Board of Directors

The Arkansas River Basin Water Forum is governed by an 11-member board of directors representing a diverse base of water users including municipal, recreation, agriculture, industrial and government.
  • Chairperson - Mr. Bob Hamel, Arkansas River Outfitters Association                                                 Director@arkansasriveroutfitters.org
  • Vice Chairperson - Mr. Blake Osborn, Colorado Water Institute & CSU Extension                     Blake.Osborn@colostate.edu
  • Secretary - Ms. Julia Gallucci, Colorado Springs Utilities                                                                              JGallucci@csu.org
  • Treasurer - Mr. Ed Perko, Pueblo Water                                                                                                                 EPerko@pueblowater.org
  • Director -  Dr. Lorenz Sutherland, Retired Natural Resource Conservation Service                   DrSalt6054@gmail.com              
  • Director - Mr. John Knapp, Knapp Farms                                                                                                               JohnKnapp464@gmail.com
  • Director - Mr. Rick Kienitz, Arkansas Valley Range Project                                                                        RKienitz@auroragov.org
  • Director - Mr. Mannie Colon, Upper Arkansas Water Conservancy District                                   M.Colon@colonorchards.com
  • ​Director - Mr. Matt Heimerich, Palmer Land Trust                                                                                          Matt@palmerlandtrust.org    
  • ​Director - Mr. Al Tucker, Arkansas Basin Roundtable                                                                                    altucker63@gmail.com
  • ​Director - Mr. Jim Valliant, Lower Arkansas Valley Water Conservancy District                          jvcsu@ria.net​​

Staff

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The Arkansas River Basin Water Forum is a 501 (c)3 non-profit that serves as a conduit for information about the Arkansas River Basin in Colorado, and for issues related to water allocation and management.  Through our annual Forums, a wider understanding of water issues has evolved and along with it the opportunity to find common ground.