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Section 3 <br />Alternative Agricultural Water Transfer Methods to Traditional Purchase and Transfer <br />fallow between 7 and 35 percent of their land on <br />an annual basis to provide between 25,000 and <br />111,000 AF of water to MWD each year. <br />Additional infrastructure was not required to <br />implement this program. <br />~ San Diego County W ater Authority (SDCW A) <br />and IID: IID provides an increasing amount of <br />water to SDCWA each year as a result of water <br />conservation. Fallowing will be used as a tool <br />only in the first 15 years of the 45 to 70 year <br />agreement. An increasing number of acres will be <br />fallowed each year, but no acres will be <br />permanently fallowed as a result of this program. <br />Growers apply to be a part of the fallowing <br />program on an annual basis. Additional <br />infrastructure was not required to implement this <br />program. <br />~ Denver Water and Grand County: Denver <br />Water purchased Williams Fork River water <br />rights from an irrigator in Grand County in the <br />1960s and began to lease the water back to the <br />irrigator for an annual fee. The ranch changed <br />bands in the mid 1990s, the lease was <br />renegotiated, and Denver Water now lets the new <br />rancher use the water free of charge when Denver <br />Water does not need it Denver Water bas the <br />right to the water when needed and did use that <br />water in 2002, 2003, and 2004. The term of the <br />leaseback agreement will end in 2013 and Denver <br />Water does not plan on extending the contract. <br />~ City of Aurora and the Rocky Ford High Nine <br />Canal Company: These entities entered into a <br />3-year lease of 37 percent of the shares in the <br />canal. Water was only transferred during the last <br />2 years of this agreement and resulted in a <br />fallowing of between 8,200 and 8,300 acres <br />producing approximately 10,000 AF of water. In <br />the last year of the lease, Colorado Springs took <br />over half of the lease. The implementation of this <br />lease was greatly facilitated by the ability of <br />Aurora to use existing infrastructure and <br />exchange rights, eliminating the need to <br />construct additional facilities. <br />years ago. Xcel does not currently need the water <br />and does not anticipate the need for it in the near <br />future. They purchased a little less than half of the <br />shares in a particular ditch and now lease the <br />water back to about 60 farmers who collectively <br />farm between 6,000 and 7,000 acres of land. The <br />leases are contracted on an annual basis. <br />~ Xcel Energy and the South Platte Basin: Xcel <br />entered into an agreement with a ditch company <br />(Fort Morgan Water Company) that has interest <br />in reservoir rights, direct flow rights, and <br />recharge rights. More recently Xcel entered into <br />an agreement to lease water from the North <br />Sterling Irrigation Company system. Xcel has <br />contracted for the right to up to 2,500 AFY from <br />the ditch company and that water can be <br />supplied in a number of ways, including the <br />possibility of fallowing. In recent years, the ditch <br />company bas cut back on some irrigated acres to <br />meet the lease obligations. <br />~ Broomfield and Platte Valley Irrigation <br />Company: The City of Broomfield has an <br />agreement with the Platte Valley Irrigation <br />Company for 1,906 units of CBT water. The lease <br />was signed 5 years ago, but as of 2006 none of <br />that water bas been used by the City of <br />Broomfield. At the end of the 25-year lease <br />agreement, the leased CBT units will be <br />permanently transferred to Broomfield. No <br />irrigated acres will be fallowed if or when <br />Broomfield does use the contracted water, since <br />the leased water is legally defined as a <br />supplemental supply to the irrigation company's <br />total water supply. Additional infrastructure will <br />not be required to implement this program. <br />~ San ~4ntonio W ater Supply (SAWS): SAW S bas <br />leased water for many years, but plans on <br />reducing that activity in the future. As of 2006, <br />SAWS bas lease agreements to obtain a small <br />amount of water from irrigators using Edwards <br />Aquifer water rights who conserve water through <br />on-farm conservation practices. Additional <br />infrastructure was not required to implement this <br />~ Xcel Energy and the Arkansas Basin: Xcel <br />purchased water in the Arkansas Basin many <br />program <br />FINAL DRAFT 3-23 <br />