07SA293 Advance Sheet Headnote The Water Right Determination and Administration Act of 1969 The Colorado Ground Water management Act beneficial use well appropriation

• Description: Colorado Supreme Court opinion regarding classifying use of water for coalbed methane production as a beneficial use.
• State: CO
• Date: 4/20/2009
• Title: 07SA293 Advance Sheet Headnote The Water Right Determination and Administration Act of 1969 The Colorado Ground Water management Act beneficial use well appropriation
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Court Documents

"beneficial use" to constitutional protections against
curtailing the right to appropriate unappropriated waters, I
fear the majority not only authorizes appropriation under the
existing statutory scheme for virtually any reason but also
inadvertently implies a constitutional limitation on the power
of the legislature to limit this protection in the future.
Except to the extent that I believe the extraction of
groundwater in the coalbed methane production process
necessarily falls within the administrative responsibilities of
the state and division engineers, regardless of its beneficial
use, I therefore respectfully dissent.
61