How Much Water Will Colorado Need?

This morning, I reported on the Statewide Water Supply Initiative, the latest in a decade-long effort to figure out how much water Colorado will need over the next several decades -- and whether the state's on the right path to supply users with all that water.

Check out the Executive Summary for yourself here.

Here's a shorter summary of the findings for municipal and industrial use -- basically the water we use everyday at home. The need is expected to skyrocket. I bolded a few facts of particular interest to the West Slope.

The following are the major conclusions from
Colorado's 2050 M&I water use projections:

-Colorado's population is expected to nearly
double to between 8.6 and 10 million people
by 2050.

-The Front Range will continue to be the most
populous place in Colorado with over
80 percent of the state's population residing
in the Arkansas, Metro, and South Platte
Basins. The Front Range is expected to grow
by approximately 70 percent.

-The West Slope will grow at the fastest rate
of any area in Colorado between now and
2050. Population on the West Slope is
expected to more than double in the next
40 years with some growth rates as high as
240 percent.

-Statewide M&I water usage rates have
decreased by 18 percent. This decrease is due
to a combination of drought response,
conservation savings, and additional data
collection efforts. Additional data collected
during this effort has improved the original
SWSI water usage information.

-Because population growth is the driving
factor in water use across the state, water use
is also expected to nearly double by 2050.

-Passive conservation will save approximately
150,000 AFY by 2050 or an 8 percent savings
relative to baseline 2050 M&I water demands.

-The basins with the largest SSI water usage in
2050 are projected to be the Yampa‐White,
Arkansas, Metro, and South Platte Basins.

-Colorado will need approximately
600,000 AFY to 1 million AFY of additional
M&I and SSI water by 2050. These estimates
incorporate new water demands from
population growth, energy, and other SSI
needs (including oil shale), and replacement
of nontributary groundwater.

-An oil shale industry producing
1,550,000 barrels of oil/day could use between
0 to 120,000 AFY depending upon what
technologies and other factors are
implemented. Due to ramp up rates, by 2050
projected water use ranges from 0 to
44,000 AFY for an industry providing
550,000 barrels of oil/day p16