BOARD00836

• Board Meeting Date: 9/6/1956
• Description: Minutes and Resolution
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Meeting

I

I

MR. M:lSES I

MR. McCANDLESS:

ANSWER:

474

- 19 -

and in the year 1954 was also the period
we had the most severe shortages to the
irrigators. So a release of 5000
acre feet would further amplify the
shortages. That is about what it shapes,
up to in my mind. The water users, the .
direct appropriators, have that filed on,
and more. So how it can be handled actually
is strictly a legal problem."

"The only water that can be stored here
is water that already belongs to somebody
else and is stored by written consent of
the owner of the water. He says, "I am
willing to let you hold so much so that I
can have it later on in the season." And
the only other water is when there is so.
much water there is no demand for the .
ditches--flood water. Our people are some
of the best fishermen there are in the
State of Colorado. They are interested
in fishing. They know it is important
economically to our area, and they know they
like to fish, but we have to determine, in
my opinion, which is more important to
the entire economy of the area. As
Mr. Sweet pointed out, Goose Creek comes
in about a mile below the reservoir and
always has some water, and the South Fork,
which is the South tributary, comes in
fifteen miles below. There may be some
fishing below Mp,nte Vista and I don't think
it will be disturbed particularly. It
comes down to where we can't have every-
thing. We have to have whatever we feel
is the more important and I know the
people down there tnink the irrigation is
more important. This Board can make such
recommendations as it sees fit, and if we'
want to, put a recommendation in those
comments that additional study be made. After
all, the Secretary of the Interior has
to pass on it.

"Would it come;down to the fact you would
have to have the permission of these water
users to release, as well as store water?"

RYes."