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Among my other unprofitable habits, I write sporadic book reviews for Bloomsbury Review, and I was excited recently when I began The Last Waterhole in the West: The Colorado-Big Thompson Project and the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District.
Wonderful, I thought. Someone important has documented the deceptions that Northern used to hustle the Windy Gap project. We'll find out how much they pay their lobbyist, former state Sen. Fred Anderson. We'll learn how they keep Thornton from getting water it bought and paid for.
Alas, The Last Waterhole often read like an in-house history from the corporate public-relations office -- the foresight of the esteemed founders, much minutiae about internal politicking, that sort of thing.
This seemed suspicious. I talked to some water activists. They said Northern commissioned the book, and paid more than $100,000 to Colorado State University. CSU gave time off to Dan Tyler, a history professor, to write the book, published by the University Press of Colorado.
Northern thereby purchases a favorable history, complete
with an academic stamp of approval. We've got a
university-water complex
running on tax money, and I
was ready to expose it.
Journalistic ethics (quit laughing) demanded more calls. Northern confirmed that it had indeed commissioned the history and paid CSU at least $100,000 for Tyler's time.
Luther Wilson, who runs the University Press, said there had been no outside pressure. Tyler's manuscript had been deemed worthy by two outside authorities, so it met the guidelines for publishing work by Colorado professors.
Tyler agreed that a history of Northern could have covered more than his did, but also noted that all books have their limits. Northern had no control over the manuscript, he said. He believes Northern was initially acting in good faith on Windy Gap -- only later did they discover they didn't really need the water.
Opinions can differ, and Tyler's book, despite my carping, is a useful addition to Colorado history.
But even if everyone involved was honorable, these arrangements indicate a structural problem.
If General Widget Corp. wants to have its history written, the stockholders pay. If they don't like paying, they can elect new directors.
But when Northern arranges for a history, the money comes from taxpayers. If they don't like paying -- tough.
Northern's directors are appointed by judges, not elected by voters. Northern also pays tax money to Fred Anderson, who stops the legislature from changing that law.
Moreover, if you thought Doug Bruce might help here --
think again. Anderson just persuaded our legislature to
make water districts into enterprise funds,
exempt
from Amendment One limitations even though they levy
taxes.
Powerful, accountable to no one, and spending plenty of your money to keep it that way -- that's the real story of water districts, and perhaps someone will tell it someday.
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