Date: 07/22/2015
Final
Colorado River Compact Issues
WATER RESOURCES REVIEW COMMITTEE
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03:20 PM -- Colorado River Compact Issues
Chris Treese, External Affairs Manager, Colorado River Water Conservation District, discussed the role of the state to ensure that Colorado complies with its interstate water delivery obligations and announced that Lake Meade has reached a new record low level. He also discussed long term weather patterns and the effect on reservoir levels. He explained that there is a structural deficit affecting storage in major reservoirs in the Colorado River Basin and discussed the potential impact of this deficit on Colorado's ability to meet its compact requirements. He also discussed Colorado's obligations under the Upper Colorado River Compact and expressed concern about the impact of declining reservoir storage on hydroelectric generation and programs that depend on revenue obtained from the sale of hydroelectricity including endangered species recovery programs. He also discussed the potential for temporary transfers of water rights in Colorado that are senior to the Colorado River Compact during a compact call to enable junior municipal water users to continue diverting.
03:26 PM
Mr. Treese responded to questions from the committee about how water rights that are junior to the Colorado River Compact would be administered during a compact call. He also discussed the authority of states in the lower Colorado River Basin to use more water than they are entitled to use under the Colorado River Compact; programs to reduce evaporative losses from water storage projects; and water diversion projects in the lower basin.