PUB00017

• Year: 1997
• Title: Colorado Water Development Study
• CWCB Section: Finance
• Author: Buford Rice, Ray Christensen
• Description: Study to assist Colorado Farm Bureau in developing recommendations and strategies for dealing with future water resource issues
• Publications - Doc Type: Brochure

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See/io/l .5 - Colorado \Va/l'/" u.,{, Tre/lds

Fu/ure irrigation water use
could be governed by a
number offaclOrs, making
it very difficult to reliably
project the trend.

1 6,000 -I'
14,000 '

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<{ 12,000
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o
::: 10,000

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C>
::l 8,000.
::>
c
o 6,000
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'E

4,000

2,000

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Ol

A projection of slalewide agricultural water requirements is il-
lustrated in Figure 13. This projection was derived based on an
extrapolation from the USGS agricultural water use estimations
for years 1980, 1985, and 1990, A power function was filled to
these three years of data. Based on this projection, irrigalion
water use could decrease by over 30 percent during the next cen-
tury, However, future irrigation water use could be governed by
a number of factors, making il very difficult to reliably projecl
the trend, Factors which could influence the reduction of future
irrigation water use include lransfer of irrigation Wafer to mu-
nicipal use; improvement of irrigation efficiency; regional or glo-
bal climatic fluctuations; and olher environmental, social, eco-
nomical, and institutional issues. In order to gain greater insight
into the magnitude of future irrigation water use, more detailed
studies are needed 10 accurately analyze the impacts and the in-
ter-relations among these factors,

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~ ro maN ~ ~ ~
m m moo 0 0 0 0
N N N N N N
Year

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(C) ...... co O'l 0
000 0
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Est. Irrigation Water Usage (USGS)

Projected Irrigation Water Usage I

Figure 13
Historical and Projected Irrigation
Water Use in Colorado

5-4

~. COLoraDo
,.. Farm Bureau