Lower Arkansas Valley Water Quality
Now Accepting Grant Applications for the 2024 319 Grant Funds!
The Lower Arkansas Valley Water Conservancy District (Lower Ark) has been paying attention to rule making discussions since the beginning of the district, and since the beginning of the district there have been concerns about water quality in the Arkansas River. Lower Ark understood these challenges and engaged folks who have been involved with improving water quality in the state. One of the products that came from these discussions is that producers could implement Best Management Practices (BMPs) on their farm that have been shown to have a positive effect on water quality following implementation.
Lower Ark set out to find funding for implementation of these BMPs, and through grants from Colorado Water Conservation Board, Colorado Department of Health and Environment, Environmental Protection Agency, and others, Lower Ark has worked successfully with producers in the valley to implement numerous BMPs with these grant funds. Over 26 BMP projects ranging from converting flood irrigation to center pivot irrigation and/or drip irrigation, converting dirt ditches to lining or piping, to implementing cover crops and riparian buffer strips have been completed. These BMPs have shown locally positive impacts on the water quality, and Lower Ark continues to seek grant funds to help fund additional projects in the valley. Lower Ark has numerous additional projects in the works currently, and plans are to continue seeking grant funds to assist producers in improving their operation while at the same time making Water Quality improvements for the Lower Arkansas Valley and our downstream partners.