BOARD00031

• Board Meeting Date: 11/19/2003
• Description: ISF Section - Case Resolution - Case No. 4-02CW252, Robert Ketchum et al
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

STATE OF COLORADO

Colorado Water Conservation Board

Department of Natural Resources
1313 Shennan Street, Room 721
Denver, Colorado 80203
Phone: [phone]
FAX, [phone]
www.cwcb.state.co.us

MEMORANDUM

Bill Owens
Governor

Greg E. Walcher
Executive Director

To: Colorado Water Conservation Board Members

Rod Kuharich
CWCB Director

From: Dan Merriman
Ted Kowalski

Dan McAuliffe
Deputy Director

Date: November 10, 2003

Re: Consent Agenda Item 2.a, November 20-21, 2003 Board Meeting
Stream and Lake Protection; Proposed Case Resolution
Case No. 4-02CW252; Robert Ketchum, et al.

Backl!round
The Board ratified the statement of opposition filed in this case at its March 24-26, 2003 board meeting.
This is an application for ground water rights and a plan for augmentation on the Lake Fork of the
Gunnison River near Lake City. The Applicant intends to: 1) use the wells for domestic purpose
associated with 14 residences, including irrigation of a maximum area of .16 acres (500 square feet
per home); and, 2) augment the depletions from these wells with downstream releases from Blue
Mesa Reservoir.

CWCB Appropriations
The Board has appropriated two instream flow rights on the Lake Fork of the Gunnison River. The
first right is for 35 cfs (5/1-9/30) and 20 cfs (10/1-4/30) and the second right is for 45 cfs (5/1-9/30)
and 25 cfs (10/1-4/30), with appropriation dates of March 17, 1980 that may have been injured by
this application.

Proposed Settlement
At the time of the filing of the statement of opposition, the Staff relied on the information provided
in the application and determined that the proposed plan for augmentation had the potential to cause
more than 1% injury to the Board's instream flow water rights on the Lake Fork of the Gunnison
River. This was true, in particular, because the Applicant had not indicated that the Applicant would
use on-site septic and leach fields. During settlement discussions, the Applicant provided the Staff
with information documenting that: 1) the use of the wells will result in a111111al depletions less than one
acre-foot; 2) the CWCB's instream flows would rarely be affected; and, 3) the depletions associated
with this water rights application would be less than .6 gpm (or .004 percent of the CWCB's decreed
flows). The Applicant has proposed a settlement of this matter whereby the CWCB would consent to a
decree no less restrictive than a decree that includes these depletion restrictions.

Colorado Water Conservation Board
Flood Protection. Water Supply Planning and Finance. Stream and Lake Protection
Water Supply Protection. Conservation and Drought Planning