WSP10379

• File Number: 8111.805
• Description: Arkansas River Compact Administration - Keesee Ditch
• Basin: Arkansas
• Date: 1/1/1982
• Author: HRS Engineering
• Title: Evaluation of Historic Consumptive Use Under the Keesee Ditch
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Publication

...11:,

c

EVALUATION OF THE HISTORIC CONSUMPTIVE USE
OF WATER UNDER THE KEESEE DITCH

INTRODUCTION

The Keesee Ditch diverts water from the Arkansas River for agricultural

irrigation purposes at a location approximately 12 miles west of Lamar, Colorado.

The ditch, and the land irrigated under it, are shown on Figure 1, which is a

copy of the U.S. Geological Survey topographic map of that area. The irrigated

lands are represented by crosshatched areas on the map. The headgate of the

ditch is located in Section 6, T 23 S, R 48 W. The irrigated lands are located

in Sections 1 through 6 of that township and Sections 32 through 36 of T 22 S,

R 48 W.

The Keesee Ditch has three different priorities. The first, for 9 cubic

feet per second (cfs), has a priority date of 3-13-1871, which is the first

priority in the former Water District 67. The next priority, for 4.5 cfs, has

a date of 12-31-1883, and is the fourth priority in the former Water District 67.

The third priority, for 15 cfs, has a date of 9-3-1e93. This last priority is

preceded by water rights having a total decreed amount of 3,725.7 cfs. As such,

it is not able to divert water as often as the first two priorities can. How-

ever, because of the very senior priority dates of the first two Keesee rights,

the ditch is generally able to provide a full supply of water to the 1,400 acres

which it is decreed to irrigate. Figure 2 is a copy of the first two pages of

the State Engineer's priority 1 ist of water rights in former Water District 67.

This shows the priorities of the Keesee rights relative to other water rights in

that District.

The consumptive use of irrigation water unde r a ditch is dependent on two
fac tors - the amount of water that the crops being grown will use if they are
provided with a fu 11 supply of water, and the amount of water that is actually
suppl ied to the crop from the ditch. The fi rst of these is referred to as the

I

potential consumptive use, and the second is referred to as the available water

or the irrigation del ivery. In our analysis of the historic consumptive use by

the Keesee Di tch, we analyzed both of these figures, in order to develop a more

accurate estimate of historic consumptive use.

\
,
,,~

)N
. ~,

1
,.I-