Advocates of the pipeline and reservoir say it represents a new way to divide dwindling water supplies between cities and rural ag-dependent economies without drying up farmland, a practice known as “buy and dry.”
A $1.1 billion reservoir and pipeline project designed to provide water to Parker, Castle Rock, and a key farm region in northeastern Colorado has cleared a major hurdle in water court.
Court Approval Clears the Way for a 125-Mile Pipeline
The Platte Valley Water Partnership, formally launched in 2021, brings together the Lower South Platte Water Conservancy District in Sterling alongside the growing Front Range municipalities of Parker and Castle Rock. Water projects in Colorado must undergo rigorous review by special water courts. This legal process gives other water right holders an opportunity to examine the deal and protect their own allocations.
The court’s approval earlier this month opens the door for permitting and construction work to begin, according to Ron Redd, general manager of the Parker Water and Sanitation District. The partnership plans to build a 125-mile pipeline, a new plains reservoir, and diversion structures serving farms and small towns along the Lower South Platte River down to the southern Denver metro area.
Financing for the $1.1 billion infrastructure effort will be shared among the participating water users. Parker is shouldering 52% of the total tab, while the Lower South Platte district takes on 27% and Castle Rock funds 20%, Redd noted.
“It’s not buy and dry. It’s a different method,” said Gene Manuello, a long-time rancher and feed lot operator who also sits on the board of the Lower South Platte Water Conservancy District. “The need for water up here isn’t nearly as big as the need to protect against buy and dry.”
Colorado has lost more than 30% of its irrigated agricultural lands over the past 30 years, figures from the National Agricultural Statistics Service show. Drought and aggressive purchases by fast-growing Front Range cities have driven this decline. Municipalities frequently buy up farms on the Eastern Plains, transferring the water north to urban centers. The Lower Arkansas River Valley has faced severe impacts from such transfers, raising ongoing anxieties among rural communities.
How the Partnership Aims to Shield Farms
The Platte Valley Partnership is designed to keep water available to growers rather than pulling it out of agricultural production. Redd described the arrangement as a new way of doing business.
“We didn’t buy anything and dry it up, and we won’t allow anyone to dry up land and put the water in our pipeline,” Redd said.
With water court approval secured, the partnership holds a new 2019 water right. This junior right means the system will rarely divert during typical dry years, but it can capture high flows during major rainstorms and floods, such as those in 2013 and 2023. The right is projected to yield nearly 22,000 acre-feet of water for farm communities, alongside an equal volume for urban users. One acre-foot equals roughly 326,000 gallons, an amount capable of supplying two to three households annually.
Permitting and construction on the first phase—a diversion structure and pipeline delivering water to farmers—will take the next five to seven years. Delivering water to the municipal partners will take longer, with completion slated for 2040 depending on regulatory and construction timelines.
Keeping water affordable for agricultural users remains a central challenge, as farmers typically pay lower rates than cities. Joe Frank, manager of the Lower South Platte Water Conservancy District, said work is underway to structure project costs fairly.
“We don’t know what it looks like yet,” Frank said. “But we’re looking at sharing costs based on the economic benefits of the project. Our users might get 50% of the water, but they won’t pay 50% of the costs. We’re looking at grant funding to help with our side of this. And we might go to a vote of the people to secure bonding authority. It has to be affordable.”
Meanwhile, the project moves forward while Colorado and Nebraska contest a U.S. Supreme Court case regarding whether Colorado is overusing its share of the South Platte River, a charge Colorado denies. Nebraska has signaled an intent to build the Perkins Canal in northeastern Colorado to capture water it claims under the 1923 South Platte River Compact. Platte Valley Partners maintain their project complies fully with that compact and state water law.
“This is not Nebraska’s water,” Redd said.
