Conejos County Clerk and Recorder Lawrence Gallegos, recently named as county representative to the State's well-water rules and regulations committee for the San Luis Valley, is seen here working on the Novermber election of 2008.

By LARRY WINGET

CONEJOS—Conejos County Clerk and Recorder Lawrence Gallegos has been nominated to serve as the County’s representative on a proposed 40-member advisory committee being formed to offer advice and recommendations to State Water Engineer Dick Wolfe, concerning well water rules and regulations.

Wolfe told the County that the purpose of such rules and regulations is to protect vested water rights in the Rio Grande Basin, while at the same time encouraging the maximum beneficial utilization of Colorado’s water under sustainable conditions.

Gallegos is also the president of El Codo Ditch Association, Conejos River. He said he had been approached by El Codo to represent it on the State Engineer’s advisory committee, but opted to be the County’s representative, as he had already been contacted for that position. Wolfe has also requested that representatives to his proposed water advisory committee be sent from: the Alamosa-La Jara Water Conservancy District; the Conejos Water Conservancy District; the Rio Grande Water Conservancy District; the San Luis Valley Irrigation District; the San Luis Valley Water Conservancy District; and the Trinchera Water Conservancy District.

A severe drought in 2002 and another in 2005 have added to the consensus of opinion that the underground aquifer beneath the San Luis Valley is becoming depleted. Continued pumping from large-volume irrigation wells are thought to contribute to the situation. As Gallegos put it, more and more senior surface water rights are being affected with each new growing season. Gallegos said that return flows of surface water to their natural streams used to be nearly 40 percent of what was called for. As the water table drops, more and more of the surface water is not returning to streams, rather it is being drawn into the underground aquifers. This makes it even more difficult for the Valley to continue sending water down the Rio Grande River as part of the Rio Grande Compact. That agreement requires Colorado to provide water to Texas and New Mexico, via the Rio Grande.

Well water regulation is also at the heart of the newly created Rio Grande Basin water sub-district number one. It is the first water sub-district in Colorado and covers an area of San Luis Valley land north of the Rio Grande. The Rio Grande Water Conservancy District sponsored the creation of the new sub-district and RGWCD submitted a management plan for it. That plan is the subject of a court battle and water court judge O. John Kuenhold has stated he most likely will remand the plan back to the RGWCD to be reworked. Wolfe’s committee could form rules and regulations for the sub-district, if one is not agreed upon by those involved in the court case.

Wolfe states in a letter to those concerned that the purpose of his proposed advisory committee is “to provide advice and recommendations to me on proposed rules and regulations governing the diversion and use of underground water in the Rio Grande Basin. The committee’s rules would protect vested Rio Grande Basin water rights while at the same time encouraging the maximum beneficial utilization of Colorado’s water under sustainable conditions.

Wolfe wrote, “The benefit of establishing an Advisory Committee is that all stakeholders can be represented and provide advice and recommendations to me in shaping the rules and regulations. While this process takes more time, I believe it leads to rules and regulations that stakeholders in the basin can support, thereby avoiding the time and expense of litigation that may arise if I were to proceed in a more traditional manner.”