Colorado Water Resources Research Institute

The Colorado Water Resources Research Institute (CWRRI) was created in 1965 on the Colorado State University campus as a result of the Water Resources Research Act passed by Congress in 1964 to better coordinate the nation's water research programs at a time when water management, especially in the West, was challenged by increasing agricultural, municipal and industrial use. CWRRI was designed to identify and prioritize water problems for research, to plan and manage research projects in the state's universities, to disseminate new technology and information, and to act as a liaison between the state and the federal departments that administer research funding. It was initially established as a division within CSU's newly created Natural Resources Center (NRC).The name of the Natural Resources Center changed by 1970 to the Environmental Resources Center (ERC); however, CWRRI functions remained the primary focus of the center. In 1974, the ERC, and therefore CWRRI, was affiliated with the Colorado Agricultural Experiment Station at CSU. In 1978-1979, CWRRI was separated from the ERC and the Experiment Station and made a separate agency on the CSU campus. The Colorado General Assembly officially recognized this division in 1981. ln the early 1980s, CWRRI was typically known within its own organizational files in this collection as the ERC. Throughout the collection, NRC, ERC and CWRRI alternately appear on material although they refer to the same organization, today known as CWRRI. In 1967 Norman A. Evans became director of the Natural Resources Center, replacing Stephen C. Smith who served from 1965-1967. The water resources research program that created CWRRI originally overseen by the Office of Water Resources Research (OWRR), was later renamed the Office of Water Research and Technology (OWRT), both part of the Department of the Interior. After passage of a new Water Resources Research Act in 1984, the program was reassigned to the Water Resources Division of the U.S. Geological Survey and authorized by Colorado's legislature to operate as an official entity of Colorado State University.

From the description of Records of the Colorado Water Resources Research Institute, 1949-1987. (Poudre River Public Library District). WorldCat record id: 61250904

The Colorado Water Resources Research Institute was created in 1965 on the Colorado State University campus to oversee water research and disseminate new information to citizens. In 1964, Congress passed the Water Resources Research Act to better coordinate the nation's water research programs at a time when water management, especially in the West, was challenged by increasing agricultural, municipal and industrial use. The legislation was based on the Hatch Act of 1887 which established the state agricultural experiment station system and, like the experiment stations, the new water research institutes were also financed by federal and state funds. Water research institutes were organized at the nation's land grant colleges. Universities were enthusiastic about the new program and William E. Morgan, president of Colorado A and M (now Colorado State University) and chairman of the Water Resources Committee of the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges, played an important role in the passage of the act. CSU had long been a leader in the West in water and agricultural research and engineering and was an ideal choice for the location of the new research institute. In the early 1880s, the college offered the earliest courses in irrigation engineering in the United States and soon established a Department of Physics and Engineering to further focus on irrigation. In 1912, a hydraulics laboratory was constructed on campus where numerous experiments were conducted by several distinguished scholars. Advancements in irrigation and other water-related matters were disseminated from the college throughout Colorado and the West.

The Colorado Water Resources Research Institute (CWRRI) was initially established as a division within CSU's newly created Natural Resources Center (NRC), where university faculty coordinated federal, state and university research in natural resources as authorized by the State Board of Agriculture. The name of the Natural Resources Center changed by 1970 to the Environmental Resources Center (ERC); however, CWRRI functions remained the primary focus of the center. In 1974, the ERC, and therefore CWRRI, was affiliated with the Colorado Agricultural Experiment Station at CSU. In 1978-1979, CWRRI was separated from the ERC and the Experiment Station and made a separate agency on the CSU campus. The Colorado General Assembly officially recognized this division in 1981.

Until the early 1980s, CWRRI was typically known within its own organizational files in this collection as the ERC. Throughout the collection, NRC, ERC and CWRRI alternately appear on material although they refer to the same organization, today known as CWRRI. Because most references are to the ERC and little material is identified as CWRRI, the acronym ERC/CWRRI was used in the finding aid inventory although file folder titles and material in the folders reference one name or the other.

In 1967 Norman A. Evans became director of the Natural Resources Center, replacing Stephen C. Smith who served from 1965-1967. The bulk of the files in this collection encompass Evans's tenure (1967-1988), falling between 1965 and 1985 as well as the transition from NRC to ERC to CWRRI. In addition to the organizational files regarding research projects, Evans maintained numerous water-related files pertaining to Colorado and the United States that comprise a significant portion of the collection.

The water resources research program that created CWRRI was originally overseen by the Office of Water Resources Research (OWRR), later renamed the Office of Water Research and Technology (OWRT), both part of the Department of the Interior. After passage of a new Water Resources Research Act in 1984, the program was reassigned to the Water Resources Division of the U.S. Geological Survey and was authorized by Colorado's legislature to operate as an official entity of Colorado State University. The institute receives an annual base grant and competitively bids for grant money distributed by the USGS among regional and state water resources research institutes.

Despite the various changes CWRRI has undergone over the years, its mission has remained largely the same. CWRRI identifies and prioritizes water problems for research, plans and manages research projects in the state's universities, disseminates new technology and information, and acts as a liaison between the state and the federal departments that administer research funding. CWRRI regularly publishes reports and conference proceedings in order to make current water knowledge readily available to Colorado citizens.

From the guide to the Records of the Colorado Water Resources Research Institute, 1949-1987, 1965-1985, (Colorado State University Water Resources Archive)