The Colorado River Basin and the South Platte River Basins are the only significant developable water supplies available to meet future diversion demands.
The Arkansas River, the Rio Grande, Costilla Creek, the La Plata River, the Republican River, the North Platte and Laramie Rivers are currently being depleted at or very near the limits established by interstate compacts or U.S. Supreme Court decrees.
The Colorado River Basin and the South Platte River Basins are the only significant developable water supplies available to meet future diversion demands.
The development of future storage is very expensive, permit extensive, and requires 20 to 30 years from planning to construction.
Colorado's population is expected to increase by over 1 million people in the next 25 years.
Estimated Increases in Colorado's Population
REGION/YEAR 1991 EST.1995 2000 2010 2015 2020 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FRONT RANGE 2,700,000 3,010,100 3,191,800 3,502,900 3,667,500 3,830,000 EASTERN PLAINS 133,200 144,900 150,100 159,400 163,700 167,500 SAN LUIS VALLEY 40,300 43,100 44,800 47,500 48,600 49,500 EASTERN MOUNTAINS 103,200 111,800 118,000 129,400 134,900 140,200 WESTERN SLOPE 334,300 374,900 406,900 467,300 498,300 529,600 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- COLORADO TOTAL 3,311,000 3,684,800 3,911,600 4,306,500 4,513,000 4,716,800
Division of Water Resources and Colorado Water Conservation Board. Senate Joint Resolution 94-32 Concerning the Management, Conservation, and Preservation of the Water Resources of the State of Colorado. Colorado Department of Natural Resources, 1995.
