Plan for new reservoir that will flood portion of Northern Colorado highway clears final major hurdle
Fifteen Northern Colorado water districts and communities are celebrating after taking a giant step forward toward building Glade Reservoir. The Northern Integrated Supply Project, or NISP, is now gearing up to begin construction of the regions newest reservoir just north of Fort Collins.
Glade Reservoir, a project that has been in the works since the early 2000s, would force the relocation of a stretch of Highway 287 so a dam could be built near Ted's Place.
"Water is a finite resource in this part of the United States. Not only do we track it whenever it falls as snow and goes down a river, but we also track who has the right to use it," said Jeff Stahla, spokesperson for Northern Water.
Northern Colorado is the fastest growing region in Colorado, with the population expected to nearly double in the coming 20 years.
Many communities and water districts in Northern Colorado projected that growth and started formulating a plan in 2003 to supply water to their communities.
However, the Poudre River is one of the most vital resources to the entire region. And, some feared the creation of NISP's Glade Reservoir should cause deterioration to the existing river and watershed.
That is why a local group called "Save the Poudre" filed a lawsuit to try and block the creation of Glade Reservoir. The two sides were in a legal dispute for months.
However, the lawsuit was dropped after Northern Water agreed to a $100 million settlement.
"(The Poudre) is vitally important," Stahla said.
The money will not go to Save the Poudre directly. However, a fund will be created to absorb the $100 million. From there, six local entities to be determined will have allocating powers to disburse the money to projects and organizations that directly benefit the Poudre River.
However, the money will be slowly given to the fund.
"We will immediately pay $5 million into a fund to be used for Poudre River projects," Stahla said.
Stahla said Northern Water will increase their payment increments to $7.5 million each once the dam is built just north of Ted's Place.
The $7.5 million increments will continue until $100 million in total has been paid.
"Was this the final hurdle this project had?" asked CBS News Colorado's Dillon Thomas.
"This was the final major hurdle of the project," Stahla said.
NISP now has federal, state and local permits to move forward with major portions of the project.
Northern Water expects to begin construction on the dam near Ted's Place to begin in 2026.
Stahla said water is expected to begin filling the new reservoir within four years.
"This allows communities to plan their growth and plan their future water supplies into the next few decades. Which gives them certainty as we know people are continuing to move into this area," Stahla said.
