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I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I . . BACKGROUND The Lower Arkansas Water Management Association (LAWMA) is a non-profit corporation formed generally to provide replacement water for the owners of wells in the Arkansas River basin in Water District 67. At present, there are 139 members in LAWMA, and they own or operate 461 wells that are used for a variety of irrigation, municipal, and commercial purposes. According to recent studies by the State Engineer's Office about 150,000 acres were irrigated in Water District 67 in 1985. Irrigation water in the area is derived through several ditches diverting from the Arkansas River and its tributaries, from releases from the Fort Lyon and Great Plains storage systems, and from approximately 580 large capacity irrigation wells. The wells were developed during a period beginning about 1940 and extending into 1976. According to the December 1990 Water Budget developed by Boyle Engineering Corporation for use in Kansas v. Colorado. the total irrigation supply in Water District 67 averaged approximately 395,000 acre-feet annually during 1976-85, of which an average of more than 100,000 acre-feet annually was derived from wells. During dry years, however, the wells provided a larger percentage of the total supply. Colorado Agricultural statistics indicate the income from this irrigated land exceeded $40 million annually during 1988-92. Thus, irrigated agriculture in Water District 67 is a significant part of the overall economy of this part of the state, and water from the irrigation wells make a very important contribution to the irrigated agriculture. Wells also provide the water for essentially all the domestic and commercial uses in the water district. Lamar, Holly, Eads, Hugo, and Kit Carson are among the larger cities and towns and are LAWMA members. Important commercial uses include cattle feeding, hog breeding farms, a natural gas pumping station, and electrical power generation. At the present time, wells in the Arkansas River basin for other than small capacity domestic and livestock purposes are operated in accordance with "Rules and Regulations Governing the Use, Control, and Protection of Surface and Ground Water Rights Located in the Arkansas River and Its Tributaries" promulgated by the State Engineer in 1972. These Rules and Regulations state generally that the wells can be pumped on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of each week unless they are covered by a written plan to replace the depletions to the stream. If they are covered by a written plan, they can be operated without regard to the Rules and Regulations. Such written plans must be approved by the Division Engineer. LAWMA has developed written plans every year since 1973 to allow its members to operate their wells without regard to the Rules and Regulations. The suit filed by Kansas in Kansas v. Colorado involves the allegation that wells developed in Colorado since the adoption of the Arkansas River Compact in 1949 have materially depleted the usable flow in the Arkansas River. A lengthy hearing was conducted before the Special Master in 1990-92, with the two states disagreeing on this and the other issues involved in the suit. A ruling on Kansas' allegation has not yet been received from either the Special Master or the Supreme Court. The suit has brought about a substantial uncertainty in the prospects for future operation of the wells in the Arkansas River basin, and it is likely that the regulation of the wells will become more stringent regardless of the outcome of Kansas v. Colorado. 1