Water Conservation, Efficiency, and Instream Flows in the West

Aaron CitronProject Manager & Attorney(303) 447-7212acitron@edf.org

Western Water Law 101

Prior Appropriation

• “first in time is first in right”

• Diversion (usually)

• Beneficial Use

• Use it or lose it

CRB Overview• Complex “Law of the River”

• Compacts, Caselaw, Treaty with Mexico (1922-2007)

• Colorado River legally over-allocated

• 16.5MAF v. +/- 13.5MAF

• 1 AF = 1,234 m3

Colorado River Supply and Demand Basin Study

2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035 2040 2045 2050 2055 20603,000,000

3,500,000

4,000,000

4,500,000

5,000,000

5,500,000

6,000,000Average Annual Total Upper Basin Depletions

Scenario A Scheduled Demands

Actual Depletions Before Compact Effects

Actual Depletions After Compact Effects

Acr

e-Fe

et

Recreation Economy

• $26 Billion• ¼ Million Jobs

SB 14-023: Water Efficiency Savings to Instream Flows

Opportunity

Incentives

1. No abandonment

2. New income stream.

3. Improved streamflows.

Opposition

• Costs to other irrigators

• Upstream juniors

• Instream flows

• Politics!

Conservation ≠ Savings

• Consumptive Use

• Prior Appropriation

• Efficiency v. Conservation?

Filling the Gap

• ATMs

• Water Banking

• System Conservation Agreement

Aaron Citronacitron@edf.org303-447-7212