The Coalition has worked in conjunction with the Dolores Water Conservancy District to form the Dolores River Dialogue. The Dialogue has been going for over a year and has had a good response from the broader basin community as well as state and federal agencies. Currently we are working on an assessment of the needs of the environment of the lower river. Later this year we will look at the interactions of the needs of the recreation community, cold water fisheries and the river itself to try to determine the best use of the water that can be managed for these purposes.

We hope that new information and broad based collaboration will help us work to better manage the river in the future for both the resource and the recreation users. For more information please e-mail Chuck Wanner the Coalition Coordinator (with San Juan Citizens Alliance) at cwanner@frontier.net or call the Dolores Water Conservancy District at 970-565-7562.

Major goals of the Coalition include:

• To obtain added flows to the Dolores River through management and purchase for the purposes of perpetuating the integrity of the basin's ecosystem, for increased recreational opportunities, and for the benefit of endangered species.

• To protect undeveloped landscapes on public and private lands throughout the river corridor via wilderness or wild river designations and conservation easements.

• To stress better and more balanced resource management for the full spectrum of human uses and for the protection of the ecosystem.

• To support sustainable and diverse economies around agriculture, angling, and recreation.