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. I Overuse of a Limited Resource A wide range of uses depletes Colorado's streams, As iu other Western states, the hrrgest user of water in Colorado remains irrigated agriculture, accounting for about 90% of the state's total water consumption. Changes in agricultural practices, including the introduction of new crops and new irrigation techniques, have helped improve the efficiency of water use, but many farms still use inefficient flood irrigation and grow water-intensive crops, Power generation is the second-largest user of water in Colorado, Water is used both in operations of coal and gas-fired power plants and perhaps more visibly in hydropower production. The Department of Energy reports that there are 62 hydropower facilities in Colorado, Some hydropower plants operate by storing water in reservoirs and releasing it to run their turbines, while others take water directly from the flow of rivers. Although nearly all of the water diverted for hydropower is returned to the river downstream, power plants still deplete flows between the point of diversion and return. Municipalities are another major water user. Extensive and elaborate storage facilities deliver water to ~olorado's cities, with many trans basin diversion projects moving water from one side of the Continental Divide to the other, Cities use much of this water for irrigation, with roughly 50% of municipal water going to lawns and landscaping, Population growth is fueling increased municipal use. Within the last decade, Colorado's population has increased by almost 750,000, and it is projected to increase by aD. additional one million residents in the next 20 years. . In addition to these long-standing uses of water, new demands for recreation such as golf courses and snowmaking are having dramatic impacts on already over-taxed river ecosystems. Snowmaking can be especially threatening to rivers, as it draws water in the winter months when natural strearnflows are already at their lowest, and the water is not returned to the stream until the snow melts during spring runoff, These and other uses, from industry to fish hatcheries, have combined to place extensive demands on Colorado streams, demands that exceed the supply. in over-appropriated systems. Restoring rivers left without water is a major challenge. In addition, Colorado's continued growth will increase pressure on currently healthy rivers from increased use of existing diversions, the building of new projects to fuel development in mountain communities like the Eagle Valley, and from more projects drawing water for Front Range development from western Colorado rivers like the Gunnison. A new commitment to river protection will be needed to change what otherwise will be an expansion of the dry legacy the system has already spawned. i As Colorado's population continues to grow water demands will increase. B.!II