South Platte - Ducks Unlimited Lower SP Water Protection and Wetland Restoration_C150432 Application

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Water Supply Reserve Account - Grant Application Form Fonn Revised May 2007 landowners in recovering lost production due to recent developments in the administration of tributary wells that have greatly curbed their use. Optimize existing and future water supplies: The projects will optimize firture water supplies. Most of the lands along the South Plate River corridor are changing hands from traditional agricultural producers to recreational buyers like hunters. For the most part recreational landowners are interested in agriculture as an ancillary activity on the land. They wish to apply water for the benefit of recreational hunting, environmental concerns, and to generate income if possible. In short, the landowner wants hunting habitat on their property and farming on somebody else's. Through cooperative agreements and water exchanges duck clubs and farms are starting to work together to find common ground and achieve several objectives of import to both groups. These projects will provide protection of the water rights in perpetuity which should optimize both the consumptive and non-consumptive values of that water. New ways of using existing water rights will insure that agriculture and wildlife benefit over a broader range of seasons. Farmers will irrigate with water during the irrigation season and duck clubs will recharge and store water for irrigation and wildlife through out the year. Enhance recreational opportunities: Project elements will enhance recreational opportunities substantially. To enhance their recreational experience, owner's of duck clubs focus on increased hunting opportunity through diversifying habitat types and quality. In over 10 years of working with landowners to provide them with conservation easements we have found that over 80% of all fields provided to purchase easements are returned back to the resource as either membership dues in new clubs, investments in upgrades to current habitat or for purchase of additional land. Landowners with this type of conservation ethic often can see the bigger picture and realize that impacts stretch beyond non-consumptive use of water for recreation. The DT Ranch is a duck club established in 1920 with over 25 members. The property provides over 2000 acres of hunting habitat for deer, turkey, and waterfowl. The Fender property is owned by Ducks Unlimited. The Fender property will be open to the public for hunting starting in the fall of 2008 through a "walk-in-access" agreement with the Colorado Division of Wildlife. Provide for environmental enhancements: Project tracts will provide for environmental enhancements. Wetlands are well documented for their ability to remove suspended solids, dissolved solids, and chemicals from water. The lower South Platte River is well known for its nitrogen and salinity loads. Recharge wetlands offer opportunity to remove water from the river and filter it through the wetlands basins before returning to the aquifer. Most information regarding wetland water treatment is derived from several studies conducted over the last 20 years. Relatively little water quality data been collected from established recharge projects along 9