30 ‎(3)‎

• Board Meeting Date: 5/21/2008
• Description: IWMD Section - Presentation of Agricultural Water Conservation Paper
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

Section 2
Introduction
or appropriation by others. In these instances, should incentives for landowners
and/ or irrigators be created or should government step in to pay for some of these
initiatives? Additional potential benefits and limitations are discussed in more detail
below.
Potential Benefits of Agricultural Water Conservation
The Colorado Statewide Water Supply Initiative (SWSI) report noted that the benefits
of agricultural water conservation measures may include:
1. Increased ability to deliver water to crops can stretch existing supplies. This
benefit would apply to irrigators unable to meet full crop needs that would benefit
if additional water could be more effectively and efficiently delivered to their
crops.
2. Reduced non-crop consumptive use and
evaporative losses. Some of the consumptive
use and losses maybe due to tailwater f rom
irrigation ponding at the end of fields and
evaporating, rather than returning as surf ace or
groundwater return flows.
3. Increased instream and return flows.
Historical agricultural return flows are a vital
part of the flows in all basins and downstream
surface water diverters and downstream states
have relied on these return f lows. These return
~~ `~ ~'~ y~Y_ ~~~ flows, in addition to satisfying downstream
water rights, also create delayed flows that can have instream and riparian
environmental benef its and maintain aquif ers f or domestic and irrigation wells.
4. Improved water quality that results from diminished leaching and runoff. As less
water moves across the landscape, there is less opportunity to move nutrients,
pesticides, sediments and other contaminants. Additionally, reducing the amount
of water applied to the land will also reduce the amount of soluble salts applied
via irrigation water and may prolong f field productivity.
Limitations of Uses of Agricultural Water Conservation
The SWSI and other reports also highlight factors that limit the extent to which
agricultural water conservation can be used to deliver additional water to meet other
needs:
1. Typically, any water that is generated by water conservation measures such as
canal lining or the conversion to more efficient irrigation practices can only be
used on lands for which the appropriation was originally made. Selling or
delivering conserved water to other users or new lands could constitute an
improper expansion of use under current laws.
DRAFT 2-2