Front Range Water Council Response

• Title: Front Range Water Council Response to Visioning
• Date: 2/26/2008
• Interbasin CC - Doc Type: Correspondence/Memos

• There will be some environmental enhancement through pump-backs and river
restoration projects.
• There will be a continuance of a service industry based economy with strong recreational
water related ties (skiing, fishing, boating).
• There will be a slowing in growth trends due to a lack of private lands and land use
controls.
• There will be adequate water supplies for domestic use.
• There will be significantly increased attention to proper forest management to promote
watershed health and water production.
• RICD water rights claims will be reduced to allow upstream water development and
beneficial use.
• There may be localized water shortages for dwellings dependent on groundwater as
increased development in mountain communities will tax the capacity of "fracture water"
that comprises groundwater in many areas.
• There may be limited reoperation of transbasin diversion facilities in order to assist in
meeting local needs without diminishing project yields.
D. West Slope: It is postulated that the West Slope may see the following:
• There will be increased domestic water supply demands, but there will be adequate local
supplies therefore (growth associated with quality of life and demographics).
• There will be increased use of conditional water rights to meet energy production
demands in the near term, but decreasing demand for fossil fuel based energy in the
longer term, limiting water demand.
• There will be a potential loss of agricultural production due to economic/demographic
factors.
• There will be potential loss of water, at least temporarily, as it is transferred to Front
Range and West Slope communities in free market transactions as a consequence of
downstream compact calls.
• There will be near frill development of the state's Colorado River entitlement, potentially
through a diversion from Yampa/White basin to the Front Range and/or use of other
pump-backs, with appropriate mitigation, including compensatory storage.
• There will be additional water demands for threatened and endangered species and to
meet environmental (water quality) needs.
• RICD water rights claims will be reduced to allow upstream water development and
beneficial use. Improvement will be made to RICD structures to allow a more efficient
use of water that is decreed to RICDs so recreational experience can be accomplished
with less water.
• There will be full recognition and definition of Colorado River Compact water
availability and compact administration; detailed modeling of Colorado River system by
Colorado will be available that will provide the basis of water administration.
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