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• Board Meeting Date: 11/18/2008
• Description: IWMD Section - Alternative Agricultural Water Transfer Methods Grant Program
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

the Arkansas and South Platte basins. Agricultural has many significant benefits including
habitat, open space and helps to sustain rural ec onomies. Without a sustainable agricultural
industry many small rural communities could not survive. When the Legislature approved this
grant program, the goal was to further advance a lternative methods to “buy and dry” that provide
long-term reliable M&I water supplies while su staining those important rural ag ricultural
dependent towns and economies.
The authorizing legislation directed the CWCB to work in consultation with the basin water
users in developing the program “d esign”. The criteria and guidelines were developed jointly by
many of the applicants and focus on advancing beyond academic/scientific concepts to applied
strategies to establish rural- urban partnerships th at provide reliable water supplies while
sustaining rural communities. The criteria and guidelines were adopted by the CWCB at their
January 2008 meeting a nd are attached.
Previously Funded Projects
One of the prime purposes of this grant program is to advance various agricultural transfer
methods as alternatives to permanent agricultural dry-up in the South Platte and Arkansas river
basins. When analyzing the four grants bei ng considered at this Board meeting, staff was
cognizant of the grant requests previously approved by the Board. At the May and July 2008
CWCB meetings, the Board approved $1,000,000 to fund the following programs:
1. Lower Arkansas Valley Water Conserva ncy District: The Board awarded $320,000
from this grant program and $150,000 through the WSRA grant program to assist in the
funding of the Super Ditch Company Projec t for an approximate total of $470,000.
2. Parker Water and Sanitation District: The Board awarded $477,000 from this grant
program and $150,000 through the WSRA grant progr am to assist in the funding of the
Lower South Platte Irrigation Research and Demonstration Project for an approximate
total of $627,000.
3. Farmers Reservoir and Irrigation Compa ny (FRICO): The Board awarded $202,500 to
assist in the funding of the A lternative Water Transfers in the South Platte Basin using
the FRICO System Project.
Funding Considerations:
At the May 21, 2008 the Board also approved the motion to set aside $500,000 for grant requests
at the November 2008 CWCB meeting. The Board stat ed that prior applican ts are not precluded
from applying for additional funds in November.
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