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• Board Meeting Date: 11/18/2007
• Description: IWMD Section - Alternative Agricultural Water Transfer Methods - Grant Program
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

Alternative Agricultural Watei• Transfer Methods
Arkansas and South Platte Basins
Competitive Grant Program
Introduction
Rapid population growth, urbanization and increased competition for water have created
significant pressures on certain agricultural sectors of the State's economy. Conservative
estimates from the Statewide Water Supply Initiative (SWSI) indicate that Colorado
could lose almost 500,000 irrigated acres by the year 2030 with a major portion of those
acres being lost in the Arkansas and South Platte basins. Ultimately, administration
challenges and lack of available supplies in the South Platte basin may result in an even
larger loss of acreage beyond that estimated by SWSI. To better understand and help
address this trend the Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB) authorized staff to
further investigate alternatives to traditional purchase and transfer of water from irrigated
lands to new uses [(SWSI Phase 2 Technical Roundtable (TRT)]. In addition, the 2007
legislature authorized the CWCB to develop a grant program to facilitate the
development and implementation of alternative agricultural water transfer methods.
It is important to acknowledge that there are financial, economic and demographic factors
(i.e., increasing average age of farmers and ranchers) that are also influencing the trend
toward reduced farming and ranching in Colorado. Shrinking profit margins, limited
access to markets, and escalating costs (fuel, equipment, and labor) are just a few a few
examples of these influential factors. The current grant program does not directly address
these factors but seeks to further examine and implement alternate transfer methods to
traditional purchase and transfer of agricultural water. In addition, it is emphasized that it
is not the intent of CWCB or the grant program to "mandate" such alternatives, but rather
to better understand how such alternatives can be utilized and competitive with traditional
purchase and transfer of agricultural water.
The specific authorizing legislation for the grant program [Senate Bill (S.B) 07-122] is
provided below.
SECTION 18. South Platte river and Arkansas river basins alternative agriculture
water transfer sustainability grant program -appropriation. (1) In addition to any
other appropriation, there is hereby appropriated, out of any moneys in the Colorado
water conservation board construction fund not otherwise appropriated, to the department
of natural resources, for allocation to the Colorado water conservation board, for the
fiscal year beginning July 1, 2007, the sum of one million five hundred thousand dollars
($1,500,000), or so much thereof as may be necessary, for the board to develop and
implement a competitive grant program to advance various agricultural transfer methods
as alternatives to permanent agricultural dry-up in the South Platte and Arkansas river
basins, including but not limited to, interruptible water supply agreements, long-term
agricultural land fallowing, water banks, reduced consumptive use through efficiency or
cropping while maintaining historic return flows, and purchase by end users with
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Draft
November 3, 2007