2 Colo. Code Regs. § 402-11-4

Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 1, January 10, 2025

Rule 2 CCR 402-11-4 - DEFINITIONS

4.1 Statutory Definitions- The terms listed below are defined by statute and have the identical meaning as in the referenced statutes:

4.1.1 Colorado Ground Water Management Act, Section 37-90-103, C.R.S. defining Aquifer, person, private driller, and well.

4.2 Definitions from Other Rules

4.2.1 The terms listed below are defined in the Rules and Regulations Applying Exclusively to the Withdrawal of Ground Water from the Dawson, Denver, Arapahoe and Laramie-Fox Hills Aquifers in the Denver Basin, 2 CCR 402-6, (1987), also known as the Denver Basin Rules, and have the identical meaning as in the referenced rules: Dawson aquifer. Upper Dawson aquifer. Lower Dawson aquifer, Denver aquifer, Arapahoe aquifer. Upper Arapahoe aquifer. Lower Arapahoe aquifer, Laramie-Fox Hills aquifer, Denver Basin aquifers, and Denver Basin.

4.2.2 The terms listed below are defined in the Statewide Nontributary Ground Water Rules, 2 CCR 402-7, (1986), and have the identical meaning as in the referenced rules: cylinder of appropriation, and State Engineer.

4.3 Specific Definitions- For the purposes of these rules, unless expressly stated otherwise, the following terms shall have the meaning indicated in this Rule. Words used in the present tense include other tenses; words used in the masculine gender include the feminine and neuter genders.

4.3.1 "Applicant" means that person or entity applying for a permit to extract Artificially Recharged Water pursuant to these rules and Section 37-90-137(9)(d), C.R.S.

4.3.2 "Artificial Recharge" means placing water into a Denver Basin aquifer or Nontributary Groundwater Aquifer by Injection.

4.3.3 "Artificially Recharged Water" means water placed into one or more of the Denver Basin aquifers or Nontributary Groundwater Aquifers pursuant to Rules 4.3.2 and 4.3.9.

4.3.4 "Confined Aquifer" means an aquifer, the potentiometric surface of which lies at an elevation above the elevation of the top of the aquifer. The potentiometric surface should be determined from Static Water Level data to the greatest extent possible.

4.3.5 "Contiguous Extraction Area" means an area within a Denver Basin aquifer or Nontributary Groundwater Aquifer from which the Applicant has the right to withdraw the Naturally Occurring water and from which the Applicant is proposing to extract Artificially Recharged Water. The Applicant's right to withdraw the Naturally Occurring water through overlying land ownership, consent of the landowner as described in Section 37-90-137(4)(b)(II), C.R.S., or other means, must be continuous throughout the Contiguous Extraction Area. The land area overlying the Contiguous Extraction Area need not be a single legal tract of land.

4.3.6 "Designated Agent" means the representative of an owner of Artificially Recharged Water and/or an Extraction Well or the representative of an Applicant for an Extraction Well permit who has been authorized in writing by the owner or Applicant to act on behalf of the owner or Applicant.

4.3.7 "Extraction" or "Extracting" means the withdrawal or recovery of water which has previously been Artificially Recharged into a Denver Basin aquifer or Nontributary Groundwater Aquifer.

4.3.8 "Extraction Well" means an existing permitted well or a well that has been, or will be constructed for the purpose of Extracting Artificially Recharged Water which was previously injected into a Denver Basin aquifer or Nontributary Groundwater Aquifer. When applied to an existing, permitted well, this term may describe a well which has been authorized for the Extraction of an amount of water beyond the amount of Naturally Occurring groundwater authorized for withdrawal under the existing permit.

4.3.9 "Hydraulic gradient" means the change of total head over a horizontal distance (expressed per unit distance) as determined from Static Water Level data to the greatest extent possible, at any point and in a specified direction.

4.3.10 "Injection" means the act of placing water into a Denver Basin aquifer or Nontributary Groundwater Aquifer through a well, or other structures if approved by the State Engineer in accordance with Rule 10, by pressure or force of gravity. If the volume of water injected could be subject to evaporation, transpiration, or other losses prior to delivery to the aquifer, the extraction of Artificially Recharged Water can take place only through a variance pursuant to Rule 10.

4.3.11 "Naturally Occurring" means that groundwater which is naturally present in the Denver Basin aquifers or Nontributary Groundwater Aquifers and which has been or may be quantified pursuant to 37-90-137(4) and (5), C.R.S., the Statewide Nontributary Ground Water Rules, 2 CCR 402-7, and as appropriate, the Denver Basin Rules, 2 CCR 402-6.

4.3.12 "Nontributary Groundwater Aquifer", an aquifer that contains nontributary ground water outside of the Denver Basin and Designated Basins where either (1) a valid court decree, statute, or rule describes the groundwater as nontributary, in a manner consistent with the nontributary definition in Section 37-90-103 (10.5), or (2) a valid well permit has been issued pursuant to Section 37-90-137(4). This does not include aquifers determined to be nontributary solely² pursuant to the Produced Nontributary Groundwater Rules.

² An aquifer determined to be nontributary pursuant to the Produced Nontributary Groundwater Rules, as directed by Section 37-90-137(7)(c), is determined to be nontributary for the purposes of subsection 37-90-137(7). Subsection 37-90-137(7) describes well permitting requirements "In the case of dewatering of geologic formations by withdrawing nontributary groundwater to facilitate or permit mining of minerals". Such an aquifer must also be determined nontributary through another means described in Rule 4.3.11 in order to be subject to these Rules.

4.3.13 "Pre-213 Well", a well authorized to withdraw nontributary ground water or Denver Basin groundwater, where the right to the use of groundwater meets the criteria described in Section 37-90-137(5), C.R.S.

4.3.14 "Remote Extraction" means the Extraction of Artificially Recharged Water from a well other than a well through which the volume of water to be extracted was injected.

4.3.15 "Static Water Level" means the water level in a well that is not affected by pumping or injection when there is less than one (1) foot difference between two (2) consecutive water level measurements taken at least 60 minutes apart.

4.3.16 "Unconfined Aquifer" means an aquifer, the potentiometric surface of which lies at or below the elevation of the top of the aquifer. The potentiometric surface should be determined from Static Water Level data to the greatest extent possible.

4.4 Other Definitions- All other words used herein shall be given their usual customary and accepted meanings. All words of a technical nature not defined herein shall be given the meaning which is generally accepted in the applicable scientific profession.

2 CCR 402-11-4

41 CR 11, June 10, 2018, effective 6/30/2018