BOARD01083

• Board Meeting Date: 5/16/2006
• Description: WSP Section - Upper Colorado River Basin Hydrologic Determination - Availability of Water in the Upper Colorado River Basin
• 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

TO:

Colorado Water Conservation Board Members

Russell Geors<
Executive Director

FROM:

Randy Seaholm ~
Chief, Water Supply Protection

Rod Kuharich
ewCB Director

Dan McAuliffe
Deputy Director

DATE: May 7,2006

SUBJECT: Agenda Item 24, May 16-17,2006 Board Meeting-
Upper Colorado River Basin Hydrologic Determination

Backl!round

.

The Navajo Nation and the State of New Mexico reached a Settlement Agreement on the Navajo Nation's
Federal Reserved Water Right claims in January 2005. A key component of the Settlement Agreement
was the construction of the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project. Depletions resulting from the Navajo-
Gallup Water Supply Project chargeable to New Mexico's apportionment are estimated to be 29,482 AF
and would result in New Mexico exceeding its Upper Colorado River Compact apportionment. New
Mexico's apportionment (1 \.25%) under a 6.0 maf Upper Basin Hydrologic Determination (HD) is
669,375 AF. The construction of the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project would result in New Mexico
exceeding its apportionment under a 6.0 maf HD by between 20,000 and 25,000 AF depending on
assumptions made in computing consumptive uses. We would note that this overage in consumptive uses
is based on the full development of Navajo Reservoir water supply contracts currently in-place and not on
actual consumptive uses of water pursuant to those contracts that are now occurring. New Mexico's total
consumptive use, considering Navajo contracts and all other uses, is approximately 470,000 AF. An
important aspect of the Navajo Gallup Water Supply contract is that it would only extend through 2060.

When Public Law 87-483, which authorized the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project and the initial stage of
the San Juan-Chama Project, was passed in 1962 it contained a provision in Section I I (a) thereof that
reads in part as follows:

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"No long-term contract, except contracts for the benefit of the lands and for the purposes specified in
sections 2 and 8 of this Act, shall be entered into for the delivery of water stored in Navajo Reservoir or
of any other waters of the San Juan River and its tributaries, as aforesaid, until the Secretary has
determined by hydrologic investigations that sufficient water to fulfill said contract is reasonably likely to
be available for use in the State of New Mexico during the term thereof under the allocations made in
articles III and XlV of the Upper Colorado River Basin Compact, and has submitted such determination
to the Congress of the United States and the Congress has approved such contracts:"
Colorado Water Conservation Board
Flood Protection. Water Supply Planning and Finance. Stream and Lake Protection
Water Supply Protection. Conservation and Drought Planning