What You Need to Know About the SFRRC

The Coalition is a group of entities:

• The Republican River Water Conservation District
• Yuma County
• Kit Carson County
• The Three Rivers Alliance
• The Nature Conservancy
• Colorado Parks and Wildlife

These organizations have joined together to create a plan for restoring the South Fork Republican River channel. The plan will cover the South Fork Republican River channel from Flagler to the state line, with a particular focus on the section from just west of Highway 385 to the Bonny Dam.

Bonny Dam was drained and converted to a flow-through facility in 2011 in response to legal requirements of the Republican River Compact. The action had adverse river and ecological impacts and eliminated many of the recreational functions of the 7,200-acre conservation area. A full restoration of the stream flows downstream has also not been possible because the dam continues to trap low flows. Dense phreatophyte plant colonies in the trapped sediment area evapo-transpirates large amounts of water and precludes recreation functions over a large area of the site. A coalition of stakeholders with RRWCD as agent, is working to increase downstream river flows, improve river and riparian habitat function, and a restore recreational opportunities in the area.

The coalition has enlisted the services of Stuart Dykstra

The Coalition has enlisted the expertise of Stuart Dykstra of V3 Companies, Ltd. Dykstra is a hydrogeologist with 35+ years in domestic and international markets providing groundwater development, surface water, fluvial geomorphology, environmental, and natural areas restoration services to multi-laterals, bi-laterals, industrial, commercial, mining, and public sector clients.