C150298 Approval Letter - Laserfiche WebLink

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Fort Morgan Reservoir and lrrigation Company September 9, 2009 (UPDATED September 16, 2009) Page 3 of 6 Agenda Item 7a The Company is managed by a five-member board of directors. The board has the authority to set annual assessments to be paid by the shareholders, to take on debt, and the power to offer shareholders' stock for sale to pay assessments that remain delinquent. Water Rights The Company has decreed water rights from the South Platte River, as well as pending applications for conditional water rights, that will provide the sources for its share of this Project. These rights are all decreed for augmentation use and have been diverted at times in the past when in priority to generate augmentation credits for the Company's augmentation plan. In addition to the Company's water rights that can be utilized in this project, Groves Fanns has pending applications in the Water Court (Water Division 1) that include the conditional water rights from the South Platte River that will be used in this Project, including shares in the Weldon Valley Ditch Company, Riverside Reservoir and Land Company, and Jackson Lake Reservoir Company. The Company estimates that approximately 1,500 acre-feet per year could be re-timed through this Project. Additionally, the Company and Groves Fanns estimate that approximately 500- 1,000 acre feet per year could be developed by this Project under the Groves' junior water rights. The total average annual water diversions by the Company are 37,058 acre-feet, based on water- years 1998 through 2008. The maximum diversion rate was 306 cfs. This water was diverted for all uses. For augmentation purposes, the total average annual diversions delivered to the augmentation sites, based on water-years 1998 through 2008, are 5,129 acre-feet. Project Description The intent of this Project is to re-divert and re-time augmentation credits that accrue from the Company's more senior recharge projects from times when credits are not needed for direct augmentation use and also divert water under new junior water rights when available for recharge and augmentation use. Alternatives considered included: 1. The no-action alternative; 2. Diversion of water through Fort Morgan Canal headgate; 3. Pipeline to recharge ponds located on Groves Farms. Alternative No. 1 was considered unacceptable because without this Project, the Company would not be able to divert, re-time and reuse some of the excess water generated from the operation of its senior augmentation plan, nor could the Company divert other junior water rights that come into priority from time to time due to the over-appropriated nature of the South Platte River. Alternative No. 2 was ruled out because of the inability of the Company to divert water through the canal during the very cold winter months and the short distance from the Fort Morgan Canal to the South Platte River, making re-timing the water very inefficient.