Colorado Rivers Update: Coffintop Dam is Dead!

Hi Friends of Colorado’s Rivers,

After a two-year battle in state water court, we are very happy to report that Coffintop Dam is Dead. The massive proposed dam and reservoir project could have been built just a mile west of the Town of Lyons, CO, across the channel of South St. Vrain Creek. The huge 350-foot tall proposed dam would have loomed over the Town like a colossus in a science fiction era.

We worked closely with the defendant, the St. Vrain and Left Hand Water District, to agree on a “stipulation” erasing the future of the dam that has now been accepted by Colorado water court. In addition to the dam not being built, the District also agreed to not expand any other on-channel dam inside the district. Further, the agreement continues to allow our organization to engage in any local, state, or federal permitting process if the District proposes off-channel projects within its boundaries.

Once again, our organization was the ONLY environmental organization engaging in this battle — we are pleased to be the leading river-protection organization in the state of Colorado, and we are thrilled to announce this victory.

The story is reported here in the Colorado Sun with no paywall — feel free to click through and read more.

It’s solely YOUR support that keeps us working.  We are TRULY grassroots, people-powered, and community-driven.

You can donate online by clicking here.

Thank you, and let’s keep the victories coming!

Gary