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Republican River Water Conselvation District January14,2008 Page 2 of 6 Agenda Item lId the State continued to exceed its Compact allocations in 2005 and 2006, the focus shifted to construction of a Compact Compliance Pipeline. While the stream depletions calculated by the Groundwater Model resulting from well pumping in Colorado are extremely small in comparison to the total well pumping in the basin, they are primarily the result of well pumping that occurred decades ago. As a result, shutting off all Colorado well pumping in the basin would not bring the State into compact compliance for decades under current conditions. Therefore, the only feasible means to achieve compact compliance is to deliver ground water from wells in the basin to one of the tributaries of the Republican River for credit to offset stream depletions. The Stipulation allows for the acquisition or construction of wells for the purpose of offsetting stream depletions in order to comply with the State's compact allocations, provided that such wells do not cause any new net depletion to stream flow. The Colorado State Engineer's Office (SEO) has proposed rules and regulations to curtail diversions within a Curtailment Zone three miles wide along several streams within the basin: North Fork, Chief Creek, Arikaree River, South Fork, and Landsman Creek in 2009 if the State is not in compliance with the Compact. Loan Feasibility Study The Loan Feasibility Study was prepared in part by James E. Slattery, PE, Slattery Aqua Engineering and Dennis Montgomery, Esq., Hill & Robbins, P.C. The study was prepared in accordance with the CWCB guidelines and includes preliminary engineering design and cost estimates prepared by Richard Westmore, PE, & Steven Townsley, PE, GEl Consultants, Inc. The CWCB provided a $50,000 grant for the feasibility study to evaluate alternatives and prepare cost estimates. Republican River Water Conservation District The District was established in 2004 by Senate Bill 04-235 to assist the State to comply with the Compact. The District is managed and controlled by a I5-member board of directors comprised of one member appointed by the county commissioners of each of the seven counties wholly or partially within the District, one member appointed by the boards of the seven ground water management districts within the District, and one member appointed by the Colorado Ground Water Commission (GWC). The District established a water activity enterprise (Enterprise) in October 2004. The District imposed a use fee of $5.50 per acre on diversions of ground water for irrigation use by post-compact wells within the District. There are approximately 500,000 assessed irrigated acres in the basin irrigated by post-compact wells. Fees on irrigated acres cUlTently generates nearly $2.75 million in revenues annually for the Enterprise fund. The District also imposed a use fee of $4.40 per AF on post-compact diversions of ground water for municipal and commercial use. Municipal and commercial diversions within the District are small, but generated an additional $40,000 in 2007. The District has used the revenues primarily to provide local cost-sharing for federal programs designed to retire irrigated acreage in the basin, including the Republican River Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) and the Environmental Quality Improvement Program (EQIP). To date, approximately 30,000 irrigated acres have been voluntarily retired in the basin under CREP and EQIP, or approximately 6% of the irrigated acreage in the basin. An amendment to the Republican River CREP designed to retire an additional 30,000 irrigated acres has been submitted to the U.S. Department of Agriculture for approval. The District has committed to provide local cost-sharing for the Republican River CREP. There are approximately 550,000 total irrigated acres within the District. Nearly all of the acreage in the basin is irrigated with ground water from the Ogallala Aquifer except for about 3,000 acres irrigated by surface water. In 2002, irrigated land in the Basin accounted for nearly 22% of all irrigated acres in the state.