BOARD00236

• Board Meeting Date: 7/18/2005
• Description: Strategic Plan Update for 2005
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

The CWCB may also accept loans of water rights for instream flow use pursuant to a
decreed instream flow water right for a period of up to 120 days (not to be excercised fo
more than three years in a ten-year period subject to State Engineer approval and to
certain conditions set fourth at Section 37-83-105, C.R.S. (2005) (2) (a)).

State statutes require the Colorado Water Quality Control Commission to advise, consult
and cooperate with the Board to protect the quality of the water for beneficial uses;
minimize negative impacts on water rights and to avoid adopting control regulations that
would be either redundant or unnecessary (25-8-101 to 25-8-209 C.R.S.)

Conservation and Drought Planning

In 1989, the State Projects Water Conservation in Landscaping Act (HB89-1169) was
passed that requires governmental agencies to consider the use of water efficient
landscaping on all public projects where landscaping is needed.

In 1991, the Water Conservation Act of 1991 was passed to give general statutory
authority to the Board to provide conservation and drought planning support to the State
and its citizen under S 30-60-124 and S 30-60-106 C.R.S., respectively. The Office of
Water Conservation (OWC), was also established in 1991 by this Act. The Primary
Tasks of the OWC are incorporated into the Conservation and Drought Planning Section.
The section develops and approves water efficiency plans, monitor water use, provides
technical assistance and public information, inventories and prepares drought plans and
assists with policy development, while networking with water suppliers, legislators and
key constituencies.

The 1991 Act also authorized the Board to expend up to five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) to
demonstrate the benefits of water efficiency measures by providing incentive grants to any Colorado
public agency that requested assistance in the designing and implementation of water conservation
measures. In 1994, the General Assembly authorized the Board to expend an additional
five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000), on a fifty percent cost-sharing basis for
agricultural and multipurpose water system water conservation demonstration projects.
The grant program was designed to provide an opportunity to learn more about water
conservation and acquire data regarding "what works and what doesn't."

In 2004, the General Assembly passed HB 1365 that enhances the elements that must be
considered by a covered entity when creating a water conservation plan amended the
Water Conservation Act of 1991. The new provisions will establish water savings goals
and provide a better indication of the overall effectiveness of the entities water
conservation plan. In May 2005, CWCB adopted a model conservation plan guidance
document, guidelines for reviewing and evaluating conservation plans, including methods
for prioritizing the distribution of technical assistance grants. In addition, CWCB
adopted guidelines for reviewing and evaluating drought mitigation plans. The name of
the Office of Water Conservation was changed to the Office of Water Conservation and
Drought Planning.

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