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~ -" I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I Between 1968 and 1988, irrigated acreage declined by approximately 100,000 acres. There might have been a reversal of these trends in the past three years. The two major river basins in Northern Colorado are drained by the St. Vrain and Cache la Poudre Rivers. In 1980, irrigated acreage was estimated to total 71,000 acres in the St. Vrain Basin and 227,100 acres in the Cache la Poudre Basin. Corresponding water demands were 186,000 acre-feet (ac-ft) and 685,000 ac-ft, respectively. Within the St. Vrain Basin, the decline in irrigated acreage is projected to range from 6,000 acres to 16,000 acres by the year 2020. Irrigated acreage in the Cache la Poudre Basin is projected to decline by 39,000 to 63,000 acres. For both basins combined, annual agricultural water demand is projected to decline by 151,000 ac-ft to 256,000 ac-ft during the period. M&1 Water Use in Northern Colorado Water supply entities which serve M&I water users are composed of municipalities, rural domestic water associations, water districts, as well as water and sanitation districts. Agriculture has traditionally been, and remains, the dominant water use in the Northern Colorado Region. However, M&! water demands have 9rown in ma9nitude and complexity. As one indication, agriculture comprised 85 percent of the allotment contracts for water from the Colorado-Big Thompson (C-BT) Project in 1957. By 1987, M&! water suppliers controlled about 40 percent of the C-BT contracts. However, M&I water use patterns can be misleading without first understanding how M&l water demand is measured. Measurement Assumotions - Measurement of total water use by the M&I sector can be taken at several different points, all of which are useful for specific aspects of planning. For example, water demand can be expressed in terms of annual raw water requirements (e.g. raw water diversions) or in terms of water use at the end use point (e.g. annual household use). Water 1-7