Chapter 2 - § 2.8 • CONCLUSION

• Jurisdiction: Colorado

§ 2.8 • CONCLUSION

Significant refinements to Colorado water law, through both legislative modifications of the 1969 Act and judicial interpretations of the same, continue to occur in the areas of changes of use of a water right, augmentation plans, appropriative rights of exchange, ground water regulation, minimum streamflows, and recreational uses, many of which topics are discussed in greater detail in other portions of this Benchbook. Moreover, subsequent federal statutes, including the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969,⁹⁶ the Clean Water Act of 1972,⁹⁷ the Endangered Species Act of 1973,⁹⁸ and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976,⁹⁹ continue to have an impact on the exercise of Colorado water rights. Nonetheless, from its initial roots dating back to the local customs and uses of Native Americans, Spanish settlers, miners, and homesteaders, Colorado's water law system has continued to evolve and grow into what it is today: a system that reliably administers a vital resource, protects existing uses, maximizes the beneficial use of water, and maintains the flexibility to adapt to new and changing water demands.

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Notes:

^[96] National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, Pub. L. No. 91-190; 42 U.S.C. §§ 4321 through 4347.

^[97] Clean Water Act of 1972, Pub. L. No. 92-500.

^[98] Endangered Species Act of...