22d ‎(2)‎

• Board Meeting Date: 11/18/2007
• Description: CF Section – Proposed Statute Revisions/Legislation within the 2008 Projects Bill - Funding for Instream Flow Water Right Acquisitions
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

STATE OF COLORADO
Colorado Water Conservation Board
Department of Natural Resources
1313 Sherman Street, Room 721
Denver, Colorado 80203
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
wuu . o~n cU. state. co.us
Bill Ritter, Jr.
Governor
TO: Colorado Water Conservation Board Members
H:uris D. Sherman
DNR Executive Director
FROM: Linda Bassi, Chief
Stream and Lake Protection Section Dan NlcAnliffe
Acting CWCB Director
DATE: November 5, 2007
SUBJECT: Agenda Item 22.d, November 14-15, 2007 Board Meeting
Stream and Lake Protection -Funding for Instream Flow Water Right
Acquisitions
Introduction
Staff is recommending that the Board authorize funding for water acquisitions for instream flow
use in the amount of $1,000,000 annually. The method of authorizing such funding would
depend on whether the Severance Tax Trust Fund Perpetual Base Account is merged into the
Construction Fund, as previously discussed in Agenda Item 22.c.
Background
Currently, to acquire water for instream flow ("ISF") use, the Board primarily relies upon
donations of water directly from water rights owners or from organizations such as the Colorado
Water Trust. (The Board has a small amount of funding in place for temporary leases of water
rights for ISF use). Because not all ISF protection needs can be met through new ISF
appropriations, the CWCB staff has been focusing on reinvigorating the water acquisition prong
of the ISF Program. Among other benefits, water acquisitions can be a valuable supplement to
decreed ISF water rights or provide ISF protection on streams where a new appropriation could
not be made due to water availability issues. Not all water rights owners are willing to donate
their water to the CWCB; most would like to realize an economic benefit from conveying,
loaning or leasing their water to the CWCB for ISF use. CWCB staff has been working with
other state agencies and conser~~ation groups to identify opportunities for water acquisitions and
for obtaining funding for such acquisitions. Because these groups can provide some funding
toward water acquisitions, a combination of CWCB funds with its partners' funds would result
in an increase in acquisitions of water for ISF use. The net effect would be more protection of
the natural environment of Colorado's streams coupled with economic benefit to those water
rights owners interested in and willing to provide water to the CWCB for ISF use.
Water Supply Protection • Fluud Protection • Stream & Lake Protection • Water Supply Planning & Finance
Water Conservation & Drought Planning • Intrastate ~F'ater Management & Development