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<br />" <br /> <br />;\;12" n <br />U'J lJ "~ .... <br /> <br />THE EFFECT OF STREAM FLOH VAHIATION ON PRODUCTION <br />AND INCOME OF IRRl<~ATEj) FARMS OPERATI:iC UNDER TlIE <br />DOCTRINE OF 1'IUOI{ A}'PROI'RIATION <br /> <br /> <br />by <br /> <br />1/ <br />Raymond L. Andersol~ <br /> <br />Introduction <br /> <br />One of the olclest operating rules in western water use is "First in <br /> <br /> <br />time, firs t in right." This rule speci fies the order of priority of wa- <br /> <br />ter right holders and determines which are permitted to divert water at <br /> <br />various levels of stream flow. In the case of irrigation usc of water, <br /> <br />when stream flOl' is not sufficient to serve all rights, it determin~s <br /> <br />which farmers arc able to irrigate crops and which must wait. <br /> <br />But it is not .simply a matter of determining which right holders are <br /> <br />entitled to divert water and sending it to them. Irrigation users (either <br /> <br />individuals or companies) often own a number of water rights that vary <br /> <br />both in date of priority and in quantity of water claimed. Many times <br /> <br />during the season, a water right holder may have some rights under ,,'hich <br /> <br />he can clraw ...ater while other of his rights cannot be exercised because <br /> <br />someone else has a higher priority. At times .'ater right holders will <br /> <br />give up usinp, water when only some of their rights are active, therehy <br /> <br />penlittinr, right hold~rs on other ditches to divert in exchange [or water <br /> <br />at some later Lin:p. I{eturn flow sometim('s provides additional ,.:ater which <br /> <br />]j Agricultural Economist, Natural Resource Economics Division, I:cono",ic <br />R('search S"rvice, U.S. D"p.,rtm"nt of ,\!~riculture. Economics Department, <br />Colorado Sl.lLC' l'llivcr:.ity, FOJ-t Collills, Colorado, R0521. <br />