WSPC00901

• File Number: 7630.650
• Description: Wild and Scenic - Yampa River
• State: CO
• Basin: Statewide
• Date: 8/15/1979
• Title: Juniper-Cross Mountain - Water-Energy-Recreation for Western Colorado - With Supplemental Materials
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Report/Study

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"I ht; CulUr4UU kIVl:( Woller Comcrv41ion District W~ created
by the stolle legislature in 1937 to s.afcgu.lrd. con!tCrvc and pUI
10 bcncfieioll u!>C, WdLc( wilhin the Colorado River B.lsin for the
slale of Colorado.
Ih I.Il:dllvU W.a> d thn.a.l n;)uh uJ lhl,: Iru>lr.Hion ul
Western Colorado leaders. who were trying (0 inwrc an
ol.UI.'(.jUoIlc woller '>Upply rur growth of the n:gion in the (acc
of a powerful Eastern Colorado faction. The popul.uion of
Wc\lc'lI Culm.ul... .i1 lh..l lUlU': WoI.) ~lIo1l1 4UJ the woIh:r )l..tpply
loCcmed abundant.
The uo.:pn..'))iun oIntJ uruu&ht ur (hI,; lhinlc) muU\': ltolns.
mountain diversion attr.active to Eastern Slope inlcrcsls. It w;u
.f \V"Y lu ""VC Ihe p.u..I..,;J pl,uI\>, a",.Ilc jul)) .mJ lil.:ncfll
certain groups. Thus. the Colorado Big Thomps.on. a molSsivc
iJiYcn.ion thJ.1 loCI kg..! pn..'l,;wcnh still in crfecl LOd.lY, W.l~
proposed.
SlIle h.lq';.linin.: t01l1 of WC\lcrn Colur.ldu w..~ the puwcr uf
Luwdru T. Tdylor. ruurth diurict congre~!tffian and spon~r of
Ihe Taylor Gra/in~ Acl. T..ylor\ po~ition: There would bc no
fedcral rUnd~ for conSlruction of the Big Thomp~n unlc~~
[lrovi\ion W;I\ m..de for We..h:rn Colorotllo.
A l..Umprombc W.a~ rc.achcd and officially adopted in the
form of U. S. Scn.ale DocumcnI No. 80, which provided moncy

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and the terms of operation for the Big Thompson and Green
Mount.ain RC)Cf'tIOir, which was J. pMt of the Big Tom project.
Thu~, the concept of compens.iltory storage was csubli~cd
reqoiring divcr..iun prujcf.h tu iUl,;luUl; ~lur.a~ of wdll;r for Lhe
Western Slope. Grecn Mounuin would provide the compensation.
Western ColorOldo h.td no entity ~pcJ.king for it. Pioncc~
like Frank Delllley, Silmon Smith, D. W. Aupperle and Frank
Mcrriel had b.:anded together..~ thc W~tl;rn O>loroluo Prole<;livl;
A~>lXi..tion to work with Taylor on the Big Tom. &It an
official and pennanent gUolrdiiln of Slope inlCrcsu wa~ needed,
dnd oU'Iother gOolI of th~ pioneers was rwiled in 1937 when
the Colorado River WOller Conservation Di..trict WilS crcolleu. IL
w..~ thl; rin.l uf iu kind in lhe ~wte and for the firu time,
We~tern Colondo had a viable voice on waler i~cs. Initi.1l1y.
The Di~lrict comistcd of eight coul\lies; today, it includes 12
counties and part of thrcc others, and is bounded by the Utah
.IOU Wyuming ~l.ite lifM:~. Ull; Contincnl..l.l Divide iU)U the 5.ln
Juan Mountains.
The Southwcstern W.ller Conserv.tion District was cr~ted
in 1941 with powers similar to The River District and the Rio
Gr..ndl; W..ter ComcfY~tiQO Di~lrjl,;1 wo>> crc.J.tod in 1967.
While the three di!otricu and the Colorado W~ter Conservation
Bo..rd, the sl..l.tcwidc entity 4Isocre.ted in 1937, are re!oPOf'l~iblc
for w~ter policy, the ~tate w~ter courts ,lOd SUte engineer Me
r~pOfuihle for the leJ;olI ~nd ildmini~lriltivc ..~~t~ ofwi.ter.
The River District has u~ legal methods to effect policy.
It wa~ foremo~t in initioltinl: litig.uion against the federal
government forcing it to adjudiQte its water claims through
state w.ter courts like .ny other prospective user. Out of that
decision c.une the requirement for the federal government to
quantify iu WUer claims. Until all claim~ .arc quantified, it i~
impossible to Soay how much w.ter the federal government can
claim and wh.t effect those cb.jm~ will have on exi~tjng and
future users.
That question i~ . p.;art of 01. brOolder one lhat hol~ been hilunt-
ing We~tern Color ~..n~ for ycan. Some argue that no w.ter
should be diverted from the We~tern Slope until the .unount
of wJ.tcr ()f".~dcd for its future i~ determined. They arc
faced with. comtitutional question of whether trm~()tJnuin
diver~o'h ColO be ~lOppcd and the problem of determining
how much unappropriated w.ter is .vail.1ble. There have
be<:n s.ub~t..lntial effort~ dealing with the ..mount of WJ.1er
in the Colorado Kiver B.a.sin. but few efforts dealing with the
olmount .ppropri.tcd. lhe quantily for whi~ there .arc senior
rights.
Toward that end, The River Di~trict in 1968 invited seveul
public and private bodics to join in developing a computer
progr~m that would ~mwer Ih.1 qu~tion .md ~veral other~
CORSIM II is the result. Severil million pieces of inform.l-
lion including all decrees on the Colorado ,j/ld Whi~ rivers up
to 1971, .is well .is gage measurements ~re recorded on .iIO

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