The proposed expansion of Bear Creek Lake, a flood-control reservoir in southern Jefferson County, Colorado, is threating to eliminate over 1 mile of Bear Creek, a scenic Class III stretch of river that is free-flowing. The Colorado Water Conservation Board and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are in the Feasibility Study stage of storing much more water in Bear Creek Lake, a flood-control reservoir built in 1974 to protect the Lakewood and Denver areas from floods that could occur on Bear Creek and Turkey Creek. The current lake storage of 2,000-acre feet would be expanded to 22,000-acre feet, periodically flooding 615 additional acres of a well-used and beloved local park that is upstream of the Bear Creek Lake Dam. In the process, more than one-mile of free-flowing Bear Creek will be flooded, create possible mud flats in dry years, and all the riparian forest along that stretch of river will be cut down to make way for the new pool. Trees may likely be planted along the rim of a new reservoir in exchange for the impacts to Bear Creek. At least a mile of Turkey Creek will also be inundated.
Bear Creek begins at 14,000 feet near Mount Evans and thunders down through Evergreen and Morrison Colorado. While it is not runnable every year, at least every few years, there is a short runnable season offering Class V boating between Evergreen and Morrison, and Class III boating through the forested stretch between Morrison and Bear Creek Lake. The threatened stretch of river becomes navigable at flows above 100 cfs and snowmelt flows can exceed 500 cfs in bigger water years. Boating down through the park can reveal wonderful bird habitat with owls, falcons, and eagles in a well-developed riparian ecosystem.
“New” water rights are in the process of being created to take more water from Bear Creek and the reallocation of the lake from “flood-control” to “water storage” will mainly benefit users more than 40 miles to the north along the South Platte, namely the cities of Brighton, Dacono and Berthoud, Colorado. Lakewood Colorado, the operator of the park has not signed on to the project and leases the park land from the USACE. The park logs more than 650,000 users a year that come for a chance to hike along a lush vegetated free-flowing river with birds and other wildlife, that is close to home, and accessible on a daily basis. More than 12 miles of mountain biking/hiking and equestrian trails will also be lost in the expansion.
The Army Corp of Engineers is accepting public comment which can be sent to:
Bear-Creek-Study@usace.army.mil
Or via US Mail to:
Bear-Creek-Study
US Army Corps of Engineers
ATTN: CENWO-PM-AC
1616 Capitol Avenue
Omaha, NE 68102
Public comments that are heard early in the feasibility study process – NOW – will be most effective.
More in depth information about the expansion and efforts to stop it can be found at: https://savebearcreeklakepark.org
Authored by AW Member, Jim Gill of Morrison, Colorado and Kestrel Kunz. Photos courtesy of Jim Gill.