Editor:
Since 1876, Colorados Constitution has guaranteed the right to divert, use and decree water through the prior appropriation system. Since then, water rights have been recognized as property rights protected by the Colorado and U.S. constitutions. The Montezuma Valley Irrigation Company (MVIC) holds some of the most senior pre-Colorado River Compact rights in the State of Colorado, but those rights could be at risk thanks to a proposed end-run around the state legislature.
Two proposed ballot initiatives would threaten private property rights and the very nature of Colorado water rights. With enough money, special interests can put measures directly on the ballot without the checks and balances of our legislative process. Bans on trapping in Colorado and commercial livestock operations in Arizona are good examples of what can happen. Can we allow a cardinal law such as prior appropriation to be dismantled based on emotions and misinformation? Initiative #3 and Initiative #45 the so-called Public Trust Initiatives would gut Colorados water laws and open private lands to public fishing and boating.
MVIC has decreed direct-flow water rights and water-storage rights associated with the Dolores River and the Dolores Project. These rights, and many others in the basin, are critical to our agriculture and our economy. To paraphrase Will Rogers, and the residents of Montezuma County, whiskey is for drinking and water is for fighting! MVICs board of directors has taken a stand against these ballot initiatives. Rep. J. Paul Brown and Sen.Ellen Roberts are also opposed. Please help protect our water and oppose these water grabs.
Randy Carver for the
Board of Directors
Montezuma Valley Irrigation Company
Cortez
Via e-mail