Lower South Platte River Study

• Contractor Name: Colorado Water Conservation Board
• Loan Projects - Doc Type: Feasibility Study

ILower South Platte River Study
Colorado Water Conservation Board
IDecember 2001
3.6 Potential Legal Issues
IThe project will require an application to obtain a water right for reservoir filling and storage.
I There likely will be intervenors and objectors in the process. Depending on the alternative
ultimately selected, discussions and negotiations will be required with the Julesburg
Irrigation District, the co-owner of the Harmony Ditch, and the North Sterling Irrigation
I District relative to use of water conveyance facilities. Key issues will be a demonstration
that adequate capacity is available to convey the water, water carriage charges,
seepage/recharge credits, possible winter-time operations, and other issues. The Colorado
ISEO's Dam Safety Division is responsible for reviewing and approving construction plans
and monitoring construction to assure a safe structure. They will review the hydrology
studies, geotechnical and structural designs, and construction plans and specifications prior to
Iproject construction.
I The water availability analysis was structured to provide estimates of water that would be
available after all existing rights are satisfied. Therefore, they represent water supply that is
considered to be available to a new junior water right. (Although it is possible that the water
Iright application would, in whole or in part, be a change of a senior water right, the analysis
made the more-conservative assumption that the water right would be a new junior right.)
The analysis did not consider the perfection of conditional water rights for potential upstream
Iprojects. The potential effect of considering these projects is expected to have limited effect
on the availability of water for a new project in the Lower Basin. The effects should be
I examined by refinements to the water availability analyses during the feasibility phase of
study.
I3.7 Potential Land Ownership Issues
general review of land ownership was prepared for the reconnaissance study. BLM land
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use maps were obtained and reviewed relative to possible ownership concerns. Most of the
land that would be impacted by any new storage project is privately owned; however, several
I sites involve state-owned lands. For example, the Julesburg Reservoir Enlargement (CDOW,
State Wildlife Area) and the Johnson Reservoir site appear to involve dealing with state land
issues. There may be a federal interest in project permitting if federal dollars were used to
Iacquire or improve state-owned lands. Detailed land-ownership mapping should be
evaluated, during the feasibility phase, to determine whether multiple land owners will be
Iinvolved in implementing the alternatives being evaluated in greater detail.
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IGEI Consultants, Inc. 3-8 01002 Dec 2001 Lower South Platte River Study