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<br />000986 <br /> <br />One of the major factors in the changing trustee relationship of the district board is the <br /> <br /> <br />change in the makeup of tbe underlying land use. In many districts tbere is a larger percentage <br /> <br /> <br />of urbanized lands within the district, yet urban people (who are more likely to express <br /> <br /> <br />environmental concerns) are not getting a voice in district decisions. In a district in which <br /> <br /> <br />water users are more urban is the district board truly representing the interests of its <br /> <br /> <br />constituency? The primary goal of most district boards is to maximize the amount of water that <br /> <br /> <br />can be used, yet this may not reflect the views of the majority of users who are underwriting <br /> <br /> <br />the costs of district operations, Such a situation seeIllli to exist in the Northern Colorado <br /> <br /> <br />Water Conservancy District Most of the residents of the cities of Boulder and Fl. Collins <br /> <br /> <br />don't realize that they pay taxes to support water policies of a district with which they may not <br /> <br /> <br />necessarily agree. In contrast, urban water user representatives intervened in the pending <br /> <br /> <br />Central Utah Project legislation and effected a compromise reflecting environmental concerns, <br /> <br /> <br />This occurred even though urban users had only two votes (they account for 90% of the <br /> <br /> <br />revenues of the district) compared to the tWelve votes held by agricultural users (who account <br /> <br /> <br />for 10% of the revenues of the district), <br /> <br />Are there any examples of districts trying to redefine the changiIig relationship between <br /> <br /> <br />the board and the users in order to address new issues? Most examples have occurred when a <br /> <br /> <br />district has confronted a problem that originates in its boundaries such as the drainage problem <br /> <br />encountered by Westlands Water District, and may respond .to external pressures to change in <br /> <br />its own interests (i.e., fear of litigation). Although in the case of Westlands, it has been the <br /> <br />Bureau of Reclamation and the State of California, and not the District, that have attempted to <br /> <br /> <br />solve the drainage problem. <br /> <br />8 <br />