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~~ ~ ~~ <br />~ <br />c r~ ~ <br />~ ~4 ? <br />~, . <br />~ ;~ r. <br />w~ ~ <br />~ +~ ~~ <br />~ <br />~ <br />~~~y~~~=~ <br />~_:c~[t~f~,~i~~~ <br />~~ <br />I~1,.1V~fill~Ii51 <br />~~r~li~~~ <br />~~:1=~.~~aa~.~. ,.~ <br />Bill Ritter, Jr. - Governor <br />Harris D. Sherman - DNR Executive Director <br />. <br />n er asin om ac rocess <br />Background <br />Colorado's growth and development as a state is <br />intertwined with water. Development and <br />management of water is complex, controversial, <br />and at times contentious. Decisions regarding <br />water have become increasingly complex as <br />Colorado has experienced both <br />,~ unprecedented population growth <br />and a greater emphasis on multiple <br />~~~~ uses of this precious resource. <br />'~~" ~.~y <br />~ ~ <br />Water users, <br />water managers, <br />governmental <br />and non- <br />~~ ~ <br />r <br />~ ~~-- governmental <br />~ .. ~ ~~ ~ or anizations <br />r ~ _ ~ ~~ ~ g ~ <br />'~~ ~T- ~~ ~~`~~~ ~ ,~ ~ ~:~ ~. and citizens <br />~~ .~~~ ~ E~ <br />F~~ '~',. ~ ~ y~ : F .:~ g _. _ <br />p ~ r f ° <br />.,~9 dv i. ~Y F "~ .. <br />~ ~ a ~ 1~4 ; ~,'~. <br />~` ~ have worked <br />+F <br />~ .R~ -~ ~~~~ hard to help ensure that their interests <br />~~~~~~ y are addressed when making water-related <br />decisions. This dynamic has challenged us all to <br />identify new approaches and collaborative <br />solutions. <br />This is the backdrop behind the collaborative <br />Colorado Water for the 21 st Century Act. This <br />Interbasin Compact process is based upon the <br />premise that Coloradans must work together to <br />address the water needs within our entire state. <br />The Colorado Water for the 21 st Century Act <br />creates a framework to encourage dialogue on <br />water, broaden the range of stakeholders actively <br />participating in the state's water decisions, and <br />creates a locally driven process where the <br />decisionmaking power rests with those living in <br />the state's river basins. <br />Since 2003, four additional pieces of enabling <br />legislation have provided the necessary tools for <br />the Water for the 21 st Century Act to succeed. <br />The interrelationships of these tools are <br />described throughout the remainder of this fact <br />sheet. <br />Implementation <br />The Colorado Water for the 21 st Century Act sets up <br />a framework that provides a permanent forum for <br />broad-based water discussions. It creates two new <br />structures: 1) The Interbasin Compact Committee <br />(IBCC), a state-wide committee that will address <br />issues between basins; and 2) The Basin <br />Roundtables. <br />Nine separate roundtables are established for each <br />of the state's major river basins, and a"Metro <br />Roundtable" for the Denver metropolitan area (see <br />map below). <br />These Basin Roundtables facilitate discussions on <br />water issues and encourage locally driven <br />collaborative solutions. The broad-based, <br />collaborative nature of this process is reflected in <br />the roundtable membership. <br />To help the Basin Roundtables accomplish their <br />major responsibility of developing a basin-wide <br />needs assessment, they have relied on groundwork <br />completed during the Statewide Water Supply <br />Initiative (SWSI). To further develop their needs <br />assessments and to support water activities in each <br />of the basins, SB06-179, HBOb-1385 and HBOb-1400 <br />were passed by the legislature during 2006. This <br />legislation is summarized in Figure 1. <br />~l~~t~ ~la~t~ <br />~~~~~~~~,~~~ <br />~ ~~~~~ ~i~~~~ <br />~ ~ <br />~ol~rad~ ~I~tr~ <br />- #~ <br />. ,, <br />~~n~i~~r~ <br />~r1~~a~r~~~s <br />;~+~I~~~~~ ~i~ ~~~~d~ <br />;~~~ .~u~r~~ <br />;;~~n ~ie~u~~ <br />Co(orado's Nine Basin Roundtab(es <br />