Keep Our Water Home

There is no water available to be moved outside the San Luis Valley to the Front Range. RWR would need to buy existing agricultural water rights, thereby drying up farms.

 

90% of Coloradans say agriculture is important to their quality of life.

95% say maintaining and protecting agricultural land and water is important.*

 

Sacrificing one part of the state so others can grow is not a value Colorado should embrace and is not supported by Colorado’s Water Plan. Colorado-grown produce keeps food supplies closer to home, and therefore more secure. COVID-19 has reinforced the critical importance of both water and food security.

 

Front Range water users should evaluate local sources, seek opportunities for win-win water sharing agreements, and enhance conservation before they export from outside water basins.  The San Luis Valley is a beloved playground for Front Range residents and out-of-state visitors alike with the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, other national refuge parks, Rio Grande Natural Area, Rio Grande National Forest and Sand Hill Crane viewing locations. Water export threatens these amenities and their fish and wildlife.

*According to a survey conducted for the Colorado Department of Agriculture by Colorado State University

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Douglas County Commissioner Lora Thomas talks to State Sen. Cleave Simpson how water export from the San Luis Valley would impact the local agricultural community and why it’s not a win-win solution: