Colorado State Water Plan 1974 ‎(Phase II)‎

• Year: 1974
• Title: Colorado State Water Plan
• CWCB Section: Agency-wide
• Publications - Doc Type: Historical

PREFACE
This report is the result of cooperative investigations between the
Colorado Water Conservation Board and the Lower Missouri, Upper Colorado,
and Southwest Regions of the Bureau of Reclamation. Authority for these
investigations is the Water Resources Planning Act of July 22, 1965, which
provides for the coordination of studies, investigations, and assessments for
developing a general plan to meet the future water needs of the western United
States. The Colorado Water Conservation Board, in 1970, requested Federal
assistance in making the investigations that will develop various options and
alternatives from which to select a statewide water management plan. Beginning
in fiscal year 1970, Federal funds were appropriated for the Bureau to initiate
the investigations.
The initial efforts were the preparation of a study plan which was presented
in a publication entitled "Colorado State Water Plan--Plan of Study," dated
March 1971. The plan of study established an orderly program for conducting
the overall investigations and accomplishing the objectives. The plan of study
also divided the investigations into three phases and identified and defined them
as follows: Phase I--Appraisal of Present Conditions, Phase II--Legal and
Institutional Considerations, and Phase III--Plans for Development. The report
on Phase I is an appraisal of the water and related land resources and is also a
summation of the current status of development and utilization of these resources.
That report also identifies and describes the critical issues and problems
concerning present water resource developments and utilization in Colorado.
Phase II, Legal and Institutional Considerations, which is covered in
this report, comprises an analysis of the legal and institutional factors that have
governed and, until amended, will govern the development, use, and management
of water and related land resources in the State.
Phase III, Plans for Development, scheduled for release later in 1974,
will present alternative plans for the development of available surface and ground-
water supplies and related land resources to meet future needs and objectives.
All potential ways for augmenting Colorado's water supplies will be considered
including weather modification, desalting, conservation and reuse of water, and
surface water imports.
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