SWAG

What is SWAG and why was it formed?”

In 2021, the Sustainable Water Augmentation Group, Inc. (SWAG), based in Center, Colorado, was formed to allow its member growers to continue to irrigate over 17,000 acres of productive cropland – at lower augmentation costs than are anticipated under local groundwater subdistrict programs. The SWAG group has twelve members and includes 257 irrigation wells. Primary irrigated crops include potatoes and alfalfa, much of it organic. The creation of SWAG was a business decision for this group of ag producers since most rely on shallow (unconfined) groundwater for their irrigation water supply.

Why didn’t the twelve members of SWAG stay in the local groundwater subdistrict's plan of water management? There are three primary reasons:

  • The SWAG augmentation plan will be less expensive for its members. It is anticipated that the local groundwater subdistrict’s costs will exceed $500 per acre for growers who use groundwater in the northern area of the San Luis Valley. The SWAG plan will be less expensive since its membership can reduce groundwater usage (by no longer irrigating some fields) and by acquiring surface water rights to augment (replace) well pumping depletions to the Rio Grande River and its shallow unconfined aquifer.
  • The SWAG augmentation plan will be more adapted and sustainable for its members who have limited surface water resources and rely primarily on groundwater for irrigation.
  • The SWAG group will allow its membership to make hyper-local decisions to directly benefit its membership.