Colorado Porch

Topic

Water and land

Wells and water rights, septic and rural land, mineral rights, and what it really means to own ground in a place where water is its own kind of property.

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Local notes

More water and land notes

329 sourced notes in this topic

Water and land

A big irrigation well is not the same as the home's water in Phillips County

Farm and ranch parcels in Phillips County may carry a large irrigation well that is permitted and limited separately from the household water supply.

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Water and land

A Logan County well permit is not a promise of unlimited water

A well on a rural Logan County parcel comes with a state permit that sets what the well may be used for, and those conditions matter before you buy.

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Water and land

A well in rural Fremont County is not the same as unlimited water

A domestic well in unincorporated Fremont County comes with a state permit that sets what the well may be used for, so 'has a well' does not mean 'has all the water you want.'

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Water and land

A well in Weld County is not the same as unlimited water

Well permits in the South Platte basin come with conditions, and bigger wells can fall under state measurement rules.

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Water and land

A well permit in Otero County is not the same as river water

A domestic well permit on an Otero County acreage usually allows limited household use and is governed separately from Arkansas River irrigation water.

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Water and land

Along the Conejos River, irrigation water is its own question

Many Conejos County properties carry ditch or canal irrigation water from the Conejos River that is separate from the household water that comes out of the tap.

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Water and land

Along the South Platte in Adams County, irrigation water is its own question

Many older parcels in farming Adams County carry canal or ditch irrigation water that is separate from the household water that comes out of the tap.

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Water and land

An El Paso County floodplain can change a simple project

In an El Paso County flood hazard area, grading, paving, storage, and a shed all count as development and can trip floodplain rules.

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Water and land

Around Carbondale and Glenwood, river water is not the same as your tap water

Garfield County properties along the Colorado and Roaring Fork rivers may carry ditch or irrigation water that is separate from the household water that serves the home.

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Water and land

Around Fort Collins, the big reservoirs hold project water from the other side of the mountains

Horsetooth Reservoir and Carter Lake store water brought across the Continental Divide by the Colorado-Big Thompson Project, and that supply is managed separately from any well or city tap.

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Water and land

Around Trinidad, the Purgatoire River sits inside the Arkansas water system

Surface water in Las Animas County is part of the Arkansas River Basin and is administered by the state's Water Division 2, so a property's water question is rarely as simple as 'there's a river nearby.'

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Water and land

Boats on Dillon Reservoir get inspected for invasive species before launching

Dillon Reservoir requires aquatic nuisance species inspection for trailered boats, which helps keep zebra and quagga mussels out of Summit County's water.

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Water and land

Center-pivot circles here are watered from the Ogallala, and that supply is finite

The green irrigation circles across Kit Carson County draw from the High Plains (Ogallala) aquifer, a groundwater supply that recharges slowly.

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Water and land

Denver Water's lead service line question starts by address

Denver Water's address lookup tells you one property's lead service line risk, a firmer answer than guessing from the age of the block.

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Water and land

Dinosaur National Monument's Colorado side is canyons, not bones

Dinosaur National Monument straddles Colorado and Utah, but the famous fossil wall is on the Utah side — the Colorado side near the town of Dinosaur is about deep river canyons and overlooks.

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Water and land

Huerfano and Cucharas water is part of the Arkansas Basin

The Huerfano and Cucharas rivers feed the Arkansas Basin, and water here is managed under Colorado's priority system in Water Division 2, so land and water rights are separate questions.

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Water and land

In Dolores County, dryland and irrigated ground are not the same buy

Much of the farmland around Dove Creek is dryland, raised on rain and snow alone, while irrigated ground depends on a separate water supply that may or may not come with the parcel.

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Water and land

In the Grand Valley, irrigation water is its own question

Many Grand Valley properties carry canal or ditch irrigation water that is separate from the household water that comes out of the tap.

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Water and land

In Weld County, subdividing land usually starts with public water

In Weld County, subdividing land requires public water; a private well does not count toward that requirement no matter how good it is.

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Water and land

Lathrop State Park near Walsenburg has two very different lakes

Lathrop State Park west of Walsenburg holds two lakes, Martin and Horseshoe, that follow different rules for boating and angling.

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Water and land

McPhee Reservoir is the county's big boating and fishing lake

North of Cortez, McPhee Reservoir offers boat ramps and fishing, and any trailered or motorized boat must pass an aquatic-nuisance-species inspection before it launches.

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Water and land

Mineral County sits in the headwaters of an interstate river

Mineral County lies in the upper Rio Grande basin, where water is administered under an interstate compact, so water rights here carry obligations far downstream.

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Water and land

Navajo State Park is Archuleta County's big-water boating spot

Navajo State Park near Arboles is the county's large reservoir for boating and fishing, and like other Colorado waters it requires a park pass and a boat inspection for aquatic nuisance species.

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Water and land

On rural Montrose County land, a well permit is not the same as unlimited water

Domestic wells on rural parcels in Montrose County come with permit conditions, and having a well does not mean a property has unlimited water.

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