South Platte River WATER RIGHTS

South Platte River water rights should be reexamined

by Roni Bell                       November 2025

In semi-arid desert land near the Colorado/Nebraska border, there’s been a dramatic increase in crops under pivot. Question: “Where are these junior water rights getting the water?” Historic flow charts show that near Kersey the South Platte generally loses its stream by August. Today’s flow charts show a trickle at Henderson then a sudden ballooning, daily and year-round, at Kersey.

Whoever implemented Judge Roger Klein’s 2006 Water Augmentation System decision defied his instructions “No harm to Senior.” Instead, they shut down senior water rights owners’ wells, thereon denying them use of their water. This has resulted in overhydrating the upper end of the South Platte River. Overhydration has raised the water table from its historic approximate 20 feet below surface to surfacing. This has destroyed all kinds of property, including basements, wastewater management treatment plants, crops and more. One example: Potato grower Harry Strohauer (senior water rights) was not allowed to use his water. So, he couldn’t water his vines. Then the increasingly high water rotted his tubers.

The upper end of the South Platte now sits on a mammoth underground reservoir that ensures a perennial in-stream flow that moves enough water to cross the Nebraska/Colorado border.

Nebraska claims “Colorado isn’t delivering water per: 1923 compact.” This is prompting Nebraska’s push to build the Perkins County Canal in Colorado.

Why not terminate Gov. Bill Owens’ 2006 South Platte River Implementation Program, (PRRIP) and redirect that water and dollar commitment to the 1923 compact?

The five-page PRRIP between Wyoming, Colorado and Nebraska (signed by governors Heineman, Friedenthal and Owens, and Secretary of Interior Kempthorne) has a withdrawal clause. Why not exercise that right? The water doesn’t necessarily need to be “redirected” but — it would free up the acre feet and financial commitments.

A) What is the exact acre feet and dollar commitment PRRIP provides each year?

B) Who’s benefiting from the senior water the South Platte River carriage vessel carries from the upper end to the lower end in this new perennial instream?

C) Who makes up PRRIP board of directors? How do they obtain that position and where do they get their funding? Transparency please.

D) New well popping and compliance with the unattainable augmentation is costly. After only a few years of being shut down, the senior wells that were underhandedly shut down were too rusted out to use. Plus, they were reluctant to keep pumping their wells because rumor had it that someone tried and was fined $50,000. Where are the new — junior water rights owners getting the water and money to pop new wells?

E) Have senior water rights owners ever been “justly compensated” for these obvious “takings?”

F) Where is South Platte river water being diverted? Pivots? Rueter-Hess Reservoir?

G) When water rights share owners sell their Consumptive Use (CU) they have the right to use the margin between CU and (AQ) Allotment Quantity. Most sellers don’t know they can do this by crossing out the unacceptable “dry up covenant” clause in the Consumptive Use agreements.

H) Are any water districts threatening water rights share owners by telling them “Either give us your water shares or we’ll just change the law and get them.”

I) Is any entity (private, Metropolitan Utilities District or government) threatening property owners with estoppel/condemnation/adverse possession or eminent domain should water rights owners refuse to give up their property?

J) Shouldn’t PRRIP, Department of Natural Resources and maybe a few MUDs and Water Districts be audited?

Engaging in gross federal overreach (outside federal’s enumerated powers) federal agents have significantly decapitalized private parties.

The South Platte River Water is only one example out of thousands where federal overreach has cost America’s food and fuel providers to the point of shutting them down.

Federal running outside of its enumerated powers, resulting in the shutdown of our resource providers, must be ended.

Roni Bell is a farmer, rancher, agricultural and energy production advocate, professional writer, photographer, wife and mother ...Published in the Greeley Tribune