Descriptions such as "historic" and "momentous" filled the air as each speaker took to the podium at the Colorado River Connectivity Channel (CRCC) dedication ceremony, an Oct. 15 event that brought together a diverse set of project proponents and dignitaries to celebrate a long-awaited and broadly supported river-health project. 

After having been talked about for decades, the CRCC is now complete and has aquatically reconnected two segments of the Colorado River around Windy Gap Reservoir for the first time since the reservoir was built in the 1980s.  

The recently completed Connectivity Channel is part of a $90 million package of environmental measures associated with construction of Chimney Hollow Reservoir, which is where Windy Gap water will be stored once the reservoir is completed in 2025.