grasses that You know get green come up early and and tend to be the ones like the blue grasses and fescues and things that Have a higher water demand So You know the difference between a dead lawn and a dormant lawn you might want to get to know that a little bit But back to your question about who are the people that make the decisions The colorado water conservation board cwcb Is the state agency that where the expertise is engaged to Serve the state legislature as they are making their decisions So as well as the colorado department of public health and environment where the colorado Water quality control commission Is also given that Responsibility to look at water from the quality perspective So those are two state agencies where the expertise Is kind of focused And then of course there are numerous community groups and organizations that That can help you kind of compile all that information and get to understand how the various Agencies and and entities Relate to one another so your local watershed group Is another good place to start They're not decision makers, but they can certainly help give you background All right, did you have a follow-up question? Are you talking about specifically with colorado river? Issues Okay. Yeah, so the so the question is are there too many cooks in the kitchen Is that kind of hampering our the ability to you know make the necessary policy changes in the colorado river said Gabriella you look like you want to jump in there I'm nodding my head. Um, well, I I've touched on how complex water policy is and it's Right, it's not the colorado river isn't just contained in colorado and lots of lawyers everywhere and the states needed to have Find a way to make voluntary cuts by january 3rd. So january 31st so now the federal government is stepping in and I So I'm learning too about the legal system But I know in the work that I've done and I've asked like How can how can somebody like me be part of making these decisions? And usually the answer is Either no one can give me an answer because I'm not a landowner and I and I don't have water rights And like so I you have to own property with water rights And so that in itself is incredibly complex and I know that even lawyers are confused with what's going on with how complex the policy is And I've asked do you have indigenous representatives and elders and people Who have who have this understanding of natural and ecological solutions? And you know the answer is we're doing the best that we can And so I know scientists a lot of people are involved and And I don't know that they have the knowledge of Thinking about the entire ecosystem and and all of the impacts on all life I think a lot of this is based these Excuse me. Can you hear me? Okay. I think a lot of these changes are based from my experience on economic gain and You know, of course, I don't wouldn't want farmers to They're also very big advocates in this arena I wouldn't want them to lose their livelihood But at the same time it's time to be honest that these these systems of diverting water Thousands of miles from what are originates from aren't efficient, you know and are contributing To climate crisis and drought and fire. So I think the people that make the decisions it needs to change and needs to change drastically So I don't have I I would like to see more people like myself and not people that that don't understand the greater impact Making these decisions who are Not likely thinking about the benefit of all of us Thanks Anyone else want to add anything? I um, I I guess I just like to To just a couple of comments occurred to me and that was the bureau of reclamation Was what the agency that was behind the era of dam building? um, the the forties and the fifties Saw this incredible Concentration of energy and manpower and capital and um The the the goal was a was a a laudable goal, you know, we were going to create Food we're going to feed the world and and we have been able to do that and Farmers and ranchers are very proud of their effort and the work and the the economic Gains that that they have helped to make possible It's a dip. We're in a different situation now and change is hard um, and Trying to take all of the various Values into account is absolutely challenging. It's the challenge of our time And I think we need to be compassionate and we do need to have an open mind And I think we kind of need to realize is There were some big things done, you know, 50 60 years ago and Some had unintended consequences and so You know, we we are working to deal with those unintended consequences now Okay, thanks. I think we have time for one more question if anybody has one. Yeah So I think the question is um, is there you know any kind of accountability for developers and development to You know, is there any kind of accountability to for water issues from development? I'm I'm not aware of anything in particular, but that sounds like something to bring to your city council who Who makes regulations for developers? I'm not sure what if there's anything currently I like to hope there is I don't know if there actually is though Well, I have good news I have good news for max because I would just say well, I mean first of all we need to understand where we look We are The way colorado works politically We are a local control state Planning decisions are typically made at the county level. We have thousands of special districts that Have been created over the over the decades to Provide public health benefits the primary role of government is to protect public health. Um, I have been involved in Conversations and meetings there are Folks who come together they are They they have It's a forum for that kind of discussion How can we integrate water and land use planning? That is not something that we have done in the past. We hadn't really had to until until You know 2000 We were going along pretty happily things were looking pretty good, but um that That changed our awareness a lot The the drought has hung on and there is the water and land use planning alliance It's made up of regional councils of government Which are basically those smaller special districts and municipalities that come together in an area There's a denver regional council of governments. There's a northwest Council of governments. There are various state agencies as max referred to earlier Those agencies tend to be really good at what they focus on but not necessarily Um You know, there's not been the encouragement or opportunity to be collaborative And that is changing too. I hear the word collaborative more than just about any other Word these days, but there is a lot of interaction. There's a lot of conversation I think at the state level also there is an awareness of the the essential Nature of putting land use and water planning Together so that that so that it makes sense Great. Um, thank you all so much. Thank you for coming. Um, if I could just encourage you all to visit the The info booths in the lobby on your way out and also to maybe think about Taking one action on behalf of water And thank you so much to our panelists for coming out on a Sunday