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Update on "Smart Growth" Thomas A. Kourlis, Commissioner Colorado Department of Agriculture Let me talk a little bit about how I see the Arkansas River Basin and the issues that are facing it. Yes, the Kansas lawsuit has forced us to revisit the way we use water and because of that, I think we have to be attentive in trying to evaluate the future. That ties in pretty nicely to Smart Growth. It is important to keep in mind how important agriculture is to this region, to the state, and more importantly, to the nation itself. I do believe that as we look at the importance of agriculture, at the trends of what is going on, and what's happening, that we need to talk about what direction are we going in, what are we trying to do, and what our visionis for 50 years from now. And then I think we have to look at it as a challenge for agriculture and how we play our role in that. FIrst, let me go back to some of the statistics and information for those of ~u who like numbers. I always liked numbers and numbers seem to never lie, but then I figured out it just depends on how ~u divide -- if you're a bad mathematiciai1like myself ~u occasionally come up with the wrong numbers. FIrst, there are 27,000 farms and ranches that own or manage half of Colorado's land. That isn't including public land. Farms and ranches produce $4.1 billion worth of crops and livestock each year in the State of Colorado. Agribusiness inputs and production and processing/marketing generate $13.6 billion per year. Of the 21 pairs. of nesting bald eagles in Colorado, 19 nest on private land. I bring that up because frequently what we do is make some assumptions about bald eagles -- that they're dependent on public land for survival -- but this is just an analogy. We make some assumptions and perceptions and we make decisions based on perceptions. And occasionally in government because we have these perceptions we move forward without having the proper vision. I think this is important to tie that back to the Kansas lawsuit --we can't deal in perceptions. I think what Hal and David are trying to say about this is what is really important. This is what we're really facing. I think we have to look at that as a reality and if we can accept that reality, we can move forward. Let me make one other analogy. Five years ago in the playoffs Denver's on their own four yard line with two minutes to go. John Elwaycomes to the huddle and says, "We've got them right where we want them, guys. We can do this." I don't know if you remember, but that really moved me, considering what they accomplished in point of fact after that. What they did is they accepted where they were. They accepted that they were on their own four yard line, and because of that, they developed a strategy in which they could go to their goal line. In doing that they made some plays, they made some decisions, they moved forward and they got there. I think it's important to deal with the facts. And even though we feel sometimes as though we're on the four yard line, that's better than assuming that ~u're on the fifty rather than on your own four. So as we move forward in Colorado, I think we have to keep that in mind. . Let me give you some more regional statistics about agriculture and how important it is to this region of the Arkansas . Valley. The Arkansas Valley is home to 20% of all of Colorado's farms and ranches, 21% of Colorado's cropland is in the Arkansas Valley, 13% of Colorado's irrigated land, and over $600 million per year is generated in crops and livestock sales. I heard a little bit earlier that there is $40 million dollars generated in recreation. Agriculture is doing $600 million in your community alone. That's something to keep in mind. Arkansas River Basin Water Forum 41 itA River of Dreams and Realities" Let me talk about regional agribusiness highlights, about inputs, farm and ranch production, and value-added processing. Annual gross sales of $1.3 billion, which constitutes 10% of the state's total, comes from the Arkansas valley. Over $260 million in annual income, 11 % of the states total, and over 10,000 regional jobs are generated in agribusiness, 12% of the state's total.