The WISE Partnership is an innovative regional water supply project that supplies much-needed renewable water to communities in the south metro area to reduce their reliance on nonrenewable Denver Basin ground water supplies. ERO assisted the South Metro Water Supply Authority, Parker Water and Sanitation District (Parker Water), Denver Water, and Aurora Water with acquiring the needed Clean Water Act permitting to store water in Rueter-Hess Reservoir in Douglas County. To develop a permit amendment to allow WISE water to be stored in the existing reservoir and WISE infrastructure to be constructed in phases without additional Section 404 permitting, ERO addressed Endangered Species Act and National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) compliance and coordinated with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps). ERO is continuing to support the project by assisting Parker Water with the development of a 10-year programmatic agreement to guide the Section 106 process for WISE, a phased undertaking permitted by the Corps, and providing compliance under Section 106 of the NHPA.
