Southern High Plains Study
Groundwater Study Update
The purpose of the Southern High Plains (SHP) Groundwater Study Update is to provide: 1) revised scenario analyses for groundwater use within the Southern High Plains Designated Basin and 2) community facilitation to identify and establish groundwater resource goals for local residents of the Basin. Wilson Water Group (WWG) along with their sub-consultant, HRS Water Consultants, was selected to lead this project. For more background information on the project including the anticipated schedule, please review the Project Plan.
The Updated Southern High Plains Groundwater Study Draft Report and Planning Tool are now available. This report presents an update to the 2002 Southern High Plains Designated Groundwater Basin Groundwater Study. The purpose of the report is to update estimates of economically recoverable groundwater in the Southern High Plains Designated Groundwater Basin using new geologic mapping, groundwater-level data, and pumping estimates. The Planning Tool was developed to help stakeholders to evaluate potential future groundwater use scenarios. The Planning Tool utilizes the estimated current levels of recoverable groundwater and withdrawals and determines the amount of demand that is able to be met at 10, 20, 50, and 100 years in the future. A presentation summarizing the results of the study and a Planning Tool demonstration will be provided at the First Stakeholder Meeting (details below). Comments on the Draft Report and Planning Tool can be submitted using the Comment Form or can be provided in person at the First Stakeholder Meeting.
Stakeholder Meetings
The First Stakeholder Meeting for the Southern High Plains Groundwater Study Update will be in person Monday, March 16, 2026 at 5pm Baca County Emergency Operation Center* 29400 US Highway 287 Springfield, CO. (*Note that this building is 1/4 mile north of town. Google Maps may take you to the courthouse.) Any additional stakeholder meetings will be found on the Events Webpage.
Southern High Plains (SHP) Groundwater Study Notification List
To receive updates on the project and notifications about future community meetings, please click on the button below and complete the google form to be added to the Southern High Plains Notification List.
Sign-up for Notifications on SHP Study
Project Contact: Brenna.Mefford@wilsonwatergroup.com
Media Contact: Michael.Sakas@state.co.us
Additional background information is provided below regarding previous studies in the Southern High Plains.
Background
The Southern High Plains Designated Groundwater Basin is a complex aquifer system in the southeast corner of Colorado, underlying most of Baca County and southeastern Prowers County. In this area, there is little surface water and residents rely primarily on groundwater. Over the past several years, there have been numerous objections to applications for new well permits in the Basin, on the basis that the Basin is overappropriated. However, under the current Designated Basin Rules, the Southern High Plains geohydraulic complex is not considered legally over appropriated for purposes of issuing new appropriations. In the fall of 2022, the Colorado Ground Water Commission received a petition from a group of citizens seeking to close the Southern High Plains Basin to all new high-capacity water well appropriations unless approved under a Commission-approved replacement plan or limit new appropriations based on an allowable rate of depletion. At the May 2023 Ground Water Commission Meeting, the Commission dismissed the pending petition as incomplete and requested that Staff continue stakeholder efforts in the Southern High Plains. To facilitate that effort, the Colorado Ground Water Commission requested funding to update a 2002 study on the Basin’s groundwater resources. That request was approved in 2024 and is currently underway.
Existing Studies
Two major groundwater availability studies were previously conducted in the Southern High Plains Designated Ground Water Basin:
- “Ground Water Resources of the Southern High Plains Basin, Relating to Portions of Prowers, Baca and Las Animas Counties, Colorado”, February 1967, R. W. Beck and Associates
- Prepared for the Ground Water Commission for the purpose of complying with the statutory requirements for the formation of the Basin.
- “Hydrogeology and Water Resources of the Southern High Plains Designated Ground Water Basin, Phase 2 Study, Southeastern Baca and Prowers Counties, Colorado”, January 2002, McLaughlin Water Engineers, Ltd (“2002 Study”)
- Prepared for the Southern High Plains Ground Water Management District (District) for the purpose of assessing the District’s use and supply of groundwater so as to assist the District in developing future management policies for the remaining groundwater resources.