What is the Voluntary Flow Management Program?

NOTE: This article was originally published by the Mountain Mail on June 19, as part of our monthly environmental column.

On May 29 at GARNA’s Valley View Nature Learning Center, local water systems maestro Bob Hamel explained what the Voluntary Flow Management Program (VFMP) is and why it is remarkable to a roomful of Western water enthusiasts. For those who couldn’t attend, here is a summary of Hamel’s talk.

First, some context. A watershed is an area of land that drains via smaller streams and creeks into a common waterbody (the Arkansas River in our case). Those of us living in the Arkansas River Valley intercept this water for our municipal and agricultural needs and recreational enjoyment, yet all users of our basin’s water are not located in the valley. Around 80% of Colorado’s population lives on the Front Range, but the Front Range produces only 20% of Colorado’s water. To meet Front Range demand, an immense amount of water is pumped daily from Colorado’s west side to its east.

The Ark River may flow past your home in BV, but cities in the Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District (SCWCD) including Pueblo, Colorado Springs and Aurora own the majority of the rights to that water. To ensure they receive their water entitlements, these cities utilize a water diversion, storage and delivery system called the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project. The Fry-Ark Project is made up of a series of water storage tanks (i.e., reservoirs) including Ruedi Reservoir, Turquoise Lake, Mount Elbert Conduit and Forebay, Twin Lakes and Pueblo Reservoir, and a convenient superhighway for moving water from reservoir to reservoir, the Arkansas River.

This is where the VFMP comes in.

The VFMP was established in 1991 by the SCWCD, Trout Unlimited, the Arkansas River Outfitters Association (of which Bob Hamel is the executive director), Chaffee County and Colorado Parks and Wildlife to manage river flows on the Arkansas more efficiently and benefit the most stakeholders possible – including those who do not own water rights.

Here’s how it works: Between July 1 and Aug. 15, the VFMP aims to maintain a flow of 700 cubic feet per second (cfs) at the Wellsville gauge just west of the line between Chaffee and Fremont counties. This is to the benefit of our local whitewater rafting industry, as boating is less enjoyable (and less profitable) when flows drop below 700 cfs. If native flows fall below 700 cfs, the VFMP bumps them back up by pulling from the 10,000 acre-feet of Fry-Ark project water voluntarily allocated by water rights holders in Pueblo, Colorado Springs and Aurora. If any of this water evaporates on its way to Pueblo Reservoir, rafting companies reimburse the SCWCD for water lost.

The VFMP is by definition “voluntary,” so additional water is not released if native flows stay at or above 700 cfs through Aug. 15. 2008, 2014, 2015, 2017 and 2019 were all water years in which there was no need to augment flows.

Throughout the rest of the year, the VFMP aims to maintain flows between 250 and 450 cfs at the Wellsville gauge. This standard is to the benefit of fisheries. Low flows in the spring give fry (recently hatched fish) a better shot at emergence and survival into adulthood.

Angler and rafters have historically quarreled over Arkansas River water management and use, but the VFMP creates a mutually beneficial solution for these groups. In fact, the SCWCD credits the VFMP for helping the  Upper Arkansas River to become a renowned stretch of whitewater and a Gold Medal trout fishery.

By creating conditions that benefit a diverse range of users, the VFMP drives a significant portion of our local economy. Regardless of whether you are a river rat, a fishing aficionado or happiest indoors, if you live in the Arkansas River Basin, the VFMP affects you.

Water management is a notorious source of tension and strife between stakeholders, but our local VFMP is a remarkable deviation from this trend. The transparent collaboration that has been maintained since 1991 by signatories of the VFMP is rare. This partnership stands as an example of the benefits that can occur when water users come together to manage our precious water resources.

Rose Nadelhoffer is the programs development and outreach coordinator at the Greater Arkansas River Nature Association. Have a burning environmental question? Email rose@garna.org.