Northern Integrated Supply Project (NISP)

The Town of Firestone is one of 15 municipalities and water districts that have partnered along with Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District to form the participants of the Northern Integrated Supply Project, which is a proposed water storage and distribution project that will supply the municipalities with 40,000 acre feet of new, reliable water supplies. 

The project consists of:

• Two reservoirs (Glade and Galeton)
• A forebay reservoir
• Two pump plants
• Pipelines to deliver water for exchange with two irrigation companies
• Improvements to an existing canal to divert water off the Poudre River near the canyon mouth

Glade reservoir is the larger of the two reservoirs and will have the capacity to hold 170,000 acre-feet of water. While Galeton will be the smaller of the two reservoirs, it will have the capacity to hold 45,000 acre-feet of water. Construction of Glade Reservoir will require the relocation of seven miles of U.S. Highway 287 northwest of Fort Collins and will provide a recreational amenity to Northern Colorado.

NISP will store excess water currently leaving the state in years of abundance. Since 2009, and including this year, more than 3 million acre-feet of water will have left the state downstream to Nebraska over and above legal requirements. Through an exchange with two local ditch companies, the project will provide some water in all years.

When both reservoirs are complete the water supplied from them will help supply Firestone with the water needed for our municipality's future. The Town is excited to participate in such a beneficial water project and would like to invite residents and commercial customers to visits the links below to get more information on this wonderful water project.