Seniority, absolute versus conditional water, and decreed uses for all 2,612 water rights on record in Montrose County, taken from the state's own records. Priority dates run from 1877-05-01 to 2025-12-31.
CFS on record: 16,625.2 absolute · 10,381.5 conditional. Flow (CFS) and volume (AF) are never added together.
Worth knowing: 210 rights in Montrose County carry a conditional portion, water that is decreed but not yet perfected. Absolute and conditional are not the same asset.
In a dry year the oldest rights are served first. This is how Montrose County's rights are distributed.
| Era | Rights | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|
| pre-1900 | 330 | 12.6% | |
| 1900-1949 | 848 | 32.5% | |
| 1950-1969 | 329 | 12.6% | |
| 1970-1999 | 726 | 27.8% | |
| 2000+ | 379 | 14.5% |
| Decreed use | Rights |
|---|---|
| Irrigation | 1,566 |
| Stock | 1,128 |
| Domestic | 623 |
| Wildlife | 432 |
| Fishery | 314 |
| Recreation | 218 |
Ranked by the state's own priority administration number, the figure DWR uses to order rights by seniority.
| Priority | Structure | Source | Amount | Uses | Verify |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1877-05-01 | OURAY DITCH | UNCOMPAHGRE RIVER | 0.375 CFS | Irrigation | state record |
| 1877-09-01 | RIVES DITCH NO 2 | LITTLE CIMARRON RIVER | 0.4 CFS | Irrigation | state record |
| 1878-05-13 | OURAY DITCH | UNCOMPAHGRE RIVER | 0.5 CFS | Irrigation | state record |
| 1878-05-15 | OURAY DITCH | UNCOMPAHGRE RIVER | 2.25 CFS | Irrigation | state record |
| 1878-06-30 | GOSHORN DITCH NO 1 | WEST PARADOX CREEK | 0.25 CFS | Irrigation | state record |
| 1879-04-01 | OURAY DITCH | UNCOMPAHGRE RIVER | 2.25 CFS | Irrigation | state record |
| 1879-06-01 | OURAY DITCH | UNCOMPAHGRE RIVER | 1.0 CFS | Irrigation | state record |
| 1880-07-01 | RESERVATION DITCH | UNCOMPAHGRE RIVER | 1.2 CFS | Irrigation, Domestic | state record |
| 1880-10-01 | OURAY DITCH | UNCOMPAHGRE RIVER | 3.145 CFS | Irrigation | state record |
| 1881-02-14 | TALBERT DITCH | WEST PARADOX CREEK | 0.67 CFS | Irrigation | state record |
This page is the summary. The full file for Montrose County covers every one of the 2,612 rights, with its priority date, seniority number, absolute and conditional amounts, decreed uses and a link to each official record, as a spreadsheet.
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Records last updated 17 September 2026.