Written by Deb Daniel, RRWCD General Manager
The Republican River Water Conservation District (RRWCD) recently held six public informational meetings across the Basin to discuss key issues facing the Basin.
Board President Rod Lenz and Vice President Steve Kramer provided a brief history of the District and highlighted its ongoing efforts. To date, the RRWCD has partnered with producers in the South Fork Focus Zone to permanently retire 17,120 irrigated acres. The District is also exploring an expansion of the Compact Compliance Pipeline to offset aquifer depletions, along with potential adjustments to the Water Use Fee structure.
Tim Pautler, Chairman of the Pipeline Technical Advisory Committee, and Randy Hendrix of Hendrix Wai Engineering, gave updates on the pipeline system and the Republican River Compact. They emphasized the urgent need to expand the pipeline to maintain compliance and address growing concerns about aquifer depletions.
Board members Josh Lechman and Dennis Wieser reported on the declining native streamflow of the North Fork Republican River. They noted that the existing pipeline cannot offset this continued decline, which poses a significant challenge for the District.
Secretary Kristen Schneider, who also serves on the Budget Committee, reviewed the 2025 RRWCD Budget, the current and past costs of compact compliance, highlighted federal and state funding received, and shared graphs illustrating how conservation programs have been funded throughout the Basin.
Board members Kevin Penny and Aaron Sprague, along with General Manager Deb Daniel, outlined three potential Water Use Fee options under consideration:
- Irrigated Acre Fee – a fee assessed only on irrigated acres (current fee structure)
- 50/50 Acre/Water Split Fee– a fee based on irrigated acres plus an additional fee tied to the annual volume of water pumped per well.
- Acres/Appropriation Split Fee – a fee on irrigated acres plus a fee tied to the portion of the water right appropriation that is pumped for irrigation.
To help producers evaluate the options, the District has made the full presentation available on its website at republicanriver.com. An interactive dashboard is also online, allowing producers to input their own information and compare the potential impacts of each fee structure.
The RRWCD is committed to keeping the public informed and involved as it works to ensure Colorado stays in compliance with the Republican River Compact. At the end of each meeting, community members had the chance to ask questions and share concerns. Discussions focused on the possible expansion of the pipeline, whether to keep current practices in place until after 2029, concerns from some producers about being charged for irrigation water, and the urgent need to finish retiring irrigated acres in the South Fork Focus Zone. The District understands that tough choices are ahead and is dedicated to working through them openly and with the community’s input.
The RRWCD will hold a special Board meeting in the near future to discuss and determine which of the three options best aligns with the Board’s intent. The selected option will be advanced as the proposed fee policy and considered for adoption at a public hearing during the November meeting. Public comments will be invited and entered into the official record to support the Board’s final decision.
Following the hearing, the Board will vote on whether to change the Water Use Fee either during the Action Items portion of that same meeting or at a special meeting held within 30 days of the hearing.
For more information, please contact your local RRWCD board representative, the RRWCD district office, located at 410 Main Street, in Wray, 970-332-3552 or General Manager, Deb Daniel, 970-630-3525.