Current and Future Challenges to Water Management in the San Luis Valley

As we go thought the cycle of hydrologic changes in the Rio Grande Basin, it presents significant challenges to water users of all kinds, administrators, environmental needs and human kind in general.  At present we are well into a significant downturn in the water supply available for all uses in the basin, including the San Luis Valley in Colorado.  Since we have developed our uses in the entire basin in relatively good times as far as water availability is concerned, it is particularly difficult to par back our use in times when our supply is drastically reduced from the lack of precipitation. On an annual basis, a less than normal year can be dealt with fairly easily, but sustained and consecutive low water years present significant challenges to the entire basin.  Since in many instances our water supply from both surface and groundwater sources is inextricably linked, it can present great difficulty in keeping even our most important demands met.  Dealing with this downturn is painful for all.

In the San Luis Valley the groundwater users have initiated a new plan to curtail pumping within defined areas to attempt to live within their means.  This has come through voluntary cutbacks, purchase of farms and permanently retiring the associated water rights, and financial incentives from Groundwater Management Subdistricts who are charging well owners a fee to pump to create a revenue stream to reduce pumping. In some areas the use of Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program funds are used to provide additional funds to retire ground.  All this is being done in an effort to balance the future uses with the water supply available.  This effort is all locally driven and administered under state statute and closely monitored by the State Engineer.  This effort is attempting to head off strict groundwater administration by the SEO, and provide a much more flexible alternative than provided by groundwater use rules being promulgated by him.