At its Feb. 16 meeting, the San Juan Water Conservancy District (SJWCD) Board of Directors announced an upcoming mediation effort between it and the Pagosa Area Water and Sanitation District (PAWSD) concerning the ongoing lawsuit over PAWSD’s efforts to sell the Running Iron Ranch.
Following an executive session, SJWCD president Candace Jones made a statement on the issue, commenting the litigation has taken a significant amount of the district’s time and that the district board is “committed to efforts to end what we see as frivolous and costly litigation that PAWSD started more than a year ago.”
She noted the high cost of the litigation and said, “We have long seen a demand and water supply analysis of a sufficient time horizon by qualified professionals as providing a path to common ground. I see it as being an essential component to a settlement. The entire community benefits from planning based on the best available forecasts.
“PAWSD should embrace the opportunity to demonstrate how it is prepared to serve ratepayers and the limits of what PAWSD could be counted on to provide based on that kind of analysis. This is not the only essential element of a compromise, but it is significant, not only to end this costly litigation, but to serve the interests of the community looking ahead.”
Jones added that she looks forward to mediation, which is scheduled for March, and that she hopes that an analysis like what she suggested could not only be a starting point, but a “key component of where we land.”
josh@pagosasun.com
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