BOARD01989

• Board Meeting Date: 5/24/2004
• Description: ISF Section - Upper Gunnison River Water Conservancy District, Case Nos. 4-02CW294 and 4-03CW107, Injury with Mitigation Proposal
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

ST A TE OF COLORADO

Colorado Water Conservation Board

Department of Natural Resources
1313 Sherman Street Room 721
Denver, Colorado 80203
Phone, [phone]
FAX, [phone]
www.c:wcb.state.co.u5

MEMORANDUM

Bill Owens
Governor

To:

Colorado Water Conservation Board Members

Russell George
Executive Director

From: Dan Merriman and Ted Kowalski

Rod Kuharich
CWCB Director

Date: May 17, 2004

Re:

Agenda No. 18, May 24-25, 2004 Board Meeting, Upper Gunnison River
Water Conservancy District, Case Nos. 4-02CW294 and 4-03CWI07; Injury with
Mitigation Proposal

Dan McAuliffe
Deputy Director

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Background
These two applications involve a new junior storage right for Meridian Lake (located in the
Washington Gulch drainage) and an umbrella plan for augmentation located in the Slate River
drainage (near Crested Butte), Case Nos. 4-02CW294 and 4-03CWI07, respectively. Although the
cases are consolidated before the water court, the Board is not a party to Case 4-02CW294 because
this is a junior water right that will be administered in priority, but the Board is a party to Case No.
4-03CW107 as this application for a plan for augmentation could impact the Board's instream flow
water rights on Washington Gulch, the Slate River and the East River.

The Board Staff has met with the Applicant several times. As a result of those meetings, the Board
Staff has recommended language that would provide 100% protection to the Board's instream flow
water rights on Washington Gulch, the Slate River, the East River, and the other tributaries to the
Gunnison River. This language would have provided that the Applicant augment all out-of-priority
depletions in time, place and amount when the CWCB's affected instream flow water rights are not
satisfied. However, the Applicant opted not to accept the Staff s proposed language that would have
provided full protection to the Board's instrcam flow water rights. Instead, the Applicant elected to
approach the CWCB with a proposal for Iniurv Accepted with Mitigation.

The Applicant's proposal provides that the Applicant would accept the Board's proposed language
for all new uses within the augmentation plan area, however, the Applicant would like to: 1) include
an additional term allowing slug releases for wintertime depletions in order to account for the
physical condition that exists in this area of the Gunnison drainage; and, 2) include a different term
and condition for approximately 115 domestic units located on the Slate River just upstream from
the confluence of the Slate River and the East River. With regard to this second situation, because
these domestic units have their wastewater piped to the East River Regional Sanitation District, the

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Colorado Water Conservation Board
Flood Protection. Water Supply Planning and Finance. Stream and Lake Protection
Water Supply Protection _ Conservation and Drought Planning