Good Morning, Colorado, you’re listening to the Daily Sun-Up with the Colorado Sun. It’s Tuesday August 17th.

 

Today - U.S. officials declared the first-ever water shortage of the Colorado River on Monday. That means mandatory cuts to a water supply that serves 40 million people. Cuts that may impact our food.

 

But before we begin, let’s go back in time with some Colorado history adapted from historian Derek R Everett’s book “Colorado Day by Day”:

 

Today, we’re taking you back to August 17th, 1870 when hopes for a German colony in Colorado came to a bitter end.  An early frost killed off many of the crops the Colfax settlement needed to survive. Named for Vice President Schuler Colfax who had secured 40,000 acres for the colony, 300 Germans traveled from Chicago in the Spring at a cost of $250 per family to participate. After the devastating weather and other calamities, many of the residents relocated to Pueblo and other more established towns or headed back home.

 

Now, our feature story.

 

U.S. officials declared the first-ever water shortage of the Colorado River on Monday. And by water shortage, we’re talking mandatory cuts to a water supply that serves 40 million people. It’s not a complete surprise and states, cities and farmers have diversified their water sources over the years, but the cuts could impact the food we eat as some farmers see their supply shrink. Colorado Sun environment reporter Michael Booth has been covering water issues and climate change and today, he talks to Sun reporter Tamara Chuang about what this means if you live in Colorado.\

 

To read more of Michael Booth’s reporting on the Colorado River water shortage, go to cosun.co/coloradoriver

 

And Before we go, here are a few stories that you should know about today:

 

Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold says Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters cannot be trusted to manage the fall election and is looking for a replacement. Griswold doesn’t have the ability to remove Peters from office. But she can bar her -- or any other county clerk -- from overseeing an election if she feels they cannot carry out their duties. Peters, a Republican, is under investigation for her involvement in the leak of images containing Mesa County elections system passwords. Last week, Griswold, a Democrat, ordered Mesa County to scrap its election equipment because her office couldn’t verify that the system had not been tampered with.

 

U.S. Sen. Jason Crow took the Biden administration to task Monday for moving too slow to get Afghan allies out of their home country. Crow, an Army veteran who fought in Afghanistan, said he was troubled by images of people trying to get on U.S. military craft as they fled the Taliban’s quick advance into Kabul. He had been pushing since April, when President Biden began America’s withdrawal from the country, to help people who helped U.S. troops evacuate. 

 

Colorado’s two independent commissions working on new legislative and congressional district maps are working hard to meet their deadlines and have adopted a few important policies. One of them, adopted by the legislative commission, allows non partisan staff to examine the home addresses of state senators elected in 2020. This will help avoid putting two of those senators in the same district in the new maps. Preliminary maps created seven district with two incumbents, and two districts where those incumbents would still have time left to serve when the district lines change in 2022. New draft legislative maps will be released Sept. 13.

 

For more information on all of these stories, visit our website, www.coloradosun.com. And don’t forget to tune in again tomorrow.

 

The Colorado Sun is non-partisan and completely independent. We're always dedicated to telling the in-depth stories we need today more than ever. And The Sun is supported by readers and listeners like you.

 

Right now, you can head to ColoradoSun.com and become a member. Starting at $5 per month for a basic membership and if you bump it up to $20 per month, you’ll get access to our exclusive politics and outdoors newsletters. Thanks for starting your morning with us and don’t forget to tune in again tomorrow.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Good Morning, Colorado, you&rsquo;re listening to the Daily Sun-Up with the Colorado Sun. It&rsquo;s Tuesday August 17th.
&nbsp;
Today - U.S. officials declared the first-ever water shortage of the Colorado River on Monday. That means mandatory cuts to a water supply that serves 40 million people. Cuts that may impact our food.
&nbsp;
But before we begin, let&rsquo;s go back in time with some Colorado history adapted from historian Derek R Everett&rsquo;s book &ldquo;Colorado Day by Day&rdquo;:
&nbsp;
Today, we&rsquo;re taking you back to August 17th, 1870 when hopes for a German colony in Colorado came to a bitter end.&nbsp; An early frost killed off many of the crops the Colfax settlement needed to survive. Named for Vice President Schuler Colfax who had secured 40,000 acres for the colony, 300 Germans traveled from Chicago in the Spring at a cost of $250 per family to participate. After the devastating weather and other calamities, many of the residents relocated to Pueblo and other more established towns or headed back home.
&nbsp;
Now, our feature story.
&nbsp;
U.S. officials declared the first-ever water shortage of the Colorado River on Monday. And by water shortage, we&rsquo;re talking mandatory cuts to a water supply that serves 40 million people. It&rsquo;s not a complete surprise and states, cities and farmers have diversified their water sources over the years, but the cuts could impact the food we eat as some farmers see their supply shrink. Colorado Sun environment reporter Michael Booth has been covering water issues and climate change and today, he talks to Sun reporter Tamara Chuang about what this means if you live in Colorado.\
&nbsp;
To read more of Michael Booth&rsquo;s reporting on the Colorado River water shortage, go to cosun.co/coloradoriver
&nbsp;
And Before we go, here are a few stories that you should know about today:
&nbsp;
Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold says Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters cannot be trusted to manage the fall election and is looking for a replacement. Griswold doesn&rsquo;t have the ability to remove Peters from office. But she can bar her -- or any other county clerk -- from overseeing an election if she feels they cannot carry out their duties. Peters, a Republican, is under investigation for her involvement in the leak of images containing Mesa County elections system passwords. Last week, Griswold, a Democrat, ordered Mesa County to scrap its election equipment because her office couldn&rsquo;t verify that the system had not been tampered with.
&nbsp;
U.S. Sen. Jason Crow took the Biden administration to task Monday for moving too slow to get Afghan allies out of their home country. Crow, an Army veteran who fought in Afghanistan, said he was troubled by images of people trying to get on U.S. military craft as they fled the Taliban&rsquo;s quick advance into Kabul. He had been pushing since April, when President Biden began America&rsquo;s withdrawal from the country, to help people who helped U.S. troops evacuate.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
Colorado&rsquo;s two independent commissions working on new legislative and congressional district maps are working hard to meet their deadlines and have adopted a few important policies. One of them, adopted by the legislative commission, allows non partisan staff to examine the home addresses of state senators elected in 2020. This will help avoid putting two of those senators in the same district in the new maps. Preliminary maps created seven district with two incumbents, and two districts where those incumbents would still have time left to serve when the district lines change in 2022. New draft legislative maps will be released Sept. 13.
&nbsp;
For more information on all of these stories, visit our website, www.coloradosun.com. And don&rsquo;t forget to tune in again tomorrow.
&nbsp;
The Colorado Sun is non-partisan and completely independent. We're always dedicated to telling the in-depth stories we need today more than ever. And The Sun is supported by readers and listeners like you.
&nbsp;
Right now, you can head to ColoradoSun.com and become a member. Starting at $5 per month for a basic membership and if you bump it up to $20 per month, you&rsquo;ll get access to our exclusive politics and outdoors newsletters. Thanks for starting your morning with us and don&rsquo;t forget to tune in again tomorrow.See <a href="https://omnystudio.com/listener">omnystudio.com/listener</a> for privacy information.

Welcome to The Colorado Sun's daily podcast, The Daily Sun-Up. Every day we’re sharing an in-depth look at one of our top stories, followed by a quick summary of important things happening in our state. For more visit us at https://coloradosun.com/.

The Daily Sun-Up

Welcome to The Colorado Sun's daily podcast, The Daily Sun-Up. Every day we’re sharing an in-depth look at one of our top stories, followed by a quick summary of important things happening in our state. For more visit us at https://coloradosun.com/.

Our intro music is by Matt Skellenger Group: https://mattskellenger.bandcamp.com/album/subspace-transmission 

Welcome to The Colorado Sun's daily podcast, The Daily Sun-Up. Every day we&rsquo;re sharing an in-depth look at one of our top stories, followed by a quick summary of important things happening in our state. For more visit us at <a href="https://coloradosun.com/">https://coloradosun.com/</a>.
Our intro music is by Matt Skellenger Group: <a href="https://mattskellenger.bandcamp.com/album/subspace-transmission">https://mattskellenger.bandcamp.com/album/subspace-transmission</a>&nbsp;