San Luis Valley: Aquifer levels are moving in the wrong direction #codrought

From The Pueblo Chieftain (Matt Hildner):

The shallow groundwater aquifer leaned on heavily by farmers in the north­central part of the San Luis Valley continued its drought-driven slide in 2012. Allen Davey, engineer for the Rio Grande Water Conservation District, released calculations showing the aquifer declined by 123,000 acrefeet from 2011. Since the district began monitoring the section of the aquifer in 1976, its volume has dropped by 1.2 million acre­feet.

The drop comes despite the fallowing of nearly 30,000 acres and a roughly 20 percent decline in groundwater pumping from wells in Subdistrict No. 1. Subdistrict No. 1, which includes roughly 3,400 irrigation wells in the north­central valley, assesses fees on its members to take farm ground out of production and reduce pressure on the aquifer also while providing mitigation to other water users who are harmed by the pumping.

Steve Vandiver, the district’s manager, pointed to a sustained history of poor flows on the Rio Grande as the cause of the decline. “The problem as I see it is the recovery rate, whether we’re pumping or not, is dependent on what the river runs,” he said. “If we’re in sustained drought, we’re going to have little or no diversions and little or no recovery.” The main source of recharge for the shallow, or unconfined, aquifer comes in the spring when ditches divert from the Rio Grande and deposit that water on farmers’ fields where it waters crops, then filters down. Once the river’s flows dwindle in summer, many valley farmers then turn on their groundwater pumps to pull water from the aquifer and finish their crops through the remainder of the growing season.

“If we don’t have runoff to support this system we have to do more and more to get this turned around,” Vandiver said. He said the subdistrict would have more money to pay for fallowing in 2013.

Travis Smith, who represents the valley on the Colorado Water Conservation Board, said expanded regulation of pumping through the rest of the valley was needed to help recover the aquifer.

More Rio Grande Basin coverage here.

Rio Grande Roundtable recap: ‘Our projects are good projects’ — Travis Smith #riogrande

From the Valley Courier (Ruth Heide):

This month the local Rio Grande Roundtable, a group representing various water interests in the basin, decided to send five more projects to the state for funding. If the state board approves these requests during the March Colorado Water Conservation Board meeting, Valley water projects will see another approximately $2 million from statewide water funds, plus $195,000 from the basin funds…

“It’s getting more and more competitive,” Gibson said. “This basin’s been extremely fortunate in the past. We’ve got good projects that have been funded. We’ve got good projects that have been completed. We’ve got good projects that are still underway, but we need to think about reality. If you were on the CWCB board would you be willing to give two-thirds of the account remaining in the statewide account to us when we have been able to dip into that pocket the deepest?”

CWCB staffer Greg Johnson said that has not been an issue in the past, and he did not know how much that might enter into the CWCB’s discussions in the future. He said it might depend on how much competition there is for the funding.

Roundtable and CWCB member Travis Smith said the board has criteria and guidelines in place to judge all of the projects coming in from around the state, and those will be crucial in determining the best projects for funding when there is not enough money to fund them all.

“Our projects are good projects so I am anticipating we are going to have success,” he said.”[...]

Re-elected Roundtable Vice-chairman Rio de la Vista suggested the roundtable might need to prioritize its projects in the event not all of them receive funding in March. The roundtable members might need to choose which projects could be put off until the September CWCB meeting. ..

[Greg Johnson] said although the state funding has been cut significantly, “the good news is we do have a little bit more than we thought we did.”

The state account will have a balance in March of $4.5 million, rather than the $3 million that was anticipated, he said.

More IBCC — basin roundtables coverage here.

Colorado is being dragged into Rio Grande River Compact dispute between Texas and New Mexico

From the Valley Courier (Ruth Heide):

The suit, filed in U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday, alleges New Mexico is not delivering to Texas the water owed that state under the compact, which also includes Colorado. [Colorado Division of Water Resources Division 3 Engineer Craig Cotten] had just learned of the suit Tuesday morning and said he was not exactly sure of the specifics. He said the main disagreement was between New Mexico and Texas, but since Colorado is part of the multi-state 1938 Rio Grande Compact, it was included.

“The State of Texas is requesting no action from the State of Colorado. They are included only because they are a signatory to the compact,” a January 8 release from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) stated.

TCEQ Commissioner Carlos Rubinstein said, “It is unfortunate that we have had to resort to legal action, but negotiations with New Mexico have been unsuccessful, and Texas is not getting the water that it is allocated and legally entitled to.”

Rubinstein alleged New Mexico was trying to circumvent and ignore the compact, and by filing suit against New Mexico, Texas was attempting to rectify alleged harm New Mexico had caused Texas water users…

Texas is alleging that New Mexico has allowed hundreds of thousands of acre-feet of water to be illegally diverted from the Rio Grande downstream of Elephant Butte Reservoir, the storage facility for the three-state Rio Grande Compact.

“Essentially, New Mexico is delivering water to Texas at Elephant Butte Reservoir and then re-diverting Texas’ water below the reservoir as it is being released to Texas,” TCEQ officials stated.

“The illegal diversion of this water is negatively impacting water flows in the river, taking water that is released for the Rio Grande Project beneficiaries, including the State of Texas … Grave and irreparable injury has occurred and will be suffered in the future by Texas and its citizens unless relief is afforded by the court to prevent New Mexico from using and withholding water which Texas is entitled to, and which New Mexico is obligated to deliver, under the Rio Grande Compact and Rio Grande Project Act.”

Cotten said the engineer advisors for each state are scheduled to meet on the compact in February, and the annual Rio Grande Compact Commission meeting will be held in Alamosa this year on March 21 at Adams State University.

As far as Colorado’s deliveries to downstream states in 2012, the state over-delivered its obligation by about 6,000 acre feet, Cotten explained. The over deliveries were all from the Conejos River system, which sent about 9,000 acre feet more than was required to downstream states. The Rio Grande under-delivered about 3,000 acre feet, so between the two rivers, the state ended up with a credit of about 6,000 acre feet.

Cotten said he hoped Colorado would be able to work with Texas to relinquish that credit water to Texas in exchange for the ability to store water up here. Since Elephant Butte Reservoir has been so low, Colorado has been prohibited from storing water in post-compact reservoirs in Colorado, according to provisions of the Rio Grande Compact.

More Rio Grande River Basin coverage here.

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Designation of Critical Habitat for Southwestern Willow Flycatcher

Here’s the ruling from the USFWS published in the Federal Register:

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), designate revised critical habitat for the southwestern willow flycatcher (Empidonax traillii extimus) (flycatcher) under the Endangered Species Act. In total, approximately 1,975 stream kilometers (1,227 stream miles) are being designated as critical habitat. These areas are designated as stream segments, with the lateral extent including the riparian areas and streams that occur within the 100-year floodplain or flood-prone areas encompassing a total area of approximately 84,569 hectares (208,973 acres). The critical habitat is located on a combination of Federal, State, tribal, and private lands in Inyo, Kern, Los Angeles, Riverside, Santa Barbara, San Bernardino, San Diego, and Ventura Counties in California; Clark, Lincoln, and Nye Counties in southern Nevada; Kane, San Juan, and Washington Counties in southern Utah; Alamosa, Conejos, Costilla, and La Plata Counties in southern Colorado [ed. emphasis mine]; Apache, Cochise, Gila, Graham, Greenlee, La Paz, Maricopa, Mohave, Pima, Pinal, Santa Cruz, and Yavapai Counties in Arizona; and Catron, Grant, Hidalgo, Mora, Rio Arriba, Socorro, Taos, and Valencia Counties in New Mexico. The effect of this regulation is to conserve the flycatcher’s habitat under the Endangered Species Act.

From the Summit County Citizens Voice (Bob Berwyn):

The designation covers about 208,000 acres of riparian habitat along 1,227 miles of rivers and streams in California, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Utah and Nevada. Some of the critical habitat is along the banks of well-known rivers, including the Rio Grande, Gila, Virgin, Santa Ana and San Diego.

The flycatcher is a small, neotropical, migrant bird that breeds in streamside forests. It was first listed as endangered in 1995 in response to a petition from the Center for Biological Diversity.

“Protection of critical habitat for this tiny, unique bird could make a crucial difference to its survival, and also gives urgently needed help to the Southwest’s beleaguered rivers,” said Noah Greenwald, the Center’s endangered species director. “For all of us who love our desert rivers, this protection is great news.”

The USFWS initially designated 599 miles of riverside habitat in 1997 but was challenged by the New Mexico Cattle Growers’ Association. That led to a revised designation in 2007 that protected more stream miles.
But that was not enough to ensure recovery of the species, according to the Center for Biological Diversity, which challenged the rule, pointing out that it failed to consider hundreds of miles of rivers identified in a scientific recovery plan for the flycatcher.

“Like so many desert plants and animals, southwestern willow flycatchers have suffered from the wanton destruction of rivers by livestock grazing, mining, urban sprawl and overuse,” Greenwald said. “We have to take better care of our rivers.

This week’s designation still excludes hundreds of miles of river habitat that was identified in 2011 plan. Greenwald said his organization will take a close look at these the exclusions to determine if the recovery of the flycatcher was properly considered.

From The Pueblo Chieftain (Matt Hildner):

Federal wildlife officials designated just over 9,000 acres in the San Luis Valley Tuesday as critical habitat for the southwestern willow flycatcher. While the move excluded all of the endangered bird’s habitat on private and state­owned land, it designated an 11.4 ­mile stretch of the Rio Grande through the Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge and another 12.7­ mile segment that sits downstream under Bureau of Land Management jurisdiction.

The bird, which also received habitat protection from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in five other southwestern states, makes its home in the dense streamside cover often provided by willows, cottonwood trees and tamarisk.

Mike Blenden, who oversees the Alamosa refuge for the service, said the designation would change little about how the refuge is operated but added that activities such as ditch cleaning and prescribed burning would involve more discussion with others in the agency.

Likewise, Denise Adamic, a BLM spokeswoman, said little would change for how the agency manages its land along the Rio Grande, save for a stricter consultation process with the service to comply with the Endangered Species Act.

The official rule designating the habitat said 11 miles on the Rio Grande and 64 miles on the Conejos River were excluded because of work by the Rio Grande Water Conservation District and other local governments to set up a conservation plan for the bird.

The ruling also noted that the flycatcher’s habitat had benefited from the establishment of conservation easements on nearly 9,000 acres of private land lining the Rio Grande and Conejos.

More endangered/threatened species coverage here.

Rio Grande Basin Roundtable: ‘We are the basin that has received the most funding to date’ — Mike Gibson

From the Valley Courier (Ruth Heide):

Rio Grande Interbasin Roundtable Chairman Mike Gibson said in the years since the state has funded water projects through basin-specific roundtables and a statewide account, this basin has garnered more than $8 million from the statewide Water Supply Reserve Account. “We are the basin that has received the most funding to date,” he said…

During its December meeting the roundtable unanimously approved a $23,500 request from Judy Lopez to implement “The Value of Water,” an educational campaign to continue the informational work begun this year during the “Water 2012” initiative. “We have had a great year,” Lopez said.

Water 2012 included a variety of activities including weekly articles in the Valley Courier, radio spots, tours, contests and other water informational events. Lopez said the Rio Grande Basin is a model for others and has been termed the “kumbaya” basin because of how well folks got along and worked together to promote water education.

“The Value of Water” is the next step, Lopez explained. One of the goals of this next campaign will be “getting people to understand we have a gap between what we have and the amount of water we need.”[...]

The Valley Courier will continue to publish water educational articles, with about 24 scheduled for 2013, and radio interviews will continue, as well as classes and tours on different topics such as wetlands. Lopez requested $23,500 for salaries and supplies that will be matched for a total of $66,450 for “The Value of Water” campaign. The funding request will go on to the state for consideration for funding from the statewide account.

Roundtable member Travis Smith said he supported this funding application, and he commended Lopez and Water 2012 Coordinator Leah Opitz for getting the water conversation out past the “same 10 guys and gals” to the general public. He said the educational components are often overlooked in water circles and hard to measure, but they are important. One of the measures of success from these initiatives will be raising up new water leaders for the future, he added.

More IBCC — basin roundtables coverage here.

Baca National Wildlife Refuge: The elk herd is degrading riparian habitat

From The Pueblo Chieftain (Matt Hildner):

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing some hunting and hazing to scatter elk herds at the three national wildlife refuges it manages in the San Luis Valley.

The agency said elk have become a problem because of the damage they cause to wetlands and riparian habitat, a conflict that is especially pronounced on the Baca National Wildlife Refuge, which has a herd of roughly 3,500.

A draft environmental assessment released Tuesday called for licensed hunts on roughly 27,000 acres on the Baca with the majority coming on the western edge of the refuge.

Other steps in the proposal also call for selective culling and hazing, with the possible use of cracker shells, horseback riders and agency staff on foot.

“We’d like to keep as many tools in the toolbox as we can,” said Mike Blenden, who oversees the valley’s three refuges.

The overuse by elk on the Baca caused the near total elimination of habitat for the southwestern willow flycatcher, which is listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act.

The environmental assessment also said elk had damaged some habitat on the Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge.

Opening all three refuges to public hunting was not considered as part of this plan, which will last for three years. The agency said that option will be considered in the management plan for the three refuges, which is due out in 2015.

The other options in the draft include the possibility of continuing with the existing policy of not managing the herds and another that uses hazing without the incorporation of the Baca hunts.

The agency will accept comments on the draft for 30 days. They can be sent to alamosa@fws.gov or in writing to: San Luis Valley National Wildlife Refuge Complex, 9383 El Rancho Lane, Alamosa, CO., 81101.

More Rio Grande River Basin coverage here.

San Luis Valley: ‘Blanca Ranch conservation easement signed’ — Pueblo Chieftain

From The Pueblo Chieftain (Matt Hildner):

The San Luis Valley’s largest landowner signed off Tuesday on a conservation easement with federal wildlife officials for the 90,000­acre Blanca Ranch. Owner Louis Bacon said the preservation of the property, which takes in three 14,000­foot peaks and extends down to the valley floor, would provide a keystone link for wildlife in a previously unprotected reach of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. The same motivation led the billionaire hedge fund manager to protect 76,700 acres in September on the Trinchera Ranch, which sits just across U.S. 160 from the Blanca.

Steve Guertin, a deputy director for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said the easement would protect valuable habitat for animals such as the Canada lynx and the Rio Grande cutthroat trout. “We based this on strong biological planning,” he said.

But the easement limits what Bacon can do on the ranch. “As long as he doesn’t subdivide the property, clear cut it, pave it over or do other Draconian management regimes on it, he’s free or any landowner is free to go about managing it as a working ranch,” Guertin said.

Tuesday’s signing came nearly six months after Bacon announced his intention to preserve the ranch during a ceremony with Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar. While Salazar was not present at Tuesday’s signing, he issued a statement praising the easement as the beginning of a new era in which private landowners and the government work together to preserve land. Bacon said he and his team rushed to finalize the easement through the fall given the looming election that might have ended Salazar’s stint as secretary.

“We were worried that if there were a change in Washington whether the impetus in the Interior Department would be there to follow through with this,” he said. He said the service, which is a part of Interior, would be an invaluable partner because of the agency’s scientific expertise in managing wildlife and wildlife habitat.

He also gave a hat tip to longtime ranch manager Ty Ryland, who helped convince the previous owners to sell to Bacon with the argument that he would be a good steward of the land. “This is his dream come true,” Bacon said.

San Luis Valley: ‘Aquifer faces crisis’ — Valley Courier

Here’s a guest column written by Steve Vandiver that’s running in the Valley Courier. Here’s an excerpt:

Wells were constructed from the earliest days of settlement in the Valley; and in fact, the oldest appropriation of water in the San Luis Valley is a small domestic well in the Conejos area. No new non-domestic appropriations from the aquifers in the Valley have been allowed for 30 to 40 years depending on the aquifer and the area of the Valley being considered. The moratoriums on new wells occurred as a result of the State Engineer Office’s recognition that additional groundwater appropriations would cause impacts to those aquifers and surface streams…

Recent drought conditions, with the lowest water year being 2002, have caused significant reductions in the natural runoff that recharges this study area, and have greatly reduced the diversions from the Rio Grande that normally provide approximately 275,000 acre-feet of additional recharge into this area. Recharge into the aquifer from those diversions occurs through infiltration from the ditches and from constructed recharge pits that introduce water into the aquifer.

Aquifer storage continues to decline even though the irrigated area within the study area has been reduced by approximately 20,000 acres over the last 12 years and recently by additional thousands of acres placed in fallowing and preventative planting insurance programs.

Graphs of the unconfined aquifer storage study show the changes that are occurring in the unconfined aquifer and are indicative of the significant reductions in storage that have occurred from changes in the hydrologic conditions over the last decade. Well pumping in the area has been reduced by approximately 20 percent in 2012, over the last several years because of management efforts of the well owners themselves and efforts of Rio Grande Water Conservation District’s Subdistrict #1.

More San Luis Valley groundwater coverage here and here.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and San Luis Valley ag producers reach habitat agreement

From the Associated Press via The Durango Herald:

Federal wildlife officials and southern Colorado water and government officials have finalized a plan for the southwestern willow flycatcher and the yellow-billed cuckoo, the Pueblo Chieftain reported.

The plan aims to protect the birds while allowing farmers and ranchers to avoid more stringent provisions in the Endangered Species Act.

“We’re happy to see our conservation partners in the San Luis Valley develop this plan that will allow people to sustain their rich tradition of working the fertile landscape of the valley while simultaneously contributing to the conservation of fish and wildlife in their own backyards,” Noreen Walsh, an acting U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service regional director, said in a statement last week.

The southwestern willow flycatcher is listed as endangered by the federal government. The yellow-billed cuckoo is a candidate for federal listing.

More endangered/threatened species coverage here.

Rio Grande cooperation aids irrigation and wildlife

Here’s the release from Colorado Parks and Wildlife:

A cooperative agreement among water users in the San Luis Valley this summer helped assure that water was delivered to agricultural producers and domestic users, and that river and stream flows were maintained for the benefit of wildlife and recreationists.

The Rio Grande Cooperative Project, a public-private partnership between Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the San Luis Valley Irrigation District, proved crucial during 2012 because snowpack reached only 15 percent of average in the mountains of south central Colorado.

“The agreement was critical because it enhanced flows in the Rio Grande and provided water during the critical low-flow period during October,” said Steve Baer, a state water commissioner in the San Luis Valley.

During 2010 representatives of the two agencies started discussions on how they could use their storage facilities to make water supplies in the area more reliable. The result was the formation of the Rio Grande Cooperative Project and plans were implemented for the first time last summer. The project is being supported by the Colorado Water Conservation Board.

Moving water around effectively in the upper San Luis Valley has always been a complex exercise and water users have always cooperated when possible. But the work done this summer shows that water can be used, stored and delivered more effectively than in the past.

“This agreement has opened the door wider for Colorado Parks and Wildlife to make a variety of exchanges,” said Rick Basagoitia, area wildlife manager in Monte Vista.

In previous dry years, agricultural and domestic users have had to divert all surface water and engage in extensive pumping of ground water. That often left the flows in numerous streams and the Rio Grande extremely low. Water experts from Parks and Wildlife and the irrigation district determined that their water could be shared more effectively for mutual benefit.

The irrigation district owns Rio Grande Reservoir high in the drainage which has a capacity of 54,000 acre feet.

Parks and Wildlife owns water rights throughout the Rio Grande drainage, including trans-basin supplies that are diverted from west of the Continental Divide. In all water years in the Rio Grande basin storage occurs in a complex of small reservoirs, some of which are owned by other users. However, secure storage and timely releases of water at Rio Grande Reservoir in harmony with Beaver Park Reservoir are essential to ensuring the most effective and efficient use of the diverse menu of rights owned by Parks and Wildlife and those of other water users.

Normally, the small reservoir owners, through agreements with Parks and Wildlife, keep their reservoirs full. In exchange, Parks and Wildlife releases replacement water from Rio Grande Reservoir and Beaver Park Reservoir to supply irrigation needs of the small-reservoir owners.

But this year because Beaver Park Reservoir–which is owned by Parks and Wildlife–is drawn down due to problems with the dam, the agency stored more water in Rio Grande Reservoir and released the replacement water from that location. Consequently, water needed for wildlife throughout the valley was maintained while Parks and Wildlife was able to supply agricultural and domestic users with water from its reliable sources.

Because of the complexity of water right holdings in the San Luis Valley, the Rio Grande Cooperative Project now makes achieving exchanges easier than in previous years.

“Through these agreements we were able to coordinate water releases to improve conditions for fish and wildlife through the drought, and we were able to deliver water to other users who needed it throughout the valley,” Basagoitia said.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife is a major water-rights owner in the valley. By working closely with other owners, water can be used more efficiently to enhance agriculture, domestic supplies and wildlife resources.

Tom Spezze, recently retired from Colorado Parks and Wildlife as the southwest regional manager, has worked for years on water issues in the San Luis Valley. He said that cooperation is vital to everyone in the area.

“The Rio Grande Cooperative Project exemplifies a new way for Colorado Parks and Wildlife to conduct its water business,” Spezze said. “In one of the most water-critical times in our state’s history, we can’t afford to do business as usual. We have to be collaborative and more willing than ever to think outside the box. We can manage our collectively diverse water rights in the Rio Grande Basin as business partners in a way that is creative, transparent and responsible.”

More Rio Grande River Basin coverage here.

Colorado Water 2012: Rio Grande River — recreation opportunities abound in the basin

Here’s the latest installment in the Valley Courier’s Colorado Water 2012 series, written by Heather Dutton. Here’s an excerpt:

Opportunities for fishing abound from the headwaters and high mountain tributaries, through the San Luis Valley to the state line. Backcountry fly-fishing in the high country offers fishermen beauty, seclusion, and a chance to cook the day’s catch on a fire in the wilderness (please be advised of fire bans!). People also enjoy boating and fishing in the many high mountain reservoirs in the basin, such as the Rio Grande Reservoir.

As the river drops from the mountains and settles onto the Valley floor, anglers enjoy the gold medal fishery between South Fork and Hanna Lane. Gold medal waters are defined by Colorado Parks and Wildlife as areas with 60 pounds of trout per acre and at lease twelve 14” or larger trout per acre.

More Colorado Water 2012 coverage here.

‘The water levels in the San Luis Valley aquifers are dropping, and have been dropping’ — Craig Cotten

Here’s the latest installment in the Valley Courier’s Colorado Water 2012 series, written by Craig Cotten. Here’s an excerpt:

The Rio Grande is in the fourth year of below average streamflows. Other parts of Colorado are also in a severe drought this year, with some areas having a more severe single year drought than the San Luis Valley. However, much of Colorado had very good precipitation and streamflow last year which filled their reservoirs and aquifers. In fact, some areas in the northern part of the state had one of their best years ever last year in terms of precipitation and streamflow, while this basin languished in the midst of a multi-year drought. Since the extreme drought year of 2002, there have only been three years of above normal flow on the Rio Grande and only two years on the Conejos River. Some smaller streams around the valley have fared even worse, with only one year of above normal flows in the last ten.

The water levels in the San Luis Valley aquifers are dropping, and have been dropping, over the last several years. This drop is in response to the lower than normal recharge into the aquifers from the area rivers, streams, and ditches. After seeing modest gains during the years of 2007 to 2009, the unconfined aquifer is once again dropping substantially.

According to the aquifer study conducted by Davis Engineering, the unconfined aquifer in the West Central part of the San Luis Valley has lost nearly 500,000 acre-feet of water during the last three years. There is not a formal, comprehensive study of the confined aquifer throughout the Valley, but this aquifer is also seeing significant declines in the amount of artesian pressure. While it is not known exactly how much water is in the aquifers, it is obvious that the San Luis Valley cannot continue this drastic drop in the aquifers without severe long-term consequences…

In order to address the problem of injury to surface water users and the decline in the aquifers due to well pumping, the State Engineer is in the process of developing Rules and Regulations concerning the withdrawal of groundwater in Division 3. The State Engineer is being assisted in the development of these rules by a 55 member advisory committee made up primarily of area water users.

While these rules are not completed yet, we do know generally what they will require. In general, the rules will require that large capacity wells in the San Luis Valley repay the injury that they are causing to senior water rights, which are generally ditch and canal rights. In addition, the rules will have a sustainability component which will require that well owners ensure that the underground aquifers are brought back to a sustainable level.

The repayment of injurious depletions and ensuring sustainability can be accomplished by a well owner in two ways. A well owner may choose to implement an individual augmentation plan in which that owner will cover his individual well or wells. Otherwise, a well owner may choose to join a subdistrict, which, in exchange for monetary payment, will provide the repayment of injurious depletions and the sustainability of the aquifers for that owner.

More Colorado Water 2012 coverage here.

San Luis Valley: Groundwater sub-district #1 trial concluded

From the Valley Courier (Ruth Heide):

A couple of points in the sub-district’s operating plan, which was implemented for the first time this year, were the focus of the two-day trial this week before Judge Swift. Most of the discussion revolved around the inclusion of augmentation plan wells in the sub-district’s 2012 operating plan and the use of Closed Basin Project water in the 2012 plan…

In his closing argument on Tuesday afternoon, RGWCD Attorney David Robbins said the district acknowledged it made two errors of omission in the 2012 Annual Operating Plan (ARP): 1) list of augmentation wells; and 2) map of those wells’ locations. Robbins said the un-augmented well depletions from those wells within the sub-district were identified and replaced, however. Robbins suggested the way to handle the compliance errors this year would be for the court to enjoin the sub-district in the future to ensure it complies with the required information.

Attorney Tim Buchanan, representing surface water users who filed objections in this case, said he believed the court should go a step further. He said a message must be sent that the court decrees must be complied with. “The 2012 plan did not comply with the plan as decreed by this court and as approved by the Supreme Court,” Buchanan said. “Therefore in my view we need to fashion a remedy that does not approve the plan but directs the plan be amended to reflect the augmentation wells were not properly included, that they should have been separately identified and they should be separately accounted for.”[...]

The other contested topic in this trial was the use of Closed Basin Project water to replace well depletions to streams this year.

In his closing argument attorney Bill Paddock, representing sub-district supporters, reminded the court the judge’s October 4 order resolved the question of legal suitability of Closed Basin Project water for use in the plan of management. The question argued during the trial was a factual question regarding whether the water was an appropriate source of replacement water for injurious depletions, he said. Paddock argued the project water was appropriate to replace depletions and said the state engineer agreed.

When [State Engineer Dick Wolfe] was on the stand on Tuesday, he said he and his staff, with advice from their legal counsel, determined the sources of replacement water in the sub-district’s 2012 ARP, including the Closed Basin Project water, were suitable. Wolfe said the water court’s May 2010 decree stated this possible source of replacement water was not prohibited. He testified the sub-district’s plan of water management approved by the water court and Supreme Court specifically referenced Closed Basin Project water as a replacement water source.

More SLV groundwater coverage here and here.

‘The court had made it absolutely clear our main priority was to replace depletions, keep the river whole’ — Steve Vandiver

Here’s a recap of day one of the water court trial over the implementation plan for groundwater sub-district #1 down in the San Luis Valley, from Ruth Heide writing for the Valley Courier. Click through and read the whole article. Here’s an excerpt:

The plan spells out how the sub-district would replace injurious depletions from well users to surface water rights this year, the first full year of operation for the sub-district, which covers about 3,000 wells in portions of Alamosa, Rio Grande and Saguache Counties.

Two of three anticipated witnesses took the stand on Monday: Steve Vandiver, general manager for the sub-district’s sponsoring district, the Rio Grande Water Conservation District (RGWCD); and Allen Davey, district engineer for the water district. Expected to testify today is State Engineer Dick Wolfe who approved the sub-district’s annual operating plan for 2012…

Tim Buchanan, attorney for San Antonio, Los Pinos and Conejos River Acequia Preservation Association and Save Our Senior Water Rights, LLC, objectors to the sub-district plan, explained that since this was the first year for the operating plan he and other attorneys representing senior water users initially brought up every possible issue they thought might need to be addressed because they were concerned about being foreclosed from addressing them in the future if they did not.

He added the counsel for objectors and supporters have come to an agreement on general stipulations regarding most of those issues, but two remained as the subject of the abbreviated trial before Judge Swift this week:

1) Whether the sub-district’s amended plan approved by the water court in 2010 authorized the inclusion of augmentation plan wells.

Buchanan argued, “The annual plan must comply with the terms of the amended plan. The inclusion of the augmented wells in the amended plan is not an issue within the amended plan. The amended plan does not address that.”

2) Whether Closed Basin Project water is a logical source of supply to replace depletions caused by wells in the sub-district.

Closed Basin Project water was used this year to replace sub-district depletions. Buchanan said since the series of wells that comprise the project supplies were appropriated in 1963, they are extremely junior water rights to his clients’ senior water rights and were not an appropriate source of water to replace depletions…

Vandiver reminded the court of the sub-district’s goal to replace injurious depletions from the wells in the sub-district to surface senior water rights and stabilize the Valley’s aquifers. He outlined the sub-district’s historical timelines from the trial court’s decree in 2010 to the Supreme Court’s affirmation of the lower court in December 2011; the court order to begin assessing fees of irrigators in the sub-district; the acquisition of water supplies to cover depletions; and the development of first the sub-district plan and more recently the annual operating plan or ARP. When asked from whom he acquired replacement water, Vandiver replied “anybody who would listen to me.”

He said he was able to acquire transmountain water and negotiated one-year agreements from private individuals and entities, with future plans for permanent sources. He said this year he needed to obtain water that was readily available in a short time to meet the sub-district water replacement requirements. “The court had made it absolutely clear our main priority was to replace depletions, keep the river whole … eliminate injuries to senior water rights,” Vandiver said…

Vandiver also testified about the Closed Basin Project, a federal water salvage project operated by the RGWCD and Bureau of Reclamation. The project includes 170 shallow wells designed to capture water that would otherwise be lost through evaporation. Vandiver testified that the project was constructed to help Colorado meet its Rio Grande Compact obligations to downstream states, mitigate impacts of the project on wetlands, repay Colorado’s indebtedness and sell water to entities in the Valley if there was water available. The project is expected to deliver 11,500 acre feet of water this year. The sub-district is using 2,500 acre feet as a replacement water source this year.

More San Luis Valley groundwater coverage here and here.

San Luis Valley irrigation season ends on November 1

From email from the Division of Water Resources (Matt Hardesty):

The Division Engineer for Division 3 of the Colorado Division of Water Resources has announced that the irrigation season will end on November 1, 2012 for irrigation structures within the following water districts: Water District 20, which is the drainage area of the Rio Grande; Water District 25, which is the drainage area of San Luis Creek; Water District 26, which is the drainage area of Saguache Creek; Water District 27, which is the drainage area of La Garita and Carnero Creeks; and Water District 35, which is the drainage area of Trinchera Creek. The irrigation season will end on November 9, 2012 for irrigation structures within Water District 21, which is the drainage area of the Alamosa and La Jara Creeks and Water District 24, which is the drainage area of the Culebra Creek.

This announcement is to comply with the State Engineer’s policy number 2010-1 regarding the setting of an irrigation season in Division 3.

Future announcements will be made regarding the end of the irrigation season for the Conejos River drainage area.

If you have any questions, please contact the Division of Water Resources at (719) 589-6683.

More Rio Grande River Basin coverage here and <a href="

San Luis Valley: Groundwater sub-district #1 trial update: Use of closed basin water still a sticking point

From the Valley Courier (Ruth Heide):

When the afternoon was concluded, objectors and supporters had agreed in concept to the 2012 annual replacement plan (ARP) for the sub-district and the underlying methodologies and technologies used to develop that plan. That made one of the remaining motions to strike expert witnesses and their reports a moot point because there is now no longer the need for a number of witnesses to present extensive testimony.

Proponents now plan to call only three witnesses, Rio Grande Water Conservation District Manager (RGWCD) Steve Vandiver, RGWCD engineer Allen Davey and Colorado Division of Water Resources State Engineer Dick Wolfe.

This first sub-district, which was designed to repair injurious depletions from well pumping to surface water rights and reduce the draw on the aquifer, operates under a management plan that is effectuated each year through an annual replacement plan. The annual plan spells out how depletions will be replaced…

The sponsoring water district approved the annual plan, as did the state engineer. Objectors challenged it and asked the judge to prohibit wells from pumping in the sub-district boundaries until those challenges were resolved this year. She denied that motion.

Objectors subsequently asked for their claims to be withdrawn and the October trial to be vacated. Judge Swift told objectors they could either withdraw their challenges to the 2012 replacement plan on the condition they could not bring those challenges back again or withdraw them with the opportunity to re-file them only if they paid the supporters’ costs for preparing for trial. They chose the first option, except for Schwiesow whose client the Costilla Ditch Company chose not to withdraw its claims.

One issue still remaining for trial is the use of Closed Basin Project water as one of the sources to replace depletions. Davey in particular will testify to that issue next week. He will also testify about augmentation wells, another issue still pending before the judge…

One of the controversial topics before the judge on Wednesday revolved around the possibility of challenging sub-district water plans in the future. Proponents said they would like some definitive rulings from the judge regarding the foundation of the water plan so they would not have to go through all the time and effort they did this year every year to defend the sub-district’s plan.

“We want the court to be in a position to be able to make factual determinations about the adequacy of the replacement plan because it was so broadly challenged,” [David Robbins, attorney for the Rio Grande Water Conservation District ] said.

[Attorney for the objectors Tim Buchanan] said the objectors raised broad issues “because we didn’t want to be foreclosed in the future from raising those issues.”

More San Luis Valley groundwater coverage here and here.

First Colorado Congreso de Acequias recap: ‘Water was not considered property, but a communal shared resource’ — Ed Vigil

From the Valley Courier (Lauren Krizansky):

This year’s presenters included Costilla and Conejos Counties’ own acequia irrigators, southern and eastern neighbors, politicians, lawyers, scholars, mothers and youth. Topics included regional challenges, legal challenges, women and youth, lessons from northern New Mexico, the coming Colorado Acequia Governance Handbook and the future of Colorado’s acequias.

Alongside the host, the Sangre de Cristo Acequia Association, agencies present included Colorado Open Lands, the Natural Conservation Resource Service (NRCS), both co-sponsors; the Division of Water Resources; the National Park Service; the National Heritage Area and the Farm Service Agency.

Rep. Ed Vigil (D) opened and closed the ceremonies, and received special recognition for taking the lead on the Colorado Acequia Recognition Law.

“Everybody has an equal portion and a chance of surviving,” Vigil said in the midst of an acequia history lesson. “Water was not considered property, but a communal shared resource. People were always happy with what they could get. We survived well. That history is going to be gone and the technology is going to dwindle it down until it disappears.”[...]

The Congreso united acequia irrigators from Conejos, Costilla, Huerfano and Las Animas through an opportunity to compare and contrast systems. An uncertainty in the law and the changing environment – both natural and commercial – were echoed in each presentation.

“There are differences that we have across the river,” said Lawrence Gallegos, a Conejos County irrigator. “Some problems started back in the 1920s and 1930s when they established the Rio Grande Compact. We are still subject to that compact.”

He added, “It is a sustainable way of agriculture what we are doing today in the San Luis Valley. Mining the water, pumping the water is not sustainable.”[...]

From across the mountains, Jack Chavez, Las Animas County, and Amos Mace, Huerfano County, divulged another series of problems including greed, water quality, unclaimed water rights, taxes, natural resource development and pollution.

More water law coverage here.

Acequia project provides students an introduction to water basics, research methods

Here’s the release from Metropolitan State University of Denver (Cliff Foster):

The law in Colorado and the West generally awards the greatest control over a water source to the person who first puts it toward a “beneficial use.” As for everyone else―stand in line.

But, as a research team of students, faculty and administrators from MSU Denver learned, a much different system governs the water delivered to farms in the San Luis Valley and other places settled well before Colorado became a state.

The team made three trips to the Valley in September and this month to interview farmers about acequias, community-operated irrigation ditches introduced by settlers from colonial Mexico. Acequias not only deliver water but are part of the cultural, civic, economic and historical heritage of communities in southern Colorado and northern New Mexico.

The research fits nicely with the upcoming visit to MSU Denver by Devon G. Peña, this year’s Richard T. Castro Distinguished Visiting Professor and the University’s new One World, One Water Center for Urban Water Education and Stewardship. Peña, a professor of American ethnic studies, anthropology and environmental studies at the University of Washington in Seattle, is also secretary of the Sangre de Cristo Acequia Association in Colorado and a leading expert on acequias.

Peña’s testimony before the Colorado Legislature contributed to the passage of a 2009 bill that recognizes acequia practices, including defining water as a communal asset, allocating water distribution based on equity and not just priority and sharing of scarcity in times of drought.

The University research, supported by funding from the Sangre de Cristo Acequia Association and the OWOW Center, and information about the law will be presented at the 2012 Colorado Congreso de Acequias this week in San Luis. The research results will also likely be woven into a book sponsored by MSU Denver’s Department of Chicana/o Studies based on the papers of Castro, the late civil rights activist and MSU Denver graduate and instructor, who served five terms in Colorado’s House of Representatives.

Four students took part in the acequia project. Tom Cech, director of the OWOW Center, led the first trip to communities in the San Luis Valley; Adriana Nieto, assistant professor of Chicana/o studies, the second, and research assistant Richard Gould the third.

Specifics about the research, including the names of the participating students, are confidential. Nieto said students interviewed farmers about issues such as who uses which acequias, the condition of the ditches and their knowledge of water rights. Most of the farms have been family owned for generations and vary in size from a few acres to hundreds, Nieto says.

The project benefitted students in several ways, she says. They received a crash course in water basics, research methods and the ethics of “parachuting” into a community and asking sensitive questions. Nieto recalls suggesting the students could present their findings to the Undergraduate Research Conference in May. “They were like, ‘Yeah that would be great but what do these people get out of it’? They’re asking really probing questions that most people don’t even start asking until they’re doing Ph.D. research.”

Ramon Del Castillo, chair and associate professor of Chicana/o Studies, says research such as the acequia project provides essential information about the contributions of Latinos.

“For too long our cultural customs and traditions haven’t been respected,” he says. The research, he adds, “enhances the understanding of cultural and historical systems that have been in place a long time. So, maybe there are pieces of that acequia system that should be emulated as we fight over this drought and over water.

“We really do have something to offer if people are willing to look at it.”

More education coverage here.

Rio Grande Water Conservation District board meeting recap: The impending water court trial and conservation issues dominated

From the Valley Courier (Ruth Heide):

Now that the culmination is in sight for the Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) the water district has spearheaded for about eight years, it looks like some of the San Luis Valley counties may not sign off on it, Robbins told the board on Tuesday. If they do not, the residents in their counties will not be covered by it.

The first of its kind in the U.S., the HCP was designed to permit the routine maintenance by farmers, ranchers, city and county crews in areas that might otherwise be up for critical habitat designation for endangered species such as the Southwestern Willow Flycatcher. Under the plan, farmers could still clear ditches and ranchers could still graze their cattle.

Without an HCP to provide mitigating habitat to allow the counties incidental take permits for those routine activities, individuals, cities and counties would have to apply for individual permits or stay out of the willows.

Robbins said this plan has been the subject of dozens of public meetings, but now some of the county officials or their legal counsel are raising questions that might mean some deal breakers with them signing off on the plan.

“It’s entirely possible one or more counties may decide they don’t want to take advantage of the benefits afforded by the habitat plan, which is unfortunate,” Robbins said.

He added, “We can’t make cities and counties participate if they do not want to. We will tell the Fish and Wildlife Service they are not covered by the HCP and Fish and Wildlife can determine critical habitat and take whatever actions it wishes.”

One of the issues being raised now, he said, was concern over federal jurisdiction, which is what the plan is attempting to avoid.

“It is absolutely beyond my comprehension why anyone would not want to take a very low cost way to avoid interactions with the Fish and Wildlife Service and why governments within the Valley would not want to avoid having to deal with that,” Robbins said.

Another issue is the multi-year clause in the HCP, Robbins explained. Some counties argue they cannot enter a contract encumbering county funds for more than one year at a time. The HCP is a 30-year agreement.

Robbins said all of the counties and their attorneys have had questions about the HCP. The county attorney for Conejos County wants to reserve the right to litigation. Robbins said governmental entities regularly enter into agreements in which they state they will not sue each other.

Robbins said the water district staff, board and legal counsel will do everything they can to get the HCP approved and implemented, especially given the time, effort and money involved in developing it, “but if it doesn’t work, there’s not much we can do about it.”

The HCP should be final in November or December.

More Rio Grande River Basin coverage here.

The Sangre de Cristo Acequia Association scores a $100,000 grant from the Rio Grande Basin Roundtable

From the Valley Courier (Ruth Heide):

If the Colorado Water Conservation Board concurs, $90,000 will come from statewide funds and $10,000 from the local basin roundtable funds. Coupled with matching funds, the project is estimated to cost about $116,100.

Joe Gallegos, who presented the request to the roundtable group on Tuesday, said the actual costs might be less than the current estimate. For example, he said the $2,000 estimate for dewatering may not be necessary.

The biggest portion of the project cost, budgeted at $66,000, is the concrete work.

Gallegos and Nicole Langley, project coordinator, explained why the project is necessary and how it fits into funding criteria. Langley said this structural project meets criteria for funding from the local and statewide water accounts.

“It cures a very serious flooding problem,” she added.

Gallegos said when the ditch headgate is replaced, the ditch will be able to handle a greater volume of water, so flooding risks will be reduced.

Gallegos said the Culebra Creek Watershed, of which the Vallejos Creek Ditch is a part, irrigates 23,000 acres over 36 square miles. It serves 83 acequia organizations and 228 families.

The Vallejos Ditch is very old, Gallegos explained. It was named after Antonio Vallejos in 1848.

The current diversion structure was built in 1965, he added, and it has deteriorated over the years. Concrete is falling apart and the gates are almost inoperable. The result is sediment build up and flooding. A great deal of debris has clogged the ditch so that its carrying capacity is only 70 percent, Gallegos explained.

More IBCC — basin roundtables coverage here.

Kerber Creek: ‘Aesthetically, the whole environment along the creek is so different’ — Brady and Jane Farrell

Here’s the latest installment of the Valley Courier’s Colorado Water 2012 series (Aaron Monammadi). Here’s an excerpt:

The dedicated efforts of a few individuals can really make a difference, however, such as those involved in the Kerber Creek Restoration Project located in Saguache.

Brady and Jane Farrell, who have been on the project since the beginning and continue to be involved, share the following:

“Today, walking along our section of Kerber Creek is a completely different experience. The eroding banks have been reinforced with large rocks and stabilized by plantings. There are fish for the grand-kids to catch and release because the water is deeper. The aspens we planted along the creek are catching hold. The J hooks and weirs and other structures have created deep pockets for the fish to survive in, and the overall depth is increased as a result of re-channeling parts of the creek. Formerly by late summer the whole creek was so shallow you could walk across it without hardly getting your shoes wet, and there was little growth along the banks.

“Aesthetically, the whole environment along the creek is so different. A healthy creek is certainly much more attractive in every way. We love sitting by it or walking along it, enjoying the growing plants along the banks and cascading water along the creek that was formerly shallow, with banks falling into the water and little growth along the course of the stream. What a change has occurred over these past few years. And it will only get better in the coming years as the plantings mature and fish get bigger.”

The Kerber Creek Restoration Project is an award winning collaboration of 16 federal, state, and local agencies, non-profit groups and more than 20 local landowners dedicated to the restoration of the Kerber Creek watershed from historic mining impacts. From 2007 to the present, the Bonanza Stakeholders Group has raised over $2 million towards restoration efforts and contributed over 13,000 volunteer hours on the Restoration Project.

More Colorado Water 2012 coverage here.

Rio Grande River Basin: The State Engineer is cracking down on over-pumping

From the Valley Courier (Ruth Heide):

This week [State Engineer Dick Wolfe] issued a draft policy concerning pumping limits for large-capacity wells in the Rio Grande Basin, Division 3 Engineer Craig Cotten announced to those attending the Rio Grande Water Conservation District board meeting yesterday in Alamosa.

The draft policy involves pumping limits for wells, specifically nonexempt large capacity wells, which have been required to meter usage for a few years now. Some of these wells have exceeded the pumping limits in their permits or decrees, Cotten explained, so they may be required to curtail or shut down pumping next year.

“We have actually started ensuring those limitations are complied with,” Cotten said on Tuesday, “but this policy sets it more in stone how we are going to do that and what steps we are going to take to ensure the wells are pumping within their limitations.”

He said this was something that needed to be handled, and this policy will set limits in black and white “so there’s no question.”

He described the bases that will be used to determine if a well has exceeded its limits. Some wells have maximum annual production they cannot exceed in any one year, such as 200-300 acre feet. On that basis, the water office has already ordered some wells to shut down, Cotten said.

“We do know there have been several that have exceeded their maximum annual production, and we have issued orders on those,” Cotten said…

The “volumetric pumping limits of nonexempt wells in the Rio Grande Basin” draft policy refers to the extreme multi-year drought in the basin as one of the main reasons this policy is under consideration. It says the drought years have affected the recharge and storage in groundwater aquifers serving as the water supply for municipal, domestic, irrigation and other water users throughout the Valley. The policy states that during this summer alone, for example, water table elevations declined up to six feet in some areas, and the unconfined aquifer storage in the closed basin, which has been measured over a period of 30-plus years, decreased by about 166,000 acre feet.

More Rio Grande River Basin coverage here and here.

San Luis Valley: Groundwater Subdistrict No. 1 implementation plan trial scheduled for October 29

From The Pueblo Chieftain (Matt Hildner):

One of the main groups objecting to how irrigators in part of the San Luis Valley mitigate the harm caused by groundwater pumping has chosen not to withdraw a number of its claims from court. The move by surface water users from the Conejos River basin and the northwestern corner of the valley, which came in a Tuesday filing to the water court for the Rio Grande basin, means a scheduled trial is still on for Oct. 29.

The objectors reaffirmed their claim against the use of water from the Closed Basin Project, which pumps groundwater from the east side of the valley and sends it down the Rio Grande River to assist Colorado in meeting the Rio Grande Compact.

Subdistrict No. 1, which includes just under 3,400 groundwater wells in the north-central part of the valley, had proposed using up to 2,500 acre-feet from the federal reclamation project to replace an estimated 4,700 acre-feet in depletions this year.

The subdistrict also has leased rights to roughly 5,500 acre-feet from reservoirs and trans-basin diversions near the Rio Grande’s headwaters to meet the depletions.

Judge Pattie Swift said last week the issue concerning the reclamation project could not be decided without a trial since there were issues of fact that were in dispute.

Swift also said the proposal from objectors to have a special master appointed likely would not be decided until after the trial.

More San Luis Valley groundwater coverage here and here.

Drought news: Fall rainfall totals in the San Luis Valley disappoint

From the Valley Courier (Ruth Heide):

The gauging station at Culebra Creek, outside of San Luis, has recorded water levels below 2002 drought levels for most of the summer…

Where the Rio Grande’s annual forecast was 415,000 acre feet last month, it is now 410,000 acre feet, Cotten reported to the Rio Grande Roundtable, which met in San Luis on Tuesday. Cotten said the forecast has gone down about every month this year. The 410,000-acre feet flow for the Rio Grande this year is 63 percent of the long-term average, Cotten added.

Although Colorado is still delivering some water downstream, its obligation on the Rio Grande is currently zero, so there are no curtailments on the irrigators along the Rio Grande.

The same is true for the Conejos River system, the other main contributor to the state’s Rio Grande Compact. The annual forecast on the Conejos River system is about 180,000 acre feet, or 55 percent of the long-term average, with zero curtailments made at this point and zero obligations required downstream…

Cotten also shared results of Allen Davey’s longitudinal unconfined aquifer study, which reflect a decrease of more than a million acre feet since 1976 to the present. Roundtable member Steve Vandiver said the latest figure is 1.2 million.

When asked if his office has been seeing a large number of applications for replacement wells because of the drought, Cotten said many people had already redrilled their domestic wells to deeper depths in 2002 and 2003 so his office is not seeing that many requests this year. He has had requests to redrill irrigation wells to deeper levels, which his office is objecting to, he said…

San Luis to host first ‘Congreso de Acequias’ starting October 19

From the Valley Courier (Laura Krizansky):

The Congreso will begin on Friday, October 19 with a welcome reception at Emma’s Hacienda on Main Street. Delmer Vialpando and Devon Peña, both of the Sangre de Cristo Water Association, and Costilla County Commissioner Crestina Martinez will kick off the event with hors de oeuvres and music beginning at 5 p.m.

On Saturday, the Congreso will start with a legislative update from Rep. Edward Vigil at 9 a.m. Following the update, acequia farmers from each county will discuss their local challenges and moderator and San Luis centennial farmer Joseph Gallegos will lead a discussion sharing issues and obstacles, such as abandonment and climate change…

The morning session will conclude with a presentation from water law professor Larry MacDonnell. He will discuss the legal challenges acequias face, using a real Costilla County case as an example. Peña and Greg Hicks will give background for and speak about the 2009 Colorado Acequia Recognition Law. Highlights of Peña and Hicks presentation include what the law means to an individual ditch and irrigator and actions that acequias must take in order to be recognized under the new law. Water attorney John McClure will speak about the legal differences between unincorporated ditches, mutual ditch companies and the Acequia Ditch Corporations.

Over lunch, Shirley Otero Romero will moderate a discussion about how to better incorporate women and youth into acequia leadership. Sangre de Cristo Acequia Association board member, Junita Martinez, will discuss her experience; Sandra Santa Cruz, of Sembrando Semillas, will discuss how her program engages youth with agriculture and Bernadette Lucero, director of the Rio Culebra Agricultural Cooperative, will talk about the role of creating economic opportunity to retain young farmers.

Next on the Congreso agenda is a presentation from the Valley’s southern neighbors. Paula Garcia and Janice Varela, of the New Mexico Acequia Association, and New Mexico Legal Aid attorney David Benavides will discuss their work with New Mexico acequias, highlighting their experience organizing at a statewide level, current programs and funding successes in addition to lessons in water rights protection.

The day is scheduled to conclude with presentations from water attorney Peter Nichols and Juan Marinez, of Michigan State University Agricultural Extension. Nichols will discuss the work that he has been doing with University of Colorado law students to create a handbook that includes water rights basics, sample bylaws and other important information for acequias. Marinez will moderate a resource roundtable that will give participants the opportunity to network and hear about programs and ask questions of different government agencies and non-governmental organizations.

The final day of the Congreso begins with an acequia tour heading out at 8 a.m. After the tour concludes, Sunday will round out with various sessions discussing the future of Colorado’s acequias and a lunch presentation recognizing winners of the youth essay contest and poster contest. Students will be presented with awards and the first prizewinners will read his or her essay and present his or her poster. Also during this time, Vigil and State Senator Gail Schwartz will be presented Acequia Advocate Awards will be presented.

Registration cost is $20 per person for farmers and ranchers and $100 per person for all others. If cost is a problem, payment options might be available. Visit http://www.sangreacequias.org to register and for more information.

More Rio Grande River Basin coverage here.