27 May 2009

Colorado Needs Water for Agriculture, Energy Development

State balances current and future goals for Colorado River water

 

About half of Colorado’s Colorado River water goes to agriculture on the western slope of the state.

About half of Colorado’s Colorado River water goes to agriculture on the western slope of the state.

By Nancy L. Pontius
Special Correspondent

Littleton, Colorado — About 75 percent of Colorado’s total water supply comes from the Colorado River Basin — and half of this water goes to agriculture on the western slope of the state. “Generally, agriculture owns the most senior [water] rights, dating back to the late 1800s and the first development of Colorado in the mining era,” Jim Pokrandt, chairman of the Colorado Basin Roundtable, told America.gov.

The river water is also used by cities, towns and industries, including for the production of oil, natural gas and minerals.

Although Colorado is entitled to use 51.75 percent of the water allocated to the upper basin states, Colorado does not consume its full share because there is not enough demand in western Colorado where the river and its tributaries are located, Randy Seaholm, chief of the water supply protection section of the Colorado Water Conservation Board, told America.gov.

“Some communities in eastern Colorado have the demand for the water, but their ability to get the water from the western slope is restricted due to the considerable expense, permitting requirements and general opposition within the state from the environmental and west-slope communities,” Seaholm said.

To help protect the environment, and for recreational purposes, Colorado water law allows the state and other government agencies to hold water rights intended to keep streams sufficiently full. “In addition, federal-reserved water rights can be appropriated to protect federal lands and endangered fish as necessary,” Seaholm said.

 

River water is also used by Colorado’s cities, towns and industries, including for the production of oil, natural gas and minerals.

River water is also used by Colorado’s cities, towns and industries, including for the production of oil, natural gas and minerals.

“Clearly Colorado’s top challenge is to develop the water supplies necessary for the population growth where it is occurring in the state,” he said.

One unknown is whether climate change will significantly decrease water supplies or if the supplies will remain relatively the same, he said.

Increased water demand for energy development may also occur. Pokrandt said it will be important “to prepare for eventual development of oil shale [a rock that releases oil when heated], which promises to be a big user of water.”  

And, “depending on the size of the oil-shale industry, it could use up Colorado’s remaining apportionment of water,” Seaholm said. For years, this industry has been acquiring water rights for this possibility, he said.

In balancing water needs for energy development and a growing population, Pokrandt said, it will also be a priority “to preserve agriculture for its obvious values of economics and food supply, but also to preserve a culture and the de facto open space that agriculture provides.”

Colorado’s main obligations to the Colorado River Basin are “to be sure we don’t exceed our Colorado River Compact allocation and to make sure the downstream states don’t use more than they are allotted,” Seaholm said. “There is concern that once a state or community develops a reliance on the water — whether the water is within the state’s allotment or not— it will be hard to reduce this dependence.”

More information is available at the Colorado Water Conservation Board Web site.