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Home My WebLink About01.03.79 Letter from Jeris Danielsonjanuary 3, 1979 Jeris A. Danielson, :State Engineer Department of Natural Resources • 1313 Sherman Street, Room 818 Denver, CO 30203 • Rely to Your Letter to Floyd Crawford of December 28, 1979 Relating to the Basalt Water Conservancy District Dear Jerry Congratulations upon .your appointment/promotion to the job of State Encjineer. Both the 33asalt Water Conservancy District an,1 myself, personally, look forward to the opportunity to work with you on the (no doubt) nary oportunities we will have in the future. 1 would like to take this opportunity to inform yoa specifically•of a. now policy/direction that the Boa7.:'1 of Directors of the nasalt Water Conservancy. District has, determined to take4 As vouknow, the District was initially formed to. be the sponsoring/repayment entity for the Basalt - Project -- a Bureau of Reclamation Project authorized for investigation in the Storage Project. -Act. While the District has not in any sense abandoned the Project as a whole, we have determined that there is a.new• and viable direction that we can take to allow the usa of -our Project lecrees to. our citizenry within the Project area, Because, as you arce.' aware, rural water development, at least in the Roaring Fork• Valley/Assouri Heights area has taken the form of well. construction, the District has determined. to al1ow th e. use of its Project . decrees. at each well. The format this take is through obtaining alternate points of diversion in.... the water court. The net result is that hopefully dozens,-- if not hundreds, of wells .tributary to the Frying Pan and Roal-ing Fork Rivers will all be as if they were part of a single (3z alt Project).decreo.• • Mr. Jeri. A, Danielson, P.E. January 3-, 1979 Page Two Idm sure you can-ap?reciate the significant , . . • • • • . . difference that such an approach May make in future administra••.-,. • • • , • . tive Problems. Rather than having to cope with. hundreds af ••• different priority dates on alluvial weflls for administrati_ve .• • , purposes, most, if not all, of-such- wel1 s. will go. in and Out-. of priority simultaneously. Afaminist.ration will-then-conSist cooperation -between the- Dasalt District and the Division Engineer for Water Division .5 whereby the DiviSionEnginaar-H-.-,- calls for ...a. predetermined measured release_ from (ProbablYYH'-• Ruedi Reservoir tb'make up out of prioritv depletions caused - by the junior wells in time of drought.. • Of course -,. there are some limitations in the implementation of this policy. Side •tributries that are already in short supply, such as-Cattle. Creek, must. receive- innovative -planning in addition to• the policvhereinabove discussed-. The District continues to approach these problems. with an eye towards solving then- Of cor rse,. we aftyisjon • non'-irrigation season u that is out of priority to still be covered by releases from central storag e. facilities such as•Ruedi Reservoir . lie -would lilc..eto•haye assistance from your office ,• in two principal ways. First, as you are aware, county . . planning departments routinely request assistance . from your -• concernin water s:-.Yplies for pros7iective- ••:iuy.'1_,?isions. We believe•it appropriate, since your office iS.approving new. Roaring ForT,7. River alluvium wells as•development water suppiis: at . the. present time, to,li:kewis approve use of the Basalt Project.. decrees as alternate point of diversion..for the same physical supply. Moreover, because I'believe thare is subStantial doubt. that •a 1980 alluvial well repre',tlents a viable legal supply: of• water -to a development, we .belie-,Te••it. would be appropriate for your office to reco=endlencourage Eagle, Garfield and Pitkin County Planners-•to requite-that- . a yroPosed dveloPer- with1n the Basalt Water Conservancy ' . District receive.lts "legal' water supply from the DistrIct. accqrding• to the above described plan. • Second, we beliavp it is appropriate for your office to'cooperat and assist us, if possible, in obtaining a permanent contract from the Bureau of Reclanation for the use of P. waters. At the =-3resent time, the Colorado • River Water (o on District has requested the Bureai to issue all Wester,-1 Slope contracts through the • River District. Collaterally, the River District has determined • Mr. Jeris A. DaniiUson, P.E. January 3, 1979 Page Three that if contract requests come from within the boundaries of municipalities or water conservaacy districts, individual water users should deal with that district directly. That - municioality/ district would then approach the River District for a subcontract. We are preparing a proposed draft contract which would effect such service from Ruedi at the present time, ... We believe it appropriate that your office should be informed of and participate .in on behalf of the River District and such water service entities as the Dasalt Water Conservancy District. In order to implement the program which we have discussed- and assist us in presenting this information to the various county -planning departments,Aet me inform you that there will be a meeting of the Garfield County Planning • & Zoning Comission on January 14, 1979 in the .evening On • the agenda will be Mr, Floyd Crawford, President of the District, and myself to explain to the .County how our program is perkleived- to. • function. If you -could have a representative . at the•meetins.-to inform them that the State considers the •• Basalt Project-decrees adequate for development at present, • your aasistan0.e and participation would be greatly appreciated - b the District and of sagnifican• value to prospective . water users in the Poaring Fork drainage If you have any questions, do not hesitate to inquire Thank for your. letter of December 28, 1979. Very truly yours, DTMANEY AND BLCOMB Scott Balcomb Ssjg cc: Floyd Crawford Roily Fischer 1