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<br />,. <br /> <br />-.-. <br /> <br />-. <br /> <br />-_eo <br /> <br />\ <br />. <br /> <br />STATEMENT OF <br />DARIES C. LILE <br />IRRIGATION DIVISION ENGINEER <br />COLORADO STATE ENGINEER'S OFFICE <br />rega rd i ng <br />S. 1415 <br />THE COLORADO UTE INDIAN WATER RIGHTS SETTLEMENT ACT OF 1987 <br />WASHINGTON, D.C. <br />December 3, 1987 <br /> <br />Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee; my name is Daries C. Li Ie. <br /> <br />am the Irrigation Division Engineer for the State of Colorado in Division 7. <br /> <br />My responsibii ities include the administration of the waters in the San Juan <br /> <br />and Dolores River Basins. The Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute Indian Reser- <br /> <br />vations are within these basins. I was privi leged to coordinate the Committee <br /> <br />which quantified the stream flows for the Colorado Ute Indian Water Rights <br /> <br />Settlement Agreement which S. 1415 wi I I implement. <br /> <br />I would I ike to impress upon this Committee the broad reach of the Indian <br /> <br />Water Rights Agreement. The Agreement encompasses all of the streams in south- <br /> <br />west Colorado, and on each and every stream there has been a negotiated settle- <br /> <br />ment. Many of the streams do not produce water adequate to supply existing <br /> <br />users, let alone fulfi II tribal claims. In recognition of this problem, the <br /> <br />Tribes have cooperated in the development of a settlement that is fair and <br /> <br />equitable to their neighbors. In turn, present users have reduced some of <br /> <br />their al locations to provide adequate water for the tribes. The Agreement <br /> <br />quantifies the waters of both the Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute Indian <br /> <br />Tribes and removes the cloudy future for present water users. <br /> <br />The Agreement was reached only because al I water users in southwest <br /> <br />0267 <br />