Two Water Scenarios for Colorado's Future

Where will the water come from if Colorado's population doubles by 2050 as many have predicted? Heather Hansen, of Red Lodge Clearinghouse, clearly lays out some alternative scenarios, one by the Colorado Water Conservation Board, another by the Western Water Policy Program at the University of Colorado Boulder’s Natural Resources Law Center.

The CWCB report emphasizes two approaches: 1) Out-of-Basin Transfers from the relatively well-watered Western Slope across the Continental Divide to the drier and more urbanized Front Range; and 2) "Buy and Dry" water transfers from agricultural communities. These transfers effectively end agricultural production. Water rights are bought, urban users are supplied, and farms and ranches are "dried."

Douglas Kenney, who wrote the Western Water Policy Program report, takes another tack. He notes that the most cost-efficient way to "produce" water for the Front Range is through conservation. Mr. Kenney cites studies that indicate that $5,200 invested in conservation programs produces one acre foot of water. By way of contrast, those same studies reveal that major water transfers cost $14,000 per acre foot.

This article (and the relevant reports) are a great place to start as you begin to think about the future of Colorado. You were beginning to think about that, weren't you?