BOARD00553

• Board Meeting Date: 3/21/2006
• Description: WSP Section - Chaffee County RICD
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Hearings

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3-21-06
MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING

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(Chaffee County Recreational In-Channel Diversion)

This MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING ("MOU") is entered into by and among
Chaffee County; Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District ("Southeastern"); the
Colorado Department of Natural Resources ("CDNR"); Colorado Division of Wildlife
("CDOW"); Colorado Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation ("DPOR"); Upper Arkansas
Water Conservancy District ("Upper Arkansas"); City of Salida ("Salida"); Arkansas River
Outfitters Association ("AROA"); Colorado Springs Utilities ("CS-U"); the Board of Water
Works of Pueblo, Colorado ("BWWP"); Pueblo West Metropolitan District ("Pueblo West");
and Lower Arkansas Valley Water Conservancy District ("Lower Arkansas") (together referred
to as the "Parties"), effective this _ day of March, 2005.

Exvlanatorv Recitals

A. Chaffee County filed an application for recreational in-channel diversion water
rights ("RICD") for boating parks located in the City of Salida and Town of Buena Vista
("Boating Parks"), Case No. 04CW129, Water Division 2, in December 2004 (THE "RICD
CASE"). SOUTHEASTERN, CDNR, CD OW, DPOR, UPPER ARKANSAS, SALIDA, AROA, CS-U,
BWWP, and Pueblo West (the "Objectors"), among others, filed statements of opposition in the
RICD Case.

B. The Colorado Water Conservation Board ("CWCB") held a hearing on May 23,
2005 on the RICD Case (the "CWCB Hearing"). In setting this hearing, the CWCB declined a
request of Chaffee County, supported by Southeastern and other Parties, to postpone the CWCB
Hearing. On May 24, 2005, the CWCB postponed making findings on the RICD until
September, 2005, and invited the Parties to submit any settlement agreement for the CWCB's
consideration by September 2,2005. Thereafter, the CWCB requested and was granted by the
Water Court additional extensions of time in which to submit its findings in order to allow the
Parties time to reach a settlement. The last extension of time gave the CWCB until April 14,
2006 to submit its findings to the Water Court.

C. The Parties acknowledge that the CWCB and the Division of Water Resources
("DWR") are not parties to this Agreement and that CDNR's participation in this Agreement
does not bind the CWCB or the DWR in any respect.

D. For each of the past fifteen years, CDNR (on behalf of CDOW and DPOR) and
Southeastem have agreed annually, together with the United States Department of Interior,
Bureau of Reclamation ("Reclamation"), to operation of a voluntary flow management program
whereby Reclamation operates Twin Lakes and Turquoise Reservoirs so as to manage flows in
the Arkansas River above Pueblo Reservoir for recreational and fishery purposes, while fully
satisfying the primary purposes of the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project and other existing contractual

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