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~ ~ . ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ . Artificial Recharge of Ground Water in Colorado A Statewide Assessment VI. Inventory of Artificial Recharge Projects in Colorado In 1990, the Western States Water Council reported that there were over 150 existing AR facilities operated by municipalities, ditch companies, water supply districts, and other public agencies in Colorado (WSWC, 1990). The CGS used this as a benchmark for conducting an inventory of current AR facilities for this investigation. The results of the inventory have confirmed that there are more than 150 individual recharge sites in Colorado, if not many more. However, many of the individual sites that make up this impressive number should be considered parts of larger AR systems, as will be described for the lower South Platte River basin and San Luis Valley. The compilation of an inventory of AR projects in Colorado consisted of conducting a thorough literature search of geologic and water-resource publications as well as interviewing personnel in a number of state agencies and local water entities. Personnel from the following entities were interviewed: . Division of Water Resources (DWR) - including technical staff at the main office in Denver, each of the seven division engineers, and select district commissioners; . Water Conservancy Districts - established to construct, pay for, and operate water projects in a number of regions in the state; and . Water providers - individual water providers identified during the literature search or other interviews. Water rights tabulations were researched (at the DWR) for water rights that include recharge as a decreed beneficial use. Using water rights alone as an indication of AR can be misleading, since that right may not have been exercised. Water rights listings did, however, provide a good source ofleads for subsequent interviews. The intent of this inventory is to understand the current extent of AR application in Colorado. AR projects identified in the inventory are divided into two categories: 1) recharge operations that are currently active, and 2) projects that are currently inactive, whether they be one-time pilot studies, operations that have since been terminated, or proposed projects that are only in the initial planning stages. Active Rechan!e Ouerations Currently, the application of AR in Colorado is somewhat limited in scope and geographical distribution due primarily to a lack of incentives to implement AR, which may include a paucity of source water. Table VI-I lists the active AR projects in Colorado, identified by this inventory, with their locations shown in Figure VI-I. In locations where AR has been recognized as a useful tool in water management and a water source has been present, the applications have evolved to meet a number of objectives. 35