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Colorado Water Conservation Board October 29, 1992 Page 2 worked together to supply irrigation water and both Town and rural domesti c water. In 1988, the Town obtained a $100,000 Colorado Department of Local Affairs grant which it passed through to FWDC, giving FWDC the funds to repair its dam. FWDC's repayments to the Town, amortized over 75 years, completely offset the Town's annual water assessments as shareholders in FWDC. FWDC has worked cooperatively with the Town in other ways as well. Annually, during spring runoff, when the FWDC ditch is opened to "free flow," the Town collects water in the Town's reservoir for future treatment. The Town is not abl e to colI ect all its "avai 1 abl e free flow water," and each spring some of the Town's water gets turned back to the ditch and is lost to the Town's use. Each autumn, FWDC conducts a final pond run before the main valve at the Gurley Reservoir is closed. Although the Town's reservoir is then filled to capacity, there is not enough water to see us through the winter. Over the years, FWDC's cooperation has allowed the Town to fill the Town's reservoir in the winter, taking more than our 60 shares. FWDC has opened its main valve in the winter to fill the Town's reservoir as needed. This poses a great risk to this main valve as it has to be opened during the hard freeze months. FWDC has taken this risk because there has been no alternative. FWDC has worked with the Town as a good neighbor on a "handshake" basis. There has never been a written agreement for FWDC to open the valve in the winter and FWDC is under no obI igation to continue risking its main valve. Now, agricultural lands are being divided and sold. The water is often sold with the land. New parties are becoming FWDC sharehol ders. In time, FWDC may not have the support of its shareholders for continuing our "handshake" arrangement for winter reservoir operations. The Town realizes that, sooner or later, this matter may become a bone of contention: whether because new sharehol ders force the issue, or the Town's winter use injures FWDC's main valve. The Town must act now to secure a raw water supply for year-round use and a way to utilize all of it spring run-off. The construction of a new raw water pipeline with a CWCB loan will allow the Town to use the Gurley Reservoir for the Town's raw water storage year-round with much less risk to FWDC's main valve. In addition, the Town's engineers have proposed a siphon system over the Gurley Dam to lessen the risk to the main valve. Negotiations are pending to secure this arrangement by formal agreement. The pipeline will also allow the Town to contain its spring run-off from the Gurley Reservoir and to call for our water on a year-round basis, This is not now possibl e since the Town's 60 shares of water in a 4.5 mile open ditch do little more than wet the ditch.