It’s water over the dam now.
Elected leaders along with fire and law enforcement officials in the communities surrounding Dillon Reservoir are outraged at the speedy and unexpected decision by the Denver Water Board to close off the road that goes across the dam.
Last Tuesday’s closure is predicated on supposed security reports by unnamed federal and state agencies, so we don’t want to say the water board’s decision is all wet. But we definitely think a slower, more well- thought-out plan was in order — and with input from Summit County officials.
Dillon Reservoir, 70 miles west of Denver and on the other side of the Continental Divide, is a major water source for the metropolitan area.
After the 9/11 terrorist attacks, security levels were heightened at thousands of vulnerable sites, including water supplies. And we don’t want to downplay the role Homeland Security authorities hold in protecting us.
However, it appears no one in Summit County was given advance warning that the security status of Dillon Reservoir had changed — much less time to react to the surprising closure of a main arterial through the county.
“We’ve known since 9/11 that dams across the nation could be at risk, but why this dam? Why this day?” state Rep. Christine Scanlan, D-Dillon, pondered on Wednesday, less than 24 hours after the barriers went up.
Scanlan appeared with 40 other county officials to decry the lack of information coming from the Denver Water Board.
“We understand the frustration,” said Trina McGuire-Collier, spokeswoman for the water board. ” The dam’s not as safe as we thought it was.”
That sounds ominous, and if there is a threat potential, isn’t it also in the best interest of Summit County residents, especially first-responders, to know what the score is and work in cooperation with Denver Water to safeguard everyone?
This is clearly a regional issue that required regional dialogue and cooperation, not heavy-handed tactics by big-city water bosses.
