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Section 1 <br />Introduction <br />7. Water conservation will be relied upon as a major <br />tool for meeting future M~eI demands, but <br />conservation alone cannot meet all of Colorado's <br />future M~eI needs. Significant water conservation <br />bas already occurred in many areas. <br />8. Environmental and recreational uses of water are <br />expected to increase with population growth. <br />Without a mechanism to fund environmental and <br />recreational enhancement beyond the project <br />mitigation measures required by law, conflicts <br />among M~eI, agricultural, recreational, and <br />environmental users could intensify. <br />9. The ability of smaller, rural water providers and <br />agricultural water users to adequately address <br />their existing and future water needs is <br />significantly affected by their financial abilities. <br />10. While SWSI evaluated water needs and solutions <br />through 2030, very few M~eI providers have <br />identified supplies beyond 2030. Beyond 2030, <br />growing demands may require more aggressive <br />solutions. <br />1.6 Addressing Colorado's <br />Future Water Needs <br />Based on the SWSI findings and stakeholder input, <br />the CWCB identified several recommendations to <br />address Colorado's future water needs, issues, and <br />opportunities. To move forward on these <br />recommendations, the CWCB established the <br />Intrastate Water Management and Development <br />Section to further analyze, evaluate, and develop <br />deeper consensus on key issues and needs. This work <br />forms the basis for Colorado to begin to implement <br />solutions to its water needs in a manner that will <br />benefit all water interests. The first step in this <br />process was the formation of Technical Roundtables <br />(TRTs) to continue work in a facilitated meeting <br />forum and conduct technical analysis around four key <br />areas: <br />~ Water Conservation and Efficiency (Agricultural <br />and Municipal and Industrial) <br />~ Alternative Agricultural Water Transfer Methods <br />to Traditional Purchase and Transfer <br />~ Delineating and Prioritizing Colorado's <br />Environmental and Recreational Resources and <br />Needs <br />~ Addressing the Water Supply Gap (between <br />Current Supply and Current and Future Water <br />Needs) <br />The overall goal of this effort is to develop <br />reconnaissance level concepts to address the <br />20 percent M~eI gap, agricultural shortages, and <br />environmental and recreational enhancements. To the <br />extent possible, multi-objective concepts are being <br />considered. Developing a range of potential solutions <br />will help water providers, policymakers, and <br />stakeholders gain a deeper understanding of the <br />relative role that water efficiency, agricultural <br />transfers, and new water development can play in <br />meeting future needs and the trade-offs associated <br />with these concepts. These concepts can then be <br />considered in the context of meeting human needs for <br />water and providing for the needs of Colorado's <br />natural environment and recreation. <br />1.6.1 Technical Roundtable <br />Formation <br />Each of the TRTs met several times over the past <br />2 years. The mission statements of each TRT, as well <br />as a brief summary of the major questions each TRT is <br />addressing, are provided in Table 1-l. <br />It is important to emphasize that the potential <br />findings and conclusions of this report represent an <br />initial starting point to begin discussing the benefits <br />and limitations of various water supply concepts. <br />Over the next year this information will be further <br />refined with input from the TRTs, CWCB, the Water <br />for the 21st Century Roundtables, the Interbasin <br />Compact Committee (IBCC), and other interested <br />stakeholders. <br />1-6 FINAL DRAFT <br />