The Water Information Program

There are 10.5 million acre-feet of water under the South Platte River that is not being used and it's time the Colorado General Assembly allows irrigation well owners be allowed to use that water in drought conditions. That was the message from Robert Longenbaugh Tuesday evening, who also said well users are not the only ones who are effecting the flow of the South Platte River, but "nobody is talking about those and they have more a more significant impact than wells." He charged that cities using transmountain diversion -- bringing water to the east side of the Continental Divide from the west side -- to extinction, evaporation of water from gravel pits along the South Platte, water conservation by cities, the use of pivot irrigation systems by farmers instead of row irrigation, conversion of irrigated land to housing development and trees along the river are among factors that have a greater impact on the flow of the river than do irrigation wells.

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