Stan Whinnery, Hinsdale County Representative for the Colorado Water Conservation River District, and Deakun Summers, GHS student, explain the impacts that the Colorado River District makes on today’s youth, in an interview on Monday, Oct 23. 

The Colorado River District is a public agency that manages Colorado’s rivers, lakes, creeks, and potable water. The River District was created in 1937 to protect and conserve the water resources for the Colorado water basin. There are 15 representatives for the western slope counties. Each representative is appointed by their county commissioners. The general term lasts around three years, but some have been on the board for over 30 years.

Stan Whinnery has been representing Hinsdale county for 12 years. For the past few years he, as well as his fellow members, have conducted studies and monitored the amount of water staying in Colorado. 

“The youth will be affected by the long term decisions made by the board. The decisions that are made, may last for a long, long time. The Colorado River is four million feet short of the demand. This is just one of the many long term effects that our youth should be concerned about.” said Whinnery.

Deakun Summers, a former student of the Range and Wildlife class, said,  “ We should all be aware of the River District because we as youth are impacted by their choices. The younger generations are impacted by the district because what they leave behind, and their decisions they make will affect the water we use and our future resources,” he continues, “If we are not managing our water resources the right way, we could potentially run out of water and lose many ranches and farms. I hope my fellow peers will understand the importance of this.”