Grand Valley Water Users moves into restricted operations as low supply shapes irrigation season

Brandon Leuallen, The Business Times

Water users across the Grand Valley will have water to irrigate their properties, but some will face reduced flow this irrigation season as the Grand Valley Water Users Association implements system-wide restrictions tied to limited water supply.

According to Tina Bergonzini, general manager of the Grand Valley Water Users Association, the restrictions will affect both residential users connected through shared systems and agricultural producers, with limits on how much water can physically pass through each turnout or headgate rather than on scheduled watering days.

“We basically have a reduction in volume that is allowed to be pulled through a headgate,” Bergonzini said.

The Grand Valley Water Users Association system includes the Cameo Diversion Dam near Palisade, the 55-mile Government Highline Canal and roughly 150 miles of laterals and drains that deliver water from east of Palisade west toward the Mack area.  

Other irrigation systems in the valley, including the Grand Valley Irrigation Company and several local irrigation districts, operate separately with their own water rights and delivery systems.

How the restrictions work

Unlike municipal watering schedules that rotate days or times, the Grand Valley system operates on a volume-based allocation tied to water rights and infrastructure capacity.

Water delivered through canals is controlled at individual headgates, which regulate the amount of flow allowed into laterals serving neighborhoods or farm properties. Under the current restrictions, the water will continue to flow 24 hours a day and seven days a week at the reduced flow rates.

That means subdivisions, including those governed by homeowners associations, will receive a fixed volume of water and must decide internally how to distribute it.

“There might be many homes in there, but they’re sharing one turnout with a set amount of water coming through it,” Bergonzini said.

In many cases, that involves shared ponds or pump systems, requiring residents to coordinate usage or rotate access.

For agricultural users, allocations are tied to acreage. A standard benchmark under the restriction is one cubic foot per second for every 40 acres, with smaller parcels receiving a proportional share, according to Bergonzini.

No alternating-day system

Because of how the canal system is built, Bergonzini said alternating watering days is not practical.

“We can’t do alternating days,” she said. “It’s very difficult with how the system is set up.”

Instead, the association is limiting total flow, leaving individual users or groups to manage distribution within those constraints.

Ranchers preparing for uncertainty

While the Grand Valley Water Users Association has announced system-wide restrictions, the Grand Valley Irrigation Company has not implemented similar limits at this point, though local farmers and ranchers who rely on the system say they are preparing for that possibility.

“We’re all still kind of waiting to find out,” said Joe Kelligan of Kelligan Farms, who runs about 120 cow-calf pairs near Loma.

Kelligan said he has not previously operated under strict water restrictions.

“It’s going to be new for me,” he said.

Kelligan said uncertainty remains about how restrictions would be implemented if they are put in place on his system.

Ripple effects beyond irrigation

Water shortages also affect summer grazing patterns, particularly on higher elevation allotments.

Kelligan said his operation typically moves cattle to areas near Vega Reservoir and the Uncompahgre Plateau during the summer months, but dry conditions last year and limited moisture this season are raising concerns about whether natural water sources will hold.

“Uncompahgre was very dry last year,” he said. “I’m a little worried about whether or not the spring will run dry.”

If those water sources fail, the operation may be forced to change grazing plans.

“If it does, then it’s not really sustainable for us to use,” he said, noting that hauling water long distances would not be practical.

Potential herd and feed decisions

Reduced water availability can also force broader business decisions, including herd size and feed management.

“We’ll have to decide if we’re going to take more to Vega and just stay there for a shorter amount of time, or if we’re going to keep some down here,” Kelligan said.

Those decisions may come down to feed costs and water availability.

“You might decide that it makes more sense to sell some of the cows than it does to keep hay,” he said. “It just depends on what the hay price is going to do this year.”

Driven by hydrology

The restrictions are tied directly to water-supply conditions, including river flows, snowpack and reservoir levels.

Bergonzini said current hydrology indicates the system is unlikely to come out of restricted status this season.

“Based on our hydrology, we will not come out of this,” she said.

Recent precipitation has not significantly improved conditions.

“That storm was pretty paltry, honestly,” Bergonzini said of rain in the Grand Valley on April 1. “It’s definitely not going to move the gauge.”

The association continuously monitors conditions and could adjust allocations if water supply improves, but any changes would be incremental.

“There’s constant forecasting going on,” she said. “If conditions change, we would adjust, but right now everything is pointing toward staying in restriction.”

Check with your provider

Because irrigation systems in the Grand Valley operate independently, water users are encouraged to contact their specific provider to understand how restrictions may affect their property.