Cutting Your Nose Off to Spite Your Face? Shooting the Messenger? Yes, You Will Still Need Water to Do All of That!

     I attended the Water Warriors meeting at the Elizabeth Library regarding the Independence Application for Expanded Water Uses; the Letter of Opposition with the Water Court; Citizens' Call for a Public Hearing; and Brief Question and Answer.  My wife and I arrived at 6:30 P.M. and the first of four sessions had already begun.  I had been asked to be a presenter and due to the crowd size we literally could not get in without squeezing in through the back door.  In line, inside the library and overflowing into the entry, were a couple of hundred people from both Elbert and Douglas County, waiting to get into a venue that according to library officials will not  accommodate  more than 35 people at a time. Believe me when I tell you that everything was done to try and find a larger venue on such short notice, but due to the required filing deadline required by the State Water Court about this pressing issue, the organizers had no choice but to forge ahead.  To say that this was frustrating to all in attendance would be a vast understatement. In order to allow more people to have a seat, my wife and I remained outside the building and talked to those people coming about the  proceedings.  We received a very unique and wide ranging perspective:
 
     • “We can't stand around here waiting all evening.”
     • “It's just another one of these things that the Duvalls don't want.”
     • “Why was Dan Rosales there and so vocal against people wishing to learn how to  file a  
        legitimate complaint?”
     • “Why do I have to have adjudicated water rights to file a complaint?”
    • “If the agreement with the county says in ‘iron clad’ statements water will not be sold off the
       site, why is that not good enough?”

     I wanted to hear what people were saying.  From my perspective,  Most of it was pretty disheartening.  I will start with the issue most dear to my heart.  It is about water, without which, none of us can live here, or anywhere, for that matter. It is unfortunate that water has become a divisive tool of politicians and developers. Like adequate access to health care,  I believe that access to clean water is a basic human right.  However,  when water becomes scarce, its value skyrockets.  If you don't have enough water you will be the one paying the price. If you have enough money, you likely have adjudicated your water rights.  If you have lots of money, you might just purchase water rights from someone and when the price of water takes off, then you are in a position to make tons of money...because nobody can do without water.

     It is like Big Pharma: to stay alive people will pay whatever they charge.  Even when it is not illegal, when and if you jack up the prices on necessary commodities to make ungodly profits, it is wrong.  If you have enough money to buy water for your insanely expensive landscaping and golf courses to satisfy your need to prance around in brightly colored pants, good for you.  That said, the hard working family struggling to make ends meet to pay the mortgage on their modest Elbert County home shouldn't have to move away because their well failed.  When will the State of Colorado admit it has been over-allocating water in the Upper and Lower Dawson aquifers and make amends? Why will our Elbert County government not admit it has not exercised the foresight to plan for the water needs of its citizen in the future? Why is it that our commissioners show more respect and consideration for developers and the prospective future residents of Elbert County than for the existing residents?

     After working over a dozen years on water issues here in Elbert County, my wife and I have helped hundreds of people get water adjudication.  To date, we have not made a single penny for our efforts nor has it gotten a single candidate that was interested in protecting the water beneath our feet elected to local office.  Try to imagine how ugly it is to hear from the public that trying to help people preserve their water is just some political stunt dreamed up by Jim and Jill Duvall.  The most political thing Jill Duvall  said was to stop voting for candidates based on the letter behind their name.  She did not say vote for Democrats. We all know that is not a remote possibility in this county.

     Chill people...the votes are in, and the Republicans swept every one of the 2020 county elections.  Congratulations.  But if upcoming candidates have the same mind set about water that the current crew does, you are going to be paying the price that the scarcity of water brings.  I do not care if you vote for Republicans.  But here is a news flash: last night the room was filled with Republicans  concerned about water!  Would one of you please step up and run for office?
 
     Dan Rosales was Grant Thayer's campaign manager and was the former head of the Elbert County Planning Commission.  Grant Thayer is all in on development based on his voting record. In my opinion, Dan Rosales was there last night to defend the Planning Commission and his friend, Grant.  When he says that the language is "iron clad" and will require the applicant to go back for another hearing before they can move water off site, he is correct.  But unless you have been asleep for most of this developing situation with water and Independence you have to know that getting that approval from this board will be a given.  What event in the empirical record at the county would lead you to believe that this iron clad agreement is anything more than a formality before they give Craft what he wants?  You do not have to look very far.  It is not there.

     You need to adjudicate water rights in Colorado in order to file a complaint.  The water court makes decisions based on the rights that you have applied for and received.  If your rights are older than mine, you have seniority in the eyes of the court.  The court needs to know for what purpose you are going to use your water.  If you did not sign on for a water park then you will not be able to say that is your desired purpose.  Yes,  you can go through the process of amending your rights, but the job of the court is to protect those who have adjudicated rights from being damaged by others.  That is why we have told people for years to file for their water rights.
 
     And finally to those who could not stay last night for a seat in the room, it is certainly understandable; kids at home, early meeting in the morning, family has the influenza... I get it. But know that the people who are doing this, the Water Warriors,  will attempt to get adequate information up on line in a timely manner.  These organizers felt terrible that the situation was not perfect.  But they did pull it off.  They were inconvenienced every bit as much as you were.  They did the absolute best that they could in the narrow window of time provided and I am grateful to see people still pull together to help each other out, even when you find yourself in an uncomfortable mix of people and their politics.

*** This post is best appreciated if you are thirsty or standing in the shower ***