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New! Final Environmental Impact Statement Released
Reclamation released the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the Southern Delivery System on December 12, 2008.
The FEIS for the SDS Project documents an analysis of the potential environmental consequences of contracts requested by the Participants:
Colorado Springs, Fountain, Security, and Pueblo West. Environmental consequences are described forthe FEIS study area, which encompasses
portions of the Arkansas River, and Upper Colorado River basins in Colorado. The document also identifies a preferred alternative (Participants' Proposed Action).
Supplemental Information Report and Public Comments
Reclamation released a Supplemental Information Report for the Southern Delivery System Draft Environmental Impact Statement on October 3, 2008.
Proposed Project Purpose and Need
The basic project
purpose is to provide a safe, reliable and sustainable water supply for
the Participants through the foreseeable future.
The Participants have
three needs that SDS would fulfill:
Role of the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation)
Pueblo Reservoir and associated facilities are owned by
the United States and operated by Reclamation. The use of these facilities
by other entities
for water storage or conveyance requires contracts with Reclamation. Execution
of long-term contracts for the use of Reclamation facilities is the major
Federal action analyzed in this Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). Reclamation
is the lead agency for the Federal action and is responsible
for environmental evaluation and
preparation of an EIS and a Record of Decision. The U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and
This report is available to view or download. Reclamation will document the decision regarding whether to issue contracts
to the Participants in a Record of Decision issued no sooner than 30 days after the FEIS has been filed with the EPA.
The Supplemental Information Report provides information on the following topics: water quality, potential effects on the western slope of Colorado,
potential effects of a failure of new dams, effects of physical changes to the alternatives and reasonably foreseeable actions, clarification of Reclamation’s purpose and need statement,
changes in the project participants’ Proposed Action, and identification of Reclamation’s preferred alternative. Substantial changes to these effects since completion of the DEIS are
described in the report.
This report was open to public comment through November 24, 2008. PDF files of the public comments are posted for review.
The
Southern Delivery System (SDS) Project is a proposed regional water delivery
project
designed to serve most or all of the Participants’ (City of Colorado
Springs, City of Fountain, Security Water District and Pueblo West Metropolitan
District) future water needs through 2046. As proposed, SDS would deliver
Frying Pan-Arkansas (Fry-Ark) Project water and non-Fry-Ark
Project water from the Arkansas River near the City of Pueblo to the Participants’ service
areas.
The proposed SDS Project area would extend northward from the Arkansas
River from a pipeline at Pueblo Reservoir to the City of Colorado Springs.
As proposed, SDS would include construction and operation of the following components: