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<br />Comments to SWSJ. November 31 2003, by John Wiener <br /> <br />19 <br /> <br />which the transferable amount has so far been agreed to be adequately estimable from previous <br />engineering studies. But, to realize the furl potential value of the water, and maximize efficiency <br />of use, another set of estimations is needed~ as described below. In the case of imported, or <br />"foreignll water, no legal appropriation can be made of the return flows from its use, so the water <br />is entirery transferable and thus easily-moved~ <br /> <br />Right now, this easily-moved water has been moved" The Arkansas River Water Bank Pilot <br />Program is getting under way, with application only to stored water. But the volumes and water <br />rights invofved in the current and foreseeable drought-responsive; similar limited-scope water <br />transfer brokerage IIwater banks.~ are now authorized state-wide (HB03-1318). Future potential <br />and seemingly inevitable transfers are much greater1 and we are in new territory. The 'tfow.. <br />hanging fruit" has been picked. The new transfers wur be more complicated and potentiaUy <br />subject to high unnecessary losses and even frustration or prohibition, perhaps inspirin-g dramatic <br />counter "'responses. <br /> <br />An undesirable answer: Dry-up <br /> <br />When non-imported water is transferred, the traditional way to assure that other water rights are <br />protected has been to require .'dry..upn of the lands from which the water was transferred. <br />Otherwise, if these lands were sUU in uset the return t,ows from the water appried would be <br />wrongfulry diminished, injuring others. But dry..up reduces the value of the land, the total <br />productivity of the farm, and the local economy. There is arso considerabre expense and effort <br />involved in revegetation, though this appears to depend in part on the weather1 the standards and <br />quafities to which the land is revegetated, and perhaps soU and water quality. Dry-up is a clear <br />and easily administered solution, but it is crude and costly. ff we can do better than dry-up and <br />stiU defend the rights in return flowst everyone is better off. This requires quick and low-cost <br />technically adequate estimations of the adjustments needed in irrigation water available after a <br />transfer of some of a farm's water~ <br /> <br />Although the desire to make these types of quick estimates is new, we may already possess <br />much of the capability. Some of the necessary knowledge is in the private sector. some in <br />academia and government, and some are working on related problems such as the identification <br />of best management practices for irrigators. Ca.n we assemble expertiseJ build appropriate tools <br />and assess in a timely manner? <br /> <br />Can we do better? <br /> <br />The pressure for innovative flexibility in water use js very strong~ The time to act is now, if there <br />is to be technicaf support for the Coforado Jawmakers who feel compeUed to increase water use <br />flexibility. The short term approach proposed here is a workshop to consider the current ability to <br />work out some practical answers for the coming few years. This workshop should also help <br />define an agenda for creation of expert systems which can help water users and water rights <br />owners make better decisions within the frameworks of water Jaw, engineering on a cost-effective <br />basis. climate and weather forecasts, and the appHcations of this information to opportunities for <br />farmers and municipal water suppHers~ The best parties to pursue this now include the State <br />Engineer, the Colorado Water Conservation Board, Colorado Department of Agriculture, <br />Colorado State University's Water Resources Research Institute, Cooperative Agricultura' <br />Extension, and CivU Engineering Departments, the Research AppUcations Program at the <br />National Center for Atmospheric Researcht the NOAA Climate Diagnostics Center and others, <br />and participants and organizers from the USDA Natura' Resources Conservation Service, the <br />University of Cororado, and the private sector. Support from the Bureau of Reclamation and the <br />Department of the Interior may also be critical in bringing to bear the necessary resources~ <br /> <br />In the short..term, there should be a short technical workshop, two days in duration, jn order to <br />assess the current ability to make adequate estimations of irrigation adjustments needed to <br />protect return flow and arso avoid dry-up and its attendant costs to soils and farming. This shourd <br />