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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.
A Fast Response to “Slow Sip?”
Douglas County water providers are scrambling fast to deal with the impact of the “slow sip” water ruling recently issued by the Colorado Supreme Court.
By way of background, in 2020, the state put in place new water regulations to address usage of nonrenewable water in the Denver Basin aquifer, which is the primary source of water for most of Douglas County Residents.
Some water providers in the county have publicly admitted that the “slow sip” regulations were unexpected and caught them off guard – even though it took years to make its way to the Colorado Supreme Court and the primary opponents to slow sip are Parker Water and Castle Rock.
“Slow sip” places specific and enforceable limits on the amount of water each well can pump – limits that were, prior to 2020, more informal and flexible.
It also sets a total amount of Denver Basin aquifer that can be used.
One of the key reasons our Commissioners George Teal and Abe Laydon fought so hard for the establishment of the county’s Water Commission is precisely this type of unexpected government ruling that challenges long held assumptions about the availability of water supplies.
Such as:
How much water is truly available and for how long into the future?
Are the county, its residents and businesses sufficiently prepared for the combination of declining nonrenewable aquifers, a changing climate that may hasten that decline, and state and federal government responses to those changes?
The reality of enforceable, and unexpected, limits on wells obviously raises the need for the county, and its water providers, to find sources of renewable water.
Failure to do so places real risk in front of homeowners – no matter how far into the future.
The prospect of a significant number of municipal wells in the county being shut down because they have used their 100-year allocation threatens to crater property values.
And, as every homeowner knows, without a guaranteed source of water that is at least a 40 year supply, no lender will fund a mortgage.
This issue will shape Douglas County water policy for many years to come.
Recent Headlines
Developers have the go-ahead for new construction in northern Weld County after a three-year freeze
Residents of northern Weld County might see new construction now that a local water district has given developers the go-ahead to request water services after a three-year hold.
North Weld County Water District stopped real estate development in its tracks in 2021 when it announced a moratorium on tap sales and new requests for water amid the COVID-19 pandemic and a statewide housing craze. Developers’ projects stalled. A growing housing stock halted.
The district’s work began: They had to pull the reins to figure out if they even had enough capacity to serve everyone who wanted water, said Tad Stout, board president for the district.
…The town of Buena Vista estimated it could run out of water for new developments as soon as 2030. In response, it passed a policy in 2023 that ties water use and development to specific community priorities, like more affordable workforce housing.
How paying water users to use less of the Colorado River is working out
…This year, the federal program paid about $28.6 million in taxpayer dollars to 110 participants across four states to cut their use by 63,631 acre-feet.
In total, the program has paid people across all four states about $53.1 million to shrink water usage by about 148,700 acre-feet between 2015 and 2024.
...In Colorado, the federal conservation program paid 46 participants $7,204,730 to cut water use by 14,239 acre-feet this year.
Energy, water, and food are the top three threats to humanity, Nobel laureate Richard Smalley of Rice University stated in 2003. Two decades later, those three challenges remain on any list of imminent and long-term threats to global stability. Producing energy requires ample amounts of clean water, and both plentiful sources of energy and water are required to produce food.
The key, though, is ample amounts of water. The data listed above highlight the challenges of accessing and developing supplies in key parts of the American West.
At a City Council meeting on Oct. 21, Arvada City Council passed increases to the water, stormwater and wastewater fees. Water fees will increase by 10%, while wastewater fees will increase by 14.5% and stormwater fees will increase by 13.75%.
Parker and Castle Rock Water recently lost a major appeal to the Colorado Supreme Court, which will have them see reductions in their Denver Basin aquifer wells and water volume limits.
The Court’s ruling upholds tougher limits on how much nonrenewable groundwater can be pumped from wells over the life of a state permit.
Colorado’s cities, towns and industries are already estimated to face a shortfall of up to 740,000 acre-feet by 2050, according to the state’s 2023 water plan.
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.
