Northern Water Passes Resolution for Water to Remain in Northern Colorado

On September 11, the Northern Water Board of Directors unanimously approved a resolution calling for water to remain in Northern Colorado as a linchpin of agricultural productivity and economic prosperity, and preserving the supply for future generations that will call Northeastern Colorado home. 

Northern Colorado leaders recognized as early as the 1970s that the accelerated removal of water from agriculture would have adverse impacts on both the economy and the character of the region. Since then, they have worked diligently to prevent the widespread “buy and dry” of irrigated farmland. By adopting this resolution, Northern Water joins other water providers across their region that have taken similar action and anticipates additional entities will follow suit in the coming months.

The conversation taking place in Northern Colorado reflects a broader, statewide concern and trend. One that mirrors the challenges faced here in the Lower Arkansas Valley. When rural agricultural communities lose their water, they lose more than just crops. They lose their economic engine, their cultural foundation, and, ultimately, their future. 

Northern Water, one of Colorado’s largest water conservancy districts, serves 1.1 million residents and delivers water to more than 120 ditch, reservoir and irrigation companies serving thousands of farms and more than 500,000 acres across eight northeastern counties. In a recent website editorial, Northern Water expressed encouragement over the message sent by the Arkansas Basin and the voters who shut down the Karman Line Annexation in Colorado Springs to consider more carefully how urban areas can grow thoughtfully, while considering the impacts that local land- and water-use decisions may have on agriculture, the economy and future opportunities in distant communities.

 Like the Lower Arkansas Valley, Northeastern Colorado continues to experience intense pressures associated with water leaving their region for rapidly growing urban areas along the Front Range. We appreciate the growing awareness that when farmland is dried up so cities can grow, that’s not economic progress. It’s the relocation of opportunity from one community to another.