DENVER—Gov. Bill Ritter on Friday appointed a South Platte River Basin Task Force to examine water issues and recommend possible solutions for water users in the northeast Colorado basin.
Ritter called for the task force after he visited Wiggins earlier this year to hear firsthand about the crisis along the river.
“The task force is to consider whether there are any changes to current water law or policy that will provide relief to junior water users without injuring senior water right holders,” Ritter said in a statement.
A final report is due to Ritter, legislative leaders and the chair of the Legislatures Interim Committee on Water Resources by Sept. 30.
Members include John Stulp, Colorado Commissioner of Agriculture, and Harris Sherman, executive director of the Department of Natural Resources, to serve as co-chairs.
Also included are several farmers who have had their wells shut down as a result of a lingering drought and water disputes.
Morgan County officials told Ritter the county faces “economic catastrophe” unless they get emergency help for farmers whose water wells were shut down by the state in a water rights dispute.
They asked for an emergency executive order for a moratorium on shutdowns for two years, but Ritter said he did not know if he could do that.
