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EXHIBIT <br />4 <br />~~ <br />Rocky Mountain News <br />To print this page, select File then Print from your browser <br />URL: http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/state/article/0,1299,DRMN_21_4196615,OO.html <br />Plan for vast underground reservoir moves ahead <br />Ranch owners envision exchanging water from farms with Front <br />Range cities <br />By ]erd SmiM, Rocky Mountain News <br />October 29, 2005 <br />KERSEY -The silence on the hard luck 70 Ranch east of Greeley is nearly <br />perfect. <br />But the serenity, the endless views and the hawks that glide quietly above its <br />sandy hills mask a blur of activity. <br />Underneath this historic 20,000-acre spread a groundbreaking, controversial <br />water project is in the works. <br />Farmers Reservoir and <br />Irngalion Co. general manager <br />Manuel Montoya, of Greeley, <br />scoops up a hantlful of sandy <br />soil on the 7g Ranch near <br />Kersey. "This whole ranch is <br />nothing bul sand bowls;' he <br />sai4 where billions of gallons <br />of water could be stored in the <br />tiny spaces Dehveen [he <br />grains. <br />Its creators envision the property as a giant exchange station, where water moving from farms to the thirsty <br />Front Range can be dropped off, stored and diverted. <br />The undertaking is the result of a partnership between one of the largest farmer-owned water suppliers on <br />the Front Range and a multimillionaire developer who've joined forces to create a regional water company. <br />They characterize the ranch as a giant bucket of sand, half the size of the city of Denver. Within the tiny <br />spaces between the grains, billions of gallons of water can be held, creating an underground reservoir <br />capable of storing water for at least 20,000 homes. <br />Developer Robert Lembke and Brighton-based Farmers Reservoir and Irrigation Co. believe the property will <br />provide a key connection between fast-growing towns and the water-rich farms of FRICO's members. <br />"We hope to serve as a link," Lembke said. <br />With Colorado's water demand expected to surge 53 percent in the next 25 years, water officials up and <br />down the state's urban corridor are searching for ways to harness the plentiful farm water of the South <br />Platte River Basin without bankrupting its farm economy, <br />How large a role the innovative 70 Ranch project will play isn't clear yet. <br />Sweet spot in river basin <br />Two years ago Lembke and FRICO bought the 70 Ranch for $20 million. <br />Since then, more than $1 million has gone into restoring its natural grasses, studying its geology and the <br />Flows of the river, and engineering the canals and pump stations that will move water from the river up into <br />the hills and into a series of natural basins. <br />"When the ranch went on the market, everyone looked at it and passed," Lembke said. <br />According to local lore, it was named the "70" because it lies 70 miles from what were once three major <br />., <br />http://www.rockymotlntainnews.com/drmn/cda/article~rind0,1983,DRMN_21_4196615_ .. 11/9/2005 <br />