Water Rights: Laws, Guns, & Money: Recent Episodes
Tommy Raye
Water Rights - Law, Guns and Money - Why is water so dang complicated? We are going to explain it drop by drop. You gotta start slow or it's overwhelming. We'll explore the early history, evolution of water rights, farmers versus cities, interstate squabbles, lack of common sense in administration, reallocation to form new uses, problems with water court, the ridiculous amount of time to get permitted, investments in water, and other topics. It is complicated but we have fun making sense of it all. We may get shot, but we will take aim at all these issues.
Risks beyond diminishing the supply of water
· Remaining water unsafe or undrinkable
· Saltwater intrusion
Subsidence
· Cracks in the earth
· Moving an entire city because it is sinking
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Great report from the New York Times
· Reflecting from 1800 to 1950
· Endless bounty of all resources
Rain and snow
· Rain refills aquifers in east
· Snowmelt feeds western rivers
Thirsty farms and growing urban areas tap aquifers
· Overused and under regulated
· Overuse causes subsidence which reduces aquifer capacity
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Points of Agreement
· Current operations not working
· Next set of rules should be interim
Where they disagree
· Upper Basin says Lower Basin exceeding allocations
· Lower Basin wants to include all upstream reservoirs
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Strange things happen
· Metropolitan Water District of Southern California
· Imperial Irrigation District
Role reversals
· Jeffrey Kightlinger now advising Imperial
· Imperial suddenly in mood to collaborate rather than demand
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Kickbacks or other forms of favors
· Not at State employee level
· Maybe elected officials
Such a sweet deal given to Fondomonte
· Low price on land rental
· All the water you can possibly use for free
Public employees encourage monitoring water use
· Nixed or ignored at the elected level
· Does this stink to you?
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A British newspaper reports on our drought
· Alfalfa is king
· Powell and Mead have risen to 36% of capacity from 28%
Our country is disconnected from food supply
· Forage crops can be converted to save water
· Farmers love alfalfa: it’s reliable with a steady demand
Need for alternatives
· Rotational crops
· Possibly hydroponics
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Jennifer Gimbel
· Extensive and impressive experience
· Shares thoughts and ideas
Discussion of Five Ideas
· Easier processes for farmers to sell saved water
· 1041 Regulations impacts and benefits to local citizens
· Strong agreement on Two Forks Reservoir
· Stop discouraging buy and dry
· Create special zones for buy and dry
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Ocean desalination plant being discussed
· Where’s the ocean?
· Straw into the northern tip of the Gulf of Mexico
Environmental and economic constraints
· $5 billion is a low-ball estimate
· Pipelines to cross national park and environmentally sensitive areas
Would you bet on this project?
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Arizona Big Media
· Blatantly touting a vast resource of water in Arizona
· Hub of data center and semiconductor plants
Arizona officials waking up
· No more housing developments in Phoenix proper
· Some rural areas passing much needed groundwater laws
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Leprino cheese factory in Greeley, Colorado
· About 1000 AF a year of milk
· Mile is 87% water
Is that water state water or private water?
· Is this similar to diverted water that is not consumed?
· What if milk sent out of state?
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The kick the can legislature
· Only 16 water bills this session
· Like we need another study
State should step up to complex and sensitive water issues
· Dan Beard – saying it like it is
· Our problems are immediate, but others are dire
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Farm Box Farms – containerized farming
Eric Gostenki, VP of Sales
· Produce 250 containerized farms per year and growing
· Experimenting both with crops and concepts
Joaquin Gonzales, Director of Fodder
· 1 container produces as much cattle fodder as 30 acres of irrigated ground
· Containerized fodder uses less than 5% of irrigated acreage
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Happy until lawsuits filed
· Abandonment of water rights
· Potential expansion of use
Prior appropriation provides path forward for dispute resolution
· Times change farming practices and technology/manpower requirements
· Society operates under reactive system
· Only crisis prompts change
Technical issues that affect water users
· Free river water and how it is used
· Transit losses and how measured
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Meeting with Rob Graves at the Howling Cow Restaurant
· Saving water – what is it and who can benefit?
· Monitoring use of water is a problem
Other questions about moving water
· Water quality issues
· Thornton and 1041 issues
Elephant in the room
· Buy and dry close in to the cities
· Only the three Ds will stop farmers: Debt, Death and Divorce
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Bad omen for the Colorado water world
Five things to consider
· Stop discouraging buy and dry
· Do away with HB 1041
· Pass bill to allow farmers to sell saved water
· Resurrect Two Forks
· Create a special zone for buy and dry
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Martin Sarley, past river commissioner, Ian Ferrell, attorney
· Importance of quantifying river conditions
· Administer water per laws and court rulings
As much an art form as a science
· Different administrations depending on history and district
· Goal to be same with real time data
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More discussions with Evan Jeffries
· Piping saves water simply by requiring less to transport
· Leaving stubble from harvest keeps soil moisture higher
History shows why most water is owned by farmers
· Other issues affecting farmers
· Farmers in CA & AZ benefited unfairly from Mead and Powelll
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Experiences of Evan Jeffries in Evergreen and Otis
· Running cows in a regenerative process
· Manages and advises ranchers on water
Some illegal water ponds protected for use for firefighting
· 60 identified in Jefferson County
· $300k to $500k per AF on Bear Creek
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Colorado River Basin talks with limited results
· Six states agree
· California holds out
Lawsuits are inevitable
· Time consuming
· Indian tribes left out again
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Bill Berg, Hydrogeologist with Marin and Wood Water Consultants
· South Platte River augmentations more complicated than in San Luis Valley
· Most augmentation plans used for out of priority wells
Replacement source
· Must match time, place and amount of depletion
· Water wells create a drawdown cone within the aquifer
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Relationship of water to economic output
· Farming uses lots, contributes not so much
· Cities use little, contribute a lot more
Legislature waking up to water problem
· Centerpiece of new legislation
· Presentation of my solutions
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Comparing other uses to reduction of hay fields
· Curbing Kim Kardashian’s use of water
· Eliminating coal-fired power plants
· Not even close to providing water to restoring Colorado River
King Alfalfa is the real culprit
· Consumes more than all cities in the Basin
· $400 billion has been approved to buy, lease or loan water to the River
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Shipping container gro pods
· Suppliers producing more sealed grow units
· Use <1% of water of regular farming
Suggestions to solve crisis
· Greater use of hydroponics
· Buy and dry
· Revive Two Forks reservoir
· Aquifer Storage and Retrieval
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Cheyenne, Casper, Gillette, Laramie – the big cities
· East side of State
· Not using Colorado River water
Flaming Gorge reservoir draw downs
Farming, fishing and few water consumers
· Potential U.S. Congressional action
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Through alfalfa, water being sent to Saudi Arabia
· Alfalfa farms clearly sucking potable water from cities’ supplies
· Middle East countries prevent using water for low value crops
And what are we doing?
· Arizona allows unlimited pumping in most locations
· How much time left before Arizona runs out of water
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Heavy reliance on groundwater
· Case study on running out of water
· State should track water use
Albuquerque’s water supply
· Depends on Colorado River water for recharge and direct use
· Impact of cutting back on Colorado River water
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What are sources of Arizona water?
· Groundwater
· Native rivers
· Central Arizona Project
Legislation authorized of Central Arizona Project in 1968
· Completed in 1994
· Serves interior of Arizona
Arizona’s share of river is 2.8 MAF
· Cities get 1.5 MAF through CAP
· Remainder for agriculture
· Cuts in 1922 Compact will hurt all
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Precipitation amounts
· Great Basin drains toward Great Salt Lake
· Colorado River watershed
Total Use of water
· Agricultural use
· Municipal use
Reserved water rights
· Indian claims
· Other reserved rights
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Indians may have right to 25% of Colorado River water
· Water rights in the Grand Canyon
· Other Indian water rights
Water rights came with establishment of reservations
· Better to sue or negotiate?
· In any case, wait is so long as to maybe never come
· Moral obligation to supply Indian water
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Bureau of Reclamation steps in
· Largest cut to Arizona
· Not enough cuts to trim deficits in Mead and Powell
California is the largest user
· Most goes to Imperial Valley Irrigation District
· Some of Metropolitan Water District
· With 19 million customers, MWD will need more
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1041 Regulations upheld
· What is in State’s interest
· Thornton in a bind
Colorado Water Conservation Board
· Updated state water plan
· Call for public input
Colorado River problems
· Impact on 7 states and Mexico
· Covered in future episodes
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Changes needed in Colorado water law
· Speculation
· Statistics support change
Colorado water owned by the Public?
· Past huge government investments
· Should government simply give away rights?
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Equal time to agricultural interest
· Don Schwindt, farmer near Cortez, Colorado
· Dan Keppen, Family Farm Alliance president
Upcoming negotiations on guidelines for Colorado River Compact operations
· New interim guidelines coming in 2026
· Ag communities want to play a major role
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Components of NISP
· Glade reservoir
· Galeton reservoir
Operate in tandem
· Projected yield from project
· Physical sizes and water quality considerations
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Greg Dewey, NCWCD Project Manager/Water Resources Engineer
· Permitting for 18 years
· History of Poudre and project
Poudre designated as Wild and Scenic
· Proposals for 3 on-stream reservoirs dropped
· Reservoir water rights transferred to off-stream Glade
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Stan Linker, manager of Central Weld County Water District
· How rural districts were formed
· Take Advantage of clean water in the CBT system
Raw water sources and costs
· CBT, Windy Gap
· Prices skyrocketed in 10 years
· Other sources of water
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A land use regulation
· Initially State oversight protections
· State quit funding oversight
Eagle and Larimer Counties use of 1041
· Seems to be blackmail
· State oversight should return
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Saving water
· Anyway to incentivize farmers?
· HB 1121 – cash for grass
Colorado Sun reporter Trish Zornio
· Asking hard questions
· Same old calculus doesn’t work anymore
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Following up with the teaser
· Private condemnation
· Exchanges
Water Court and marketing water
· Ditches interfering with sale of private property rights
· Agricultural Water Protection Water Right
· Should be expanded
Out of priority diversions
· Augmentation plans
· Onus on applicant
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Ways to establish water rights
· Other states mainly a permitting system
· Colorado uses a court system
Composition of water court and duties
· Seven courts corresponding to seven water basins
· Steps to obtain a water right or change in use of a water right
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Times of drought
· Worst in 1200 years
· Temperature affect dryness
Saving Water
· At least three ways
· No incentives to save
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Relook at the 1923 South Platte River Compact
· Upper and Lower Sections of South Platte River
· Nebraska seems intent on moving forward
Anti-speculation bill’s impact on water prices
· Two views on strengthening laws
· How to create more water supply in a water short area
Talk to your legislator
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Prices of water
· Farmers 401K plans?
· Supply and demand at work
· Farmers seem to want investors in the market
Water rights trades under the radar
· Transparency needed in water sales
· Farmers can’t afford water for farming
Democracy and capitalism
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Continuing with James Eklund
· Case Laws
· Encourage Ag in Colorado
· Midde Ground
Cities want no middle men
· Ag producers want an open market
· More important issues should be discussed
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James Eklund – water attorney, past director of Colorado Water Conservation Board
· Definition of anti-speculation
· Meant to prevent hoarding of water by appropriation
· Water cannot be shared like air
Anti-speculation is on “bill paper”
· Itch to be scratched is prohibition of outsiders profiting
· Cities trying to monopolize water market
· Dangerous policy
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Nebraska governor announces big plans
· Wants to assure continued water into Nebraska
· Build diversions inside Colorado to take water
Colorado has plans for more South Platte River water
· What happens now?
· Lawsuits expected
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Alexandra Davis – Aurora Water Department
· Water rights as a commodity
· Speculation drives up prices
· Fear of out-of-state sales
Ag water rights sales creates fears
· Issues between selling farmers and local community
· Reasons for the decline of small towns
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Water – the great dissolver or great conveyor?
· Conveyance of waste
· Creation of the Clean Water Act
Properties of water
· Seawater vs fresh water
· Silly facts for fun
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Funding Sources
· State
· Federal
· Private
Examples
· Dove Creek – grants & loans
· Parker W&S – stimulus money?
· Renewable Water Resources – stimulus money?
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One of the pathways to the Rocky Mountains
· Platte waters shared
· Stories of the past
South Platte Compact
· Only with Nebraska
· Restrictions/Uses by Colorado
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East Troublesome Fire 200,000 Acres
· Esther Vincent, Environmental Services Director, NCWCD
· Post fire watershed restoration efforts
Impacts and Recovery
· Physical Impacts
· Quality Impacts
· Funding
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Lucky to be Americans
· Hard working, honest, friendly
· Work on podcast
Three recent newspaper articles
· Colorado River Compact should be changed
· Yuck factors comes back into play
· Maybe Gross Reservoir not needed
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Colorado straddles Continental Divide
· Gives rise to four great rivers
· All water arising within our borders is ours
Not so fast
· Supreme Court decisions affect Colorado’s stubbornness
· Start of the Colorado River Compact Commission
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Well design and evaluation
· Terry Ranch more complicated than originally thought
· Groundwater planning similar to water resources planning
Water Information Technology – SCADA
· Growth area for water engineers
· Real time planning and reaction
Banks
· Money in, money out
· Water in, water out
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LRE Water - largest water engineering firm in Colorado
· Cortney Brand, President
· River basin and water supply planning
Water rights evaluations
· Water Court support
· Locating water rights for purchase
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San Antonio and the Edwards Aquifer
· Joe Krier, Ex President of Chamber of Commerce
· Groundwater conservation district
Setup for intra-state squabbles
· San Antonio raids other aquifers
· Federal control of level based on threatened species
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Rio Grande Water Conservation District
· Marisa Fricke, Sub-district 6 Program Manager
· Farmer driven quasi-state agency
Augmentation for all wells in Valley
· Previously purchased water stored and released
· Augment to prevent state mandated well closures
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Rio Grande Valley
· The earliest water right in Colorado
· Water excess a thing of the past
Aquifers in the valley
· Promotion leads to overuse
· Present trends
· Same economic realities
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Sugar plant closing hurts local farms
· Aurora charts its own water future
· Suspicions among farmers
Aurora does what is best for Aurora
· The self-proclaimed farm protector
· Animosities in the valley
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Federal government triggers cuts in water use
· Arizona to be affected first
· Minor cuts to Nevada and Mexico
Potential Impacts to Colorado
· Will affect eastern and western slope
· Colorado getting prepared
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Will Rogers’ humor and lessons
· Understanding the Rules
· Bob Lembke gets creative
East Cherry Creek bites
· Free market system
· 70 miles to 70s ranch
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Gold rush starts immigration
· Denver begins to grow
· Diverse population
Early Water to Denver
· Denver Water Police
· Scuffles over ditch rights
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Colorado’s water plan
· 400,000 AF of new storage by 2050
· Not enough projects being planned
Augmentation
· Single use water
· Fully consumptive water
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City of Greeley ASR Project
· Adam Jokerst
· Definition of ASR
Why Greeley purchased
· No permitting nightmare
· Easily scalable to meet future needs
· Most Cost Effective Solution
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Review brings us to present
· Almost endless topics
· Geography rules
Visualizations and Water Buffalos
· Projects accomplished
· Wet water vs paper water
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Parker tries to repair an old car
•Rueter-Hess reservoir
•Joins SMWSA and gets surface rights
•Complicated water modeling
Thornton must act
•Long time coming
•Little used State statute to the rescue
•Let’s simplify
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Will be back by July 4
Have a good holiday
Yeah America!
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Denver Basin Aquifers
· Geologically trapped water
· 300 million acre-feet
· Artesian conditions fade
Explosive Growth
· The fizz is off
· Rush to renewable
· South Metro Water Supply Authority
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CBT Water
· Once through like other rights
· Huge advantage for buyers
· Benchmark pricing
Other Sources
· Accounting for water in river
· Non-tributary groundwater
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Halliburton leading the way
· English versus metric system
· Breakover point in providing water
Birth of a new company
· Water Supply, LLC
· Shame on Division of Water Resources
· Need for changes
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Why Grand County was raided
· Three rivers
· Growth in the early days
· The railroad comes to town
Denver Explodes
· Drought exacerbates need
· Ready built tunnel
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Episode 10
ACROSS THE DIVIDE, COLORADO RIVER COMPACT
Colorado at the top of the Divide
· Four rivers start here
· Doctrine of prior appropriation creates fear
Compact Clause of the U.S. Constitution
· Colorado River Compact
· Split agreement
· New thinking
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Start of ditches and enlargements
· Cooperation
· Multiple decrees
· River commissioner impossible task
City evaluation of water rights
· Apparent winner
· Unit of exchange
· Consumptive use
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Tribulations of NISP
· Unintended consequences
· Participants
· Change in plans
Dust Bowl Days
· Formation of Northern Water
· CBT shares
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Diversion Structures
•Burlington headgate
•Out of sight, out of mind
Speculation
•Land
•Not water
•Homestead Act
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Platte River
•Man controlled ditch
•Road trips
Denver Metropolitan Wastewater Treatment Plant
•Aurora’s Prairie Water Projects
•West slope water into the Platte
•Increased flows
•Ownership of fully consumable water
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The American peoples
Farms/Cities tug of war
•Interconnections
•Stretching water
Intercity competition
•Why farming in Colorado
•Environmental Delays
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Round table meetings
Thornton – last major buy and dry
•Water quality – TSS and TDS
•Thornton’s quality deteriorating
•1041 powers – opposition
Consumptive Use
•Farm consumptive use – statewide
•City Consumptive use - comparison
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Two Forks denial – cities on their own
•Kiowa project – an exchange
•Raising money – the Golden Rule
•Wellington Webb mayoral decision
Defining Consumptive Use
•Buy and dry
•Opposition to buy and dry
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Description of my experience
•Cow troughs to Glacier water
•Bad actors – Good actors
Choices for more water
•Damming water – Two Forks denial
•No new diversions
•Reallocation of water
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First in time, first in right
· Miner example
· Early farmers examples
Initial Priority Administration
· Theft of water - Gunplay
· Court Involvement
· First water rights established
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