Solutions sought in South Platte River water crisis

The process to find solutions to a growing water crisis on the South Platte River began Friday in Greeley.

About 150 people attended a day-long session of the South Platte River Basin Task Force at the Union Colony Civic Center and 20 members of the task force heard a host of problems facing surface and well users along the river, along with a like number of possible solutions.

It was the first of six meetings the task force will conduct prior to making a final report to Gov. Bill Ritter, legislative leaders and the legislature's interim committee on water resources by mid- to late-September.

The day started with briefings by attorneys Jim Locchead and Anne Castle, both non-voting members of the task force, along with Dick Wolfe, assistant state engineer, and it concluded with four hours of public comments.

The session focused on the effect pumping of irrigation wells has had on senior surface water right owners, a situation that was brought to a crisis level by a drought that started in 2002, and in 2006 resulted in the shut down of more than 400 of those wells in Weld, Adams and Morgan counties.

What the task force it attempting to do is find a way to keep as many wells operating as possible. But Wolfe said there are an estimated 4,000 wells in the river basin that are not operational, another 900 are pumping at 30 percent of their capacity and another 2,400 that have been ordered to cease pumping for one reason or another.

Wolfe said the basin comprises 1 million acres of irrigated land, 18 percent of which is irrigated by ground water only -- by wells -- 27 percent by a combination of ground water and surface water, and 55 percent by surface water only -- from the South Platte and its tributaries.

There are 9,000 high-capacity wells in the system and Wolfe said state officials think 80 percent are still in existence but only about 15 percent are being used. There also are 125 water replacement plans for 1,300 wells filed with the water court. Essentially, there is more demand than supply, especially with a growing population.

Testimony was offered by former state Sen. Fred Anderson, who dealt with the problem 40 years ago, a retired water engineer and farmers who depend on wells as their livelihoods. Their testimony was offset by ditch company officials and attorneys representing objectors to a water replacement plan filed by the Central Colorado Water Conservancy District of Greeley on about 220 of its wells.

Anderson, who finished his freshman year in the state Senate in 1967, said there is flexibility in the river system, but he, like others, stressed the need to store more water for future use to better administer it.

But John Akolt, who represents the Farmers Irrigation and Reservoir Co., which provides surface irrigation to 60,000 acres in Adams and Weld plus water to 250,000 Denver-area residents, said depletions from wells "continues after pumping has ceased," resulting in less water to that company.

Robert Logenbaugh, a Lakewood water engineer now retired, agreed with Anderson who said there is 10 million acre feet of water below the South Platte that should be used to its maximum benefit. But there continue to be questions as to whether that much exists today.

"The benefit of well pumping exceeds the damage done to senior water rights," he said, basing that claim on numerous studies he recommended to the task force.

Tim Buchanan, an attorney representing the Harmony Ditch and North Sterling Reservoir Co., told the task force that penalizing surface owners who have developed water rights should not be jeopardized by well owners who have not filed water replacement plans.

"For any augmentation (replacement) plan to work, senior water rights must be protected," he said.

What's next

The next meeting of the South Platte River Task Force will be July 16 in Sterling at a location to be announced. Other meetings in Denver will be July 22, Aug. 13 and 27 and Sept. 6. Proceeds from the meetings and other information about the task force is available at www.ag.state.co.us.