Water and land - Mountains
A pond on a Custer County parcel needs a water right behind it
In the Arkansas River basin, even a small pond can need its own water right, and a pond that has been there for years is not automatically in the clear.
Published June 10, 2026 - Last verified June 12, 2026
A pond can look like a simple feature on a property in the Wet Mountain Valley. Under Colorado water law, it is rarely simple.
Custer County sits in the Arkansas River basin, where the water is spoken for. The state runs a priority system: older water rights get served first, and a new use that catches or holds water can take from someone downstream who has an older right. That is why a pond, even a small one, often needs its own water right or a plan to replace the water it uses. A pond that just fills with runoff is not automatically legal.
A pond that has sat on a property for years is not proof that it is in the clear, either. What matters is the paperwork behind it: what the pond is allowed to do, whether it has a decreed water right, and whether it depends on an augmentation plan that transfers with the land.
Why a buyer or landowner should care: a pond can be an asset or a liability, depending on those answers. Before you count on a pond, check its standing with the Colorado Division of Water Resources, which administers water rights in the Arkansas basin.