Exec Summary Report_11-15-04

• Basin: Statewide
• Title: SWSI Phase 1 Report - Executive Summary
• Date: 11/15/2004
• Author: CWCB
• SWSI - Doc Type: Final Report

Executive Summary
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^ Development of Additional Storage, including:
- Development of New Storage Facilities
- Enlargement of Existing Storage Facilities
^ Conjunctive Use of Surface Water and Groundwater
- Non-renewable Bedrock Aquifers
- Alluvial Aquifers
^ M&I Reuse, including:
- Water Rights Exchanges
- Non-potable Reuse
- Indirect Potable Reuse
^ Control of Non-Native Phreatophytes
The options under these categories have the potential to
help resolve the remaining gaps for each basin. Public
and institutional support are important factors for these
options to be successfully implemented and sustainable.
The support and the willingness to implement and
maintain the projects will be, in turn, dependent on the
extent to which each option meets the basins and the
project's water management objectives.
These objectives (presented earlier in this Executive
Summary), coupled with associated performance
measures that indicate the extent to which the options
meet the objectives, were used to explore potential
benefits, tradeoffs, and issues associated with the
options as indicated in Table ES-5.
Water development and use has occurred at varying
rates and levels throughout the state. In some areas,
supplies are already taxed and further development may
have undesirable effects on agriculture, the environment,
and recreation. In other areas, future development may
occur with fewer effects.
In some areas of the state, and particularly along the
Front Range, agricultural transfers are a commonly used
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option to increase supplies to meet the majority of M&I
needs - a reflection of the changing nature of the West
from rural to more urbanized communities. While this is a
valid and viable approach, it represents only one way of
meeting M&I demands. Many alternative approaches can
and should be explored, each with tradeoffs that result
from the diverse nature of the SWSI management
objectives.
Of note is that most large water providers reportedly plan
for meeting demands during a repeat of a historical
drought (normally 1950s hydrology) without the need for
water use restrictions. Clearly, local projects (the
"Identified Projects and Processes") are key to closing
the supply/ demand gap.
Also of interest in many basins is the potential for
rehabilitating existing storage facilities to restore or
enhance their storage capacities. While Colorado has a
number of so-called "restricted" dams that could be
rehabilitated to increase storage, there is limited potential
because the amount of physical storage that could be
gained in most basins is limited.
The SWSI process analyzed the technical information in
light of the management objectives, as prioritized by the
individuals participating in the Basin Roundtables. Due to
the multi-objective nature of the process, tradeoffs exist
and difficult choices often must be made. The SWSI
process identified general alternatives that seem to best
meet the sometimes-conflicting water management
objectives. Options that address more than one objective
- those that offer benefits in more than one aspect and to
more than one user - are more likely to be supported
and implemented, based on the preferences unique to
each basin.
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Statew~itle Water Supply Inii'iative
ES-30 S:\REPORT\WORD PROCESSING\REPORT\EXEC SUMMARY 11-10-04.DOC