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DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES <br />DIVISION OF WATER RESOURCES <br />John W. Hickenlooper <br />Governor <br />Mike King <br />Executive Director <br />October 21 2013 Dick Wolfe, P.E. <br />Director /State Engineer <br />Erin C.H. Light, P.E. <br />Division Engineer <br />PROTOCOL FOR DETERMINING STORAGE FOR IRRIGATION IN NORTH PLATTE RIVER BASIN <br />Nebraska v. Wyoming Decree <br />Under the Nebraska v. Wyoming Decree, the state of Colorado is limited to the storage of no more than a total <br />amount of 17,000 AF of water for irrigation purposes from the North Platte River and its tributaries in Jackson <br />County, Colorado, between October 1 of any year and September 30 of the following year. The decree in no <br />way describes how the storage is to be calculated especially as it relates to multiple use reservoirs. <br />Purpose <br />The purpose of this protocol is to set out standards for determining the amount of water stored for irrigation <br />purposes within the North Platte River basin. <br />Collection of Reservoir Data <br />• Storage readings shall be obtained by the water commissioner(s) at or near October 1. <br />• Storage readings shall be obtained by the water commissioner(s) in the spring of every year and at <br />least one of the observations for each reservoir should be geared at trying to obtain a reading when <br />the reservoirs are at their fullest. <br />• Storage readings shall be obtained by the water commissioner(s) in the summer of every year and at <br />least one of the observations for each reservoir should be geared at trying to obtain a reading when <br />the reservoirs are at their lowest. <br />+ The amount of water released for livestock use between October 1 and September 30 must be tracked <br />and recorded. <br />• The amount of water released for municipal use between October 1 and September 30 must be <br />tracked and recorded. <br />Livestock Use <br />For those reservoirs where water is released for livestock watering purposes, the amount of water released in <br />the previous water year for livestock use should be tracked and this amount subtracted from the spring fill <br />storage amount for the current year. If fall storage occurs in a reservoir from which water was released for <br />livestock purposes during the current summer, the amount of refill to replace the release for livestock use shall <br />be subtracted from the fall fill storage amount for the current year. <br />Water Division 6 • Steamboat Springs <br />P. O. Box 773450 (505 Anglers Dr., Suite 101) • Steamboat Springs, CO 80477 • Phone: 970- 879 -0272 . Fax: 970 - 879 -1070 <br />www.watenstate.co.us <br />