Laserfiche WebLink
<br />1'!1 r ': o. ') .., <br />j': . <br /> <br />7 <br /> <br />8. The rapid expansion of municipal growth and corresponding municipal <br />water use which has taken place within Water District No.8 will occur in <br />other areas of the State, and serves to illustrate the conditions that are <br />encountered when urban development replaces the traditional agricultural <br />economy. <br /> <br />Other conclusions which have been formulated and are applicable to all <br />river basins of the State are given below: <br /> <br />1. The present utilization of Colorado's water resources is neither as <br />efficient nor as effective as it should be. <br /> <br />2. Water resources and the physical mechanism for better utilization of <br />our water resources exists or can be constructed which would provide for a <br />more dependable water supply and/or increased water use. <br /> <br />3. The opportunity exists for River Basin Authorities to provide mOre <br />water for beneficial use and to improve the dependability of that now being <br />used. <br /> <br />In a previous report submitted to the Coordinator of Natural Resources <br />in December, 1967, which dealt primarily with Water District No. 64, the <br />Lower Platte River Valley from Balzac to Julesburg at the State line, seven <br />conclusions were developed and presented. It is of interest to examine <br />their applicability in terms of the data derived in this report for Water <br />District No.8. The Water District 64 conclusions are discussed in terms <br />of the data derived from the study of Water District No.8 in the following <br />paragraphs: <br /> <br />1. The data for District No.8 tend to reinforce the conclusion that <br />the utilization of the State's water resources is not as efficient or as <br />effective as it could be. The operation of District No.8 is almost entirely <br />for municipal use, but the administrative procedures are those developed <br />principally for an agricultural economy. In many cases the need for cities <br />to adhere to existing procedures governing the acquisition of water rights, <br />changes in points of diversions, and river administration, has resulted in <br />less than the most efficient utilization of the available water resources. <br />Conversion of the consumptive use portion of direct flow rights to storage <br />rights would be an example of increasing efficiency of water use, particu- <br />larly advantageous to users in District No.8. <br /> <br />2. There is no dependable surplus water available from the South Platte <br />River in District No.8. Additional water can be developed by storage such <br />as the proposed Two Forks Project and possibly from smaller storage projects, <br />but essentially the River is fully appropr iated and used. The <br />feasibility of storage projects such as Two Forks will be enhanced in the <br />future as the importations of water from the west slope increase, resulting <br />in a si tuation in which storage could level out imported flows ,and provide <br />for more efficient use of transmountain diversions. Storage may also play <br />a part in'the utilization of return flows of transmountain water by providing <br />opportunities for exchange. Development of storage would also provide for <br />the capture and utilization of flood flows which now go unused. <br /> <br />'<.- <br />