Exec Summary_11-15-04

• Title: Executive Summary
• Date: 11/15/2004
• Author: CWCB
• SWSI - Doc Type: Executive Summary

Executive Summary
^ L~~al authority and contr~l: Providing water for
municipal and agricultural users is the purview of local
water providers. Consequently, it was important that
SWSI not take the place of local water planning.
^ B~ttom-up, r~ot tap-douun: Providers, stakeholders,
and communities across Colorado were asked to
identify their unique concerns, needs, and issues.
SWSI does not take a top-down approach or
presuppose what those concerns are or will be.
^ All ~~luti~n~ ~xpl~r~d: All solutions, including
conservation, rehabilitation of existing water supply
facilities, enlargement, and/or more efficient use of
existing water supply facilities, as well as new water
supply projects, have been and must continue to be
considered.
^ Adherence to Col~r~d~'~ D~~trin~ ~f Pri~r
Appropriation: The baseline requirement for any
water supply or water management solution is that it
must be accomplished within the statutory framework
of Colorado's existing water rights and water
administration system, incorporating Colorado's
Doctrine of Prior Appropriation.
^ What is important to Coloradans about water
management
^ How much water Colorado will likely need in 2030 by
basin
^ What is being done to address these needs,
statewide and within each basin
^ How big a"gap" may exist between projected needs
and identified potential solutions
^ How important reducing uncertainty associated with
implementing water projects is to minimizing the
shortfall
^ What additional options may be available to close the
gap between supply and demand
In addition, we have a deeper understanding of the major
trends that are shaping our water use and development,
including:
^ The intent of many local providers in urban areas to
transfer water from agricultural to municipal use, and
the impact that will have on agricultural rural
communities
Two additional ground rules were set after
commencement of the study. First, it was determined
that the initial 18-month study would not evaluate
transbasin diversion issues. This issue is highly charged,
and would have threatened the ability of SWSI to
produce meaningful results in the initial 18-month study
period. Instead, the CWCB determined it would be most
productive to focus on in-basin solutions first and
undertake a subsequent effort in 2005 to focus on issues
that reach across river basin boundaries. Second,
following a tradition of local control over water planning,
SWSI would not judge or evaluate the merits or likelihood
of success of any of the projects or processes being
pursued at the local level. As a result, what is presented
in this report is a catalogue of the solutions advanced by
local providers.
SWSI can teach us a great deal. SWSI is the most far-
reaching and comprehensive effort ever undertaken to
understand our state's water supplies as well as the
state's existing and future water demands. As a result of
this study, we know more today about Colorado's current
and future water use than we have ever known before.
For example, we know significantly more about:
~
$~ole'ri~ice Wo~e' $upplY Initia~ive
^ The importance of recreation and the environment
and the impact they are having on water use and
development in the state
^ The lack of financial and planning resources that face
smaller, rural providers and agricultural users
These and other findings of SWSI contained in this report
will be made available to local providers, citizens, and
communities across Colorado information to help them
shape and plan their water future.
But beyond these findings, SWSI has provided another
critically important benefit for the state - a forum for
dialogue focused on developing a common
understanding of Colorado's water issues and needs.
This forum, and this dialogue, present tremendous
opportunities for Colorado; opportunities that could bear
fruit long after the SWSI study has ended. It presents an
opportunity to take a new approach to address water
issues in this state - an approach based on cooperation
and collaboration, rather than litigation and conflict.
Colorado has a great tradition of being a leader among
the western states in managing and administering its
limited water resources and in addressing and solving its
water resources challenges and pursuing management
alternatives in innovative and effective ways. We want
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