2 CCR 402-12.2 - Scope and Purpose

A. These rules apply to the establishment and operation of a water bank for owners of stored water in the Arkansas River Basin and its tributaries.

B. The purpose of these rules is to implement a water bank that simplifies and facilitates water leasing, loans and exchanges, including interruptible supply agreements, of stored water within the Arkansas River Basin; and to reduce the costs associated with such transactions. Further, it is also the purpose of these rules to increase the availability of water-related information and assist farmers and ranchers by developing a mechanism to realize the value of their water right assets without forcing the permanent severance of those water rights from the land.

C. These rules shall not permit any expansion of use of stored water deposited into and leased, loaned, optioned or exchanged through the water bank.

D. Nothing in these rules is intended to restrict the ability of the holder of a water right to sell, lease, option or exchange that water right in any other manner that is currently permitted under Colorado law. These rules shall not be implemented in a manner that would cause material injury to the owner of or persons entitled to use water under a vested water right or a decreed conditional water right.

Notes

2 CCR 402-12.2