Jack Goble: Water Rights & the Lower Arkansas Valley

Bulletin for March 26, 2026

Featured Speaker: Jack Goble

General Manager, Lower Arkansas Valley Water Conservation District — Water Rights & the Lower Arkansas Valley

OPENING

Benny led the group in prayer. Randy led the Pledge of Allegiance.

“Make the world a better place by being more mindful of your children, thoughtful of the elderly, charitable to those less fortunate, and open to opposing views.”

— Leonard B. Keller, United States Army Medal of Honor

GUESTS

• Glenn: Colorado Springs resident of 41 years; three children, ten grandchildren, fourteen great-grandchildren.

• Ryan McWilliams: From Pueblo; runs an engineering company with a background in railroad-related work.

• Jess Smith and Maria: Moved to Rye, Colorado five years ago; previously ran a wedding business in Palmer Lake.

• Doug Bishop: Third-time guest from Nebraska; Cornhuskers fan.

• Commissioner Bill Weisong: Represents El Paso County Commission District Three.

• Jack Goble: General Manager of the Lower Arkansas Valley Water Conservation District.

CLUB BUSINESS

• Robson Arena offsite: Rick Green will provide a full tour including locker rooms. Parking on the street or in the parking structure.

• 80th Anniversary: The club’s birthday party will be combined with the board’s change of command. Spouses invited. Cheyenne Mountain Zoo under consideration.

• Pikes Peak Rodeo: No decision yet; Marty will handle contacts if the club decides to attend.

• Board meeting minutes: Kevin volunteered to take minutes. Benny will explore corporate sponsorship opportunities for the anniversary.

KEYNOTE: JACK GOBLE — WATER IN THE LOWER ARKANSAS VALLEY

About Jack

Jack’s family homesteaded in southeast Colorado in 1910 — he is the sixth generation on that land. He was recently honored with the Leaders in Agriculture recognition in Colorado. His work involves protecting water resources, supporting agriculture, and advocating for the region in water policy and water rights.

History of Water in the Region

The Lower Arkansas Valley covers five counties in southeast Colorado. Irrigation water rights were first filed in the 1860s, before Colorado became a state. Major ditches like the Rock Ford Ditch and Fort Lyon Canal were built in the 1870s–1880s using manual labor. Sugar beets, melons, and orchards (peaches, apples, cherries) became major industries in the 1890s. Reservoirs like Twin Lakes Dam were built around the turn of the century as a “savings account” for dry years.

The “Buy and Dry” Phenomenon — Crowley County

When demand for crops declined and the Sugar City sugar beet factory closed in 1967, a speculator called Cladco began buying water shares under the Colorado Canal with promises of developing Christmas tree and lettuce farms. By 1972, Cladco had enough shares to change canal bylaws — allowing water to be removed from the land. The state court upheld this. Cladco then sold those water rights to Colorado Springs, Aurora, Pueblo, and Pueblo West.

The result: nearly 50,000 acres of farmland in Crowley County dried up. The best economic replacement found has been prisons. A CSU study estimates the economic loss at over $1,400 per acre per year — approximately $173 million annually. Since 1978, roughly 120,000 irrigated acres have been lost in the region — nearly 40% of the historical total.

Water Speculation Today

A Texas-based billion-dollar speculator is now buying large amounts of water in the region, inflating prices and making accountability difficult. In one notable deal, a speculator bought a 5,000-acre farm’s water rights for $50 million and flipped them to Aurora for $81 million — in the same closing — using non-disclosure agreements to prevent the farmer and city from negotiating directly. Aurora overpaid by an estimated $30 million, and the inflated land price made it impossible for farmers to buy and cash-flow a farm at those levels.

The District’s Four Areas of Work

• Water Resource Protection: Active in Water Court to protect community interests when water rights are sold and moved. Goal: promote leasing (“selling the milk”) over permanent sales (“selling the cow”).

• Compact Compliance: Helps farmers comply with the Kansas-Colorado river compact. After six years of work, a new storage account was established in John Martin Reservoir for temporary water storage.

• Conservation Easements: A land trust holds nearly 60 conservation easements covering over 16,000 acres, permanently tying water to the land while allowing for leasing.

• Irrigation and Water Quality: Over $10 million distributed to farmers for irrigation improvements like sprinklers. The district monitors Fountain Creek, which was part of a lawsuit against Colorado Springs over stormwater discharge violations. Sediment from Fountain Creek raises the Arkansas River bed two feet every ten years, threatening downstream ditches and water treatment outlets.

Water Quality and Exchanges

Colorado Springs buys water rights downstream but takes equivalent amounts of cleaner water from upstream sources (Pueblo Reservoir, Twin Lakes) via a water “exchange.” This reduces the clean water available to dilute naturally degrading downstream flows, and used water returned to Fountain Creek compounds the problem for downstream farmers.

Annexation and Water Supply

Colorado Springs Utilities projects needing an additional 34,000 acre-feet (over 11 billion gallons) per year just to serve its current city limits — not including new annexations.

• Amara Annexation: Initially approved 5-4 by city council. After testimony from farmers and a PhD scientist about the city’s existing water deficit, one council member changed their vote and the annexation failed.

• Karman Line Annexation: Approved 7-2. A citizen petition forced a reconsideration; council put it to a public vote. Voters rejected it with an 82% majority.

The Current Water Situation

Water rights in Colorado are private property based on “first in time, first in right.” Owning shares does not guarantee water. The current situation in the Arkansas River Basin is at 23% of normal — described as the worst on record. Models from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation cannot process scenarios this extreme. Colorado Springs is reported to have about three years of water in storage, which is considered solid planning. Two consecutive bad hydrological years would be a serious problem.

Colorado River Basin

Colorado Springs gets approximately 70% of its water from the Colorado River Basin. The situation there is described as “scary” — a wildcard for future supply. Any major interstate lawsuit could take two to three decades to resolve.

Water Reuse

Colorado Springs has been a leader in water reuse. The state health department relaxed regulations 5–10 years ago, enabling a more advanced process: wastewater is treated again and cycled back into the system. Israel is considered roughly 50 years ahead of the U.S. in this field.

NEXT ARRANGEMENTS

• Investigate Cheyenne Mountain Zoo as the venue for the 80th anniversary.

• Benny will explore corporate sponsorship options for the event.

• Marty will coordinate Pikes Peak Rodeo contacts if the club decides to attend.

CONCLUSION

As Benjamin Franklin wrote: “When the well is dry, we’ll know the worth of water.” Jack gave us the tools to recognize that value — and start solving for it before the well runs dry.

The Pikes Peak Club · pikespeakclub.com