HB 00-1438: Repeal the CWCB's Authority to Use Conditional Water Rights for Instream Flows

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COLORADO WATER CONSERVATION BOARD Department of Natural Resources Bill Owens, Governor Greg Walcher, DNR Executive Director Peter Evans, CWCB Director HB 00 -1438: REPEAL THE CWCB'S AUTHORITY TO USE CONDITIONAL WATER RIGHTS FOR INSTREAM FLOWS IN THE YAMPA RIVER BASIN Background The question about whether to use conditional water rights for instream flow purposes first arose when Chevron donated a senior conditional Gunnison River water right to The Nature Conservancy in the late 1980's. The Nature Conservancy sought to have this right protected as an instream flow by the CWCB. The issue next arose in Water Court Case No. 92CW 107 when the CWCB filed an application to change 300 cfs of the conditional Rabbit Gulch Canal water right to instream flow uses in the Gunnison River. The General Assembly responded to the issues raised by the two Gunnison River issues by passing SB 94 -054 on April 20, 1994. This bill limited the circumstances under which the CWCB could acquire conditional water rights. However, the bill allowed The Nature Conservancy donation to proceed. The CWCB obtained a decree for the Gunnison River water rights in Case No. 92CW107 on May 31, 1995. March 29, 2000 HB00 -1438 • Supported by the CWCB; • Closes a loophole in state law, the use of conditional water rights is prohibited in other basins; • Will not adversely affect the state's ability to protect streams and lakes. For more information, contact Dan Merriman at (303) 866 -3441.