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<br />Comments to SWSI, November 3, 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 full 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 />"foreign" water, no legal appropriation can be made of the return flows from its use, so the water <br />is entirely 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 involved in the current and foreseeable drought-responsive; similar limited-scope water <br />transfer brokerage "water banks" are now authorized state-wide (HB03-1318). Future potential <br />and seemingly inevitable transfers are much greater, and we are in new territory. The "low- <br />hanging fruit" has been picked. The new transfers will be more complicated and potentially <br />subject to high unnecessary losses and even frustration or prohibition, perhaps inspiring dramatic <br />counte r- 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-up" of the lands from which the water was transferred. <br />Otherwise, if these lands were still in use, the return flows from the water applied would be <br />wrongfully 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 also considerable expense and effort <br />involved in revegetation, though this appears to depend in part on the weather, the standards and <br />qualities to which the land is revegetated, and perhaps soil and water quality. Dry-up is a clear <br />and easily administered solution, but it is crude and costly. If we can do better than dry-up and <br />still defend the rights in return flows, 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. Can we assemble expertise, 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 is very strong. The time to act is now, if there <br />is to be technical support for the Colorado lawmakers who feel compelled 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 law, engineering on a cost-effective <br />basis, climate and weather forecasts, and the applications of this information to opportunities for <br />farmers and municipal water suppliers. 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 Agricultural <br />Extension, and Civil Engineering Departments, the Research Applications Program at the <br />National Center for Atmospheric Research, the NOAA Climate Diagnostics Center and others, <br />and participants and organizers from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, the <br />University of Colorado, 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, in order to <br />assess the current ability to make adequate estimations of irrigation adjustments needed to <br />protect return flow and also avoid dry-up and its attendant costs to soils and farming. This should <br />