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As County leaders, we must protect our region. Our quality of life is directly connected to our commitment to build a tomorrow that preserves the best of today. This vision includes protecting our natural resources, utilizing our county’s resources in a fiscally-smart manner, and wisely planning for our future. Thank you for standing with us.
Why Water Management Planning Matters
Planning is a tool that is valuable in challenging times.
This summer has brought a renewed focus on the continuing challenges facing the Colorado River states – including Colorado. In fact, the wrangling over how to divvy up dwindling water supplies has become so intense, that parties are arguing over competing interpretations of just three words in the long and detailed Colorado River Compact.
That’s just one example of how difficult the path forward is for the group of Western States that rely on Colorado River water.
Which is why strong, transparent, and innovative planning to address water security decades into the future is so critically important.
A great example is Colorado Springs’ city-run water utility that has a continually updated comprehensive 50-year water plan.
Because its leaders have been forward looking for many years, Colorado Springs residents and businesses have dramatically cut water usage through reasonable conservation measures.
But they also know that diminishing supply over time means conservation is just one pillar of a smart plan for water security going forward.
As detailed in a recent media report, the city has also has, for many years, relied on reservoirs on the Western Slope that allow for trans-basin diversions.
In addition, Colorado Springs is working with agricultural landowners in the Arkansas Valley to acquire excess water.
Both strategic moves show that Colorado Springs is benefiting from strong planning that is open to an “all-of-the-above” approach to water policy.
The city is able to be agile because it is not hampered by the politically-motivated, factually challenged, short-sighted attacks that have slowed Douglas County’s progress toward a similar comprehensive county-wide water plan.
As kids we were all taught the “5P’s”: Prior Planning Prevents Poor Performance.
Some water nay-sayers in Douglas County need a reminder.
Recent Headlines
These three words from 1922 are at the heart of the latest Colorado River clash
…The Colorado River supplies 40 million people across seven Western states and parts of Mexico. Rules about sharing water are decided by representatives of those seven states. Mostly appointed by governors, they meet, usually behind closed doors, to decide who should get how much.
Right now, the clock is ticking for them to agree on new guidelines for water sharing since the current set of rules expires in 2026. Meanwhile, more than two decades of dry conditions have only increased pressure for the entire region to cut back on demand. The Colorado River has been in the grips of a megadrought, fueled by climate change, and demand has remained mostly steady.
As a result, the region’s reservoirs have plummeted to record lows, and big changes are needed for a sustainable future.
In March, the states split into two camps and published their ideas for managing the river after 2026. Those two groups were divided along familiar lines. The Upper Basin states of Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and New Mexico found themselves pitted against the Lower Basin: California, Arizona and Nevada
… The Upper Basin states, in 2024, say the agreement does not require them to send a particular amount of water downstream every year. Instead, it requires them to not be the reason that amount doesn’t make it downstream.
They’re arguing that climate change, not the states themselves, is the reason that less water is making it downstream. The Upper Basin states say they have less water to begin with, and it isn’t their fault – it’s the fault of a warming climate.
California farmers set to cut use of Colorado River water, temporarily leaving fields dry
Farmers who grow hay in the Imperial Valley will soon be eligible to receive cash payments in exchange for temporarily shutting off water to their fields for up to two months this year.
Under a program approved by the board of the Imperial Irrigation District, farmers can now apply for federal funds to compensate them for harvesting less hay as part of an effort to ease strains on the Colorado River.
Paying growers to leave fields dry and fallow for part of the year represents a major new step by the district to help boost the levels of the river’s reservoirs, which have been depleted by chronic overuse, years of drought and higher temperatures caused by climate change.
Western lawmakers want more support for water recycling
...California Sen. Alex Padilla (D) and Rep. Grace Napolitano (D) on Friday pressed the Biden administration to raise the per-project cap on federal funding for water recycling by $10 million, up from its current $30 million limit.
“As the West continues to recover from the impacts of long-term drought while also preparing for inevitable future droughts, it is imperative that the federal government continues to invest in local water supplies to meet the demands of recycled water in the West,” the lawmakers wrote in a Friday letter to Reclamation Commissioner Camille Calimlim Touton.
Did you know? The state of Colorado has identified nearly $6 billion in funding needed for water projects. This figure does not include the billions of dollars that will be spent by the hundreds of water districts throughout our state over the next 30 years. Simply put, Colorado has reached a major funding gap.
Upcoming News from DCFF
Every other week, DCFF will report on important news and challenges impacting our community. We hope you will stay engaged and connected with us.
