since 2002. We have been given the authority to borrow up to $90 million, and those earlier bonds are a year or two away from being paid off. Our constituents approved another bond in 2012 for $60 million to acquire senior water rights from willing sellers, develop slurry-lined gravel pit storage, participate in the Chatfield Reservoir Reallocation Project, and develop additional alluvial groundwater recharge projects. When the snow melts off the Rockies this time of the year, the river is flush and there is no demand. When that happens, the CCWCD is able to divert water for storage and recharge. In the storage example, that water is reintroduced to the South Platte River when there are senior rights calling for water, and in the recharge example, the water diverted in the spring arrives as a subsurface return flow to the river. If there is a call, a credit from the recharge is accounted against the member well pumping. Back in the 1980s, the CCWCD started using bentonite slurry walls to line mined gravel pit reservoirs to convert them to a sealed vessel for water storage. In 1988, we got a water right for a pit on the Cache La Poudre River, which is a tributary on the South Platte. We use those lined gravel pits for the augmentation plans, and we have about 15,000 acrefeet of slurry-lined storage today. We are negotiating and building some more. We are hoping to have another 5,000 acre-feet lined up pretty soon. We also have $28 million dedicated to Chatfield Reservoir, a flood control reservoir built in the early 1970s by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Built after the 1965 flood, which was devastating to the Denver metro area and eastern Colorado, it is a mainstem dam on the South Platte. The Water Resources Development Act of 2007 reallocated 20,600 acre-feet for storage. Today, the CCWCD owns roughly 20 percent of the reallocation. Of the eight participating districts, we are the only agricultural district. Design of mitigation projects are underway, and we anticipate being able to store water in 2019. There is no requirement to raise the dam or modify the outlet. All the work is to mitigate 500-plus acres of lost habitat and to modify and replace recreational facilities at Chatfield State Park. It is the highest grossing park in the state and has just under 2 million visits per year. We also lease reusable effluent from wastewater treatment plants from the Denver metro area. We use that water supply as a credit against well depletions. Our portfolio is very diverse.
The Colorado constitution charges water users to make the most beneficial use of water. During these wetter years, a lot of water has left our state and flowed into Nebraska over and above compact requirements. There will be a lot of people wringing their hands when the dry years come again. Nebraska manages water in the alluvial aquifer differently than we do. Colorado keeps its alluvial aquifer brim full. Return flows feed the river and take care of the senior rights holders. Our groundwater users would like to see a little different approach so that we use storage of the aquifer in dry years instead of leaving those wells turned off. It has been an uphill battle. We have residents that are upset because groundwater levels between Greeley and Denver are higher than they have ever been recorded in history. It is creating agricultural property damage and flooding out basements, primarily in the small town of Gilcrest, south of Greeley. As part of the process for the development of the state water plan, the state formed roundtables for the various river basins in the state. The South Platte basin roundtable formed a groundwater technical committee to see what kind of pilot projects could resolve high groundwater issues and operate within the current law. We developed a pilot project near the town of Gilcrest to pump more groundwater and reduce surface water to the farms. We’ll try that out this irrigation season. Colorado State University will do some monitoring and follow the cones of depression from the well pumping, and we will gather some data.
John Crotty: What is the CCWCD’s most pressing challenge?
Randy Ray: Open communication. You have to be able to put yourself in the other person’s shoes. Don’t take for granted what you think the other person’s needs are. If you know what they need, a lot of times you can come up with some resolution. Generally speaking, I learned that from my predecessor, Tom Cech. In the past, there were deep disagreements between the surface water users and groundwater pumpers. It could get ugly. But those relationships, generally speaking, have mended, and they are seeing eye to eye.
Randy Ray: Growth in the state of Colorado is one of the most pressing challenges. The state’s population is anticipated to double by 2050. Roughly 80 percent of that will be in the South Platte basin. There will be more and more demand for water, and we will do more and more development of supplies to compete for the limited water supply as the growth continues.
John Crotty: Where would you like to see Colorado’s groundwater management in the next 10 years? Randy Ray: I would like to see a shift toward conjunctive management of alluvial groundwater and surface water rights. Our vegetable supply producers need a constant and reliable supply of water; if they can’t guarantee a supply of a certain tonnage to a grocer, they lose their contract. Irrigation supply coming from groundwater will be more and more important. Food safety laws are requiring bacterial testing, so converting those irrigators to groundwater will be important. John Crotty: Finally, what advice do you have for other managers seeking to facilitate good relationships between groundwater and surface water users?