Special to the HT
MEEKER | Landowners in Rio Blanco County are seeing springs dry up and ponds disappear. Dealing with the reality of less water was the topic of discussion at the most recent presentation for the White River Alliance. The speaker, Collin Robinson, owns Guide Water. Robinson is a water resource engineer who grew up ranching on Piceance Creek.
Robinson shared data showing the decline of flow in the White River, with a reduction of about 20% from historical conditions. The rate of decrease has accelerated during the past 20 years.
To adapt to diminishing streamflow, Robinson presented information on crops which use less water and ways to increase irrigation efficiency to allow water users to avoid taking so much from the river. This is critical in summer, when some segments of the river are otherwise dried up by ditch diversions. When too much flow is removed from the river, water temperature can also get excessive and diminish dissolved oxygen concentration to levels fatal to aquatic life.
He also spoke about the deceptive appeal of many water storage proposals, when the reality is that the projects would make problems worse. Robinson allowed for some exceptions to this generalization, mentioning there are, in annual terms, by one report, well over a million acre-feet of unused conditional water rights on the White River. These are part of an overall ledger with more water rights than there is water available.
Robinson highlighted a recent water court resume, published by the Herald Times on May 14, detailing an application by Mahogany Energy Resources to continue latent conditional rights that would take much or most of the remaining White River flow and cause physical shortage and administrative calls affecting existing water users junior to the claims, dating back to 1964 and 1955. The case is 26CW3004. Statements of opposition to the application are due by June 30 and must be filed with the water court. Instructions for filing a statement of opposition with the water court can be found at https://www.coloradojudicial.gov/self-help/opposing-water-court-application
Collin Robinson, Terri Reed, Shawn Welder and Iain Davis
