In the final days of President Joe Biden’s presidency, the Colorado River District locked down the $40 million award from the Bureau of Reclamation it needed to purchase the Shoshone Water Rights from Xcel Energy.

The river district struck a deal with Xcel in December 2023, agreeing to a $98.5 million price tag to acquire the water rights tied to the hydroelectric power plant in Glenwood Canyon. Acquiring the rights — which are among the Colorado River’s oldest and largest non-consumptive rights — will ensure that the river’s historic in-stream flows continue in perpetuity, regardless of the plant’s future. 

After raising $56.9 million from the state legislature, its board and the various Western Slope municipalities and utilities it serves, in November the Colorado River District submitted for $40 million in federal dollars from the Inflation Reduction Act.

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Securing the federal funding brings it within reach of the purchase price, something numerous elected officials from the Western Slope celebrated on Friday. 

“Permanent protection of the Shoshone water rights is a multi-generational investment in our farms and ranches, and our thriving rural economies,” Sen. Marc Catlin (R-Montrose) stated in a news release. “Today’s announcement builds upon decades of work by our predecessors to protect the river as we have known it for more than a century.”

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Gov. Jared Polis stated that the federal support “is a huge step towards ensuring that the river will continue flowing to Western Colorado farmers, ranchers, communities and businesses.”

The announcement came just days before President-elect Donald Trump takes office, bringing with him uncertainty surrounding future climate-related funding.

The senior water right tied to the Shoshone Power Plant in Glenwood Canyon dates back to 1905 and allows the power plant to divert 1,250 cubic feet per second of water. A secondary, junior right was established in 1929 for 158 cubic feet per second of water. 

For many years, the Colorado River District has spearheaded the effort — alongside the state of Colorado and a coalition of West Slope governments and water users — to acquire the rights. While the agreement will allow Xcel to continue operating the power plant as long as it wants, the district has said that its purchase will add a layer of protection should the plant have permanent or temporary closures. 

This need has been exacerbated in recent years due to the risks and uncertainties around the plant’s age, location and susceptibility to natural hazards including wildfires and mudslides. 

Today, all water used by the plant to generate electricity flows back into the Colorado River, which leaves a slight question mark about the water should the plant ever shutter.

Under the current agreements, this water flow continues thanks to an agreement called the Shoshone Outage Protocol. However, the river district expressed that it only offers limited protection to the senior right and none to the junior right in its federal grant application.  

Proponents of the acquisition say that maintaining in-stream flow — regardless of what happens with the plant — will protect the various agriculture, recreation and ecosystem needs along the 250 miles of the Colorado River from Glenwood Canyon to the state border. 

There have been some concerns raised by Front Range end users of the Colorado River water rights, including Northern Water, about the district’s acquisition. Northern Water’s top concern is ensuring that the “actual historic flows” are protected, according to a September letter from the provider to Hickenlooper.  

While the district submitted its flow assessment with the application for the Inflation Reduction Act funding, historic use will be determined by the Colorado Water Court — the final stop for the Colorado River District in acquiring these rights. It is working to complete all necessary steps by Dec. 31, 2027.

The Inflation Reduction Act allocated $4 billion toward drought mitigation efforts. The allocation for Shoshone was part of the $388.3 million awarded to Colorado River Projects by the Bureau of Reclamation this week. This included nearly $95 million for 15 other Western Slope water projects including upgrades in the Orchard Mesa Irrigation District for the 15-mile reach, aquatic habitat improvements in the headwaters, drought resiliency projects and more. 

With the award, all the projects will now move on to the next phase of executing a funding agreement and completing necessary reviews.