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<br /> <br /> <br />T 303.295.8000 F 303.295.8261 <br />555 17th Street, Suite 3200, Denver, CO 80202-3921 <br />Mail to: P.O. Box 8749, Denver, CO 80201-8749 <br />www.hollandhart.com <br /> <br />Alaska <br />Colorado <br />Idaho <br />Montana <br />Nevada <br />New Mexico <br />Utah <br />Washington, D.C. <br />Wyoming <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />William H. Caile <br />Of Counsel <br />Phone (303) 295-8403 <br />Fax (303) 672-6536 <br />WHCaile@hollandhart.com <br />33516.3001 <br /> <br />December 14, 2018 <br /> <br />VIA E-MAIL AND U.S. MAIL <br /> <br />Colorado Water Conservation Board <br />Attn.: Rebecca Mitchell, Director <br />Lauren Ris, Deputy Director <br />1313 Sherman Street, Room 718 <br />Denver, CO 80203 <br /> <br /> <br />Re: HB 13-1248 Colorado Springs Utilities – Super Ditch Pilot Project Proposal <br />Dear Ms. Mitchell and Ms. Ris: <br /> <br />On behalf of Five Rivers Cattle Feeding LLC d/b/a Colorado Beef (“Colorado Beef”), <br />and pursuant to the Colorado Water Conservation Board’s Criteria and Guidelines for Fallowing <br />Leasing Pilot Projects, this letter provides Colorado Beef’s initial comments regarding the <br />Colorado Springs Utilities fallowing-leasing pilot project proposal (the “proposal”) that was <br />submitted on November 16, 2018 by the Lower Arkansas Valley Super Ditch Company, Inc. <br />(“Super Ditch”) and the City of Colorado Springs, acting by and through its enterprise Colorado <br />Springs Utilities (“CS-U”) (collectively, “Applicants”). <br /> <br />Applicants have requested selection of a pilot project to deliver up to 5,000 acre-feet of <br />water in a single year, over a plan approval period of ten years from 2020 through 2029. <br />Applicants propose to use water available from certain shares in the Catlin Canal Company, Fort <br />Lyon Canal Company, and/or the Rocky Ford High Line Canal Company, for temporary <br />municipal uses by CS-U. <br /> <br />Colorado Beef operates a cattle feedlot in Prowers County, Colorado, with a present <br />capacity of approximately 60,000 head of cattle. Colorado Beef’s water supply relies heavily on <br />water delivered pursuant to Colorado Beef’s ownership of 492 shares of the Fort Lyon Canal <br />Company, which were changed to allow use for feedlot purposes in Case No. 08CW83, Water <br />Division 2. In addition to its Fort Lyon Canal water supply, Colorado Beef is currently a <br />shareholder in the Lamar Canal & Irrigation Company, and a member of the Lower Arkansas <br />Water Management Association (“LAWMA”). Additionally, Colorado Beef is one of the largest <br />employers in Prowers County, and a significant contributor to the agricultural economy in the <br />Lower Arkansas Valley. <br /> <br />Due to the general nature of the information contained in Applicants’ proposal, Colorado <br />Beef does not have specific comments at this time and takes no position regarding the Board’s