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<br />Introduction
<br />
<br />"The history of the American West,"
<br />wrote John Wesley Powell in 1878,
<br />,.. "will be written in acre-feet."
<br />
<br />~ the Gunmson River Basm and throughout Colorado, we are entering mto a very mterestmg chapter m that history In 2002,
<br />the region experienced a drought the likes of which had not been seen, according to tree ring dating, since the 1700s, In the
<br />Gunnison Basin, wildfiowers shriveled and died, Ranchers were forced to sell their cattle earlier than normal because they had no
<br />hay to feed them, People involved in tourism-based business, a big percentage of the Basin's population, held their collective breath
<br />as the Forest Service discussed the possibility of closing public lands for fear of fires like those ravaging other parts of Colorado,
<br />The drought, which climatologists say could last several or many years, brought a spotlight to bear on the need to examine
<br />and understand water resources in the Gunnison Basin,
<br />This document is meant to help do just that. Tlte Gunnison River Basin Blueprint for Water Sustainability is designed as a
<br />tool for people who are unfamiliar with the specifics of the way water works and the way people work with water in Colorado, It
<br />also seeks to provide information for those familiar with the complexity of Western water issues, but unfamiliar with water use in
<br />Gunnison Basin, The document is meant to be a reference to 'explain how water is used now: who uses it, why they use it, and
<br />who else wants to use it. Those unfamiliar with water issues terminology should make use of the Glossary and list of acronyms
<br />found at the end of this document.
<br />The population of the Gunnison River Basin has grown 35 percent in the last decade, As more people move to this spectacular
<br />and arid part of the world, the need for understanding our water resource grows apace,
<br />As Colorado's Front Range population continues to grow, more attention has been paid to the Gunnison River Basin as a
<br />potential source of water to slake the thirst of communities east of the Continental Divide, This is despite the fact that there is no
<br />Gunnison Basin water available to export, All water in the Gunnison Basin is already being put to beneficial use, In fact, on May
<br />I, 2002, the Colorado State Engineer actually declared the entire Gunnison Basin over-appropriated: that is, water rights holders
<br />hold claims to more water than physically exists,
<br />Growing confiicts surrounding water resources in the Gunnison River Basin make it even more critical that issues in the Basin
<br />are understood, In the following pages, many of these issues are spelled out in one place for the first time, The first section
<br />introduces the Basin's geographic, physical and demographic characteristics, The second section talks about people who are
<br />stakeholders in Basin water concerns, (The Blucphnt is statistically Gunnison County-heavy, because that is where our research was
<br />based,) The third section describes issue areas of disagreement and potential conflict in the Basin, The last section explains
<br />collaborative efforts that are making real progress in solving water-related problems, The Gunnison River Basin Blueprint for
<br />Water Sustainability was created to promote education and understanding that will lead to thoughtful planning for the next
<br />chapters of Gunnison River Basin history, particularly as it is written in acre-feet.
<br />
<br />The Gunnison River Basin
<br />The Gunnison Basin stretches over 8,000 square miles of western Colorado, extending from the Continental Divide to the
<br />confiuence of the Gunnison and Colorado Rivers near Grand Junction, The Upper Basin contains sub-alpine conifer forests and
<br />craggy peaks that tower more than 14,000 feet above sea level. Montane aspen forests glow golden during autumn above sagebrush
<br />steppes, lush riparian areas and alpine meadows, The Lower Gunnison Basin is arid salt-desert, which when irrigated is productive
<br />for agriculture,
<br />The Gunnison River forms at Almont, where the East and Taylor Rivers meet. The river fiows south and west to the City of
<br />Gunnison where it is joined by Tomichi Creek. Snowpack melt from the Sawatch Mountains feeds Tomichi Creek. Cochetopa
<br />Creek, a tributary of Tomichi Creek, drains water from the Cochetopa Hills and the La Garita Mountains,
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