For those of us who have either lived in the mountains or are realtors, we have dealt with water issues on a regular basis. As REALTORS, we know that water is gold in Colorado and that someone, and you may never know whom, has purchased the water rights for almost every drop in the State. Which means, of course, you cannot divert nor store water that does not belong to you.
A simple fact is, that you cannot store water that runs off your roof, runs onto your property or divert from a creek or stream. We cannot interfere with the water running back to the river or soaking back into the acquifer where it belongs. You can't use barrels to store water from the run-off from your roof, for example.
In a recent Denver Post article, a story follows Sen. Chris Romer's efforts to conserve water and keep his garden lush and green. What he discovered...his efforts were illegal. Romer, undeterred and with support from other legislators, has two bills making their way through the legislature that would make a few steps toward allowing some homeowners to have rainwater-capture systems.
The Supreme Court hasn't been very receptive, so they have their work cut out for them. This is one issue that we will want to watch carefully.
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