[lotharcable]

Water rights is a huge deal in Colorado. It is in the state constitution and there has been a lot of government corruption around the issue.

It is common for people to buy up land just for the water rights, then transfer that water rights to other property. So if you search for land in Colorado it isn't unusually to find one plot of land in the millions and then another one a few miles away that is almost free in comparison. This is often due to the water rights associated with that property. The expensive land can be used commercially for things like farming, the other cannot.

And there have been cases of governments using tax money to buy up property just so they can use the water rights to help out private ventures, like building suburbs or golf courses without the knowledge or consent of tax payers.

Also it is pretty normal anywhere in the country that local governments react poorly from aggressive demands from people, especially when they are not voters.

All in all it is a nasty business and making sure you know exactly where your water is coming from, how you are going to pay for it, and what your rights are to it, and what you are allowed to use it for all need to be factored in heavily when moving out to the desert there.

[potato3732842]

It's hilarious how opposite of the east this is. Water is a massive liability. You can't (legally) even put up a garden shed within 100ft of "wetlands" (yes, that seasonal wet spot in the forest qualifies, better tip your surveyor generously lest it show up on a map, because once it shows up it never goes away) without state officials crawling up your ass in a manner befitting large industrial developments. Whereas if you've got water in the west you land is incredibly valuable.

[mothballed]

I hate to be the out-of-state guy that tries to summarily come up with a solution, but in AZ they have two separate regulation on well drilling. Low-flow household consumption is "exempt" meaning if it is drilled using the approved techniques and far enough away from septic systems etc it is virtually guaranteed to be approved. If you DIY your own "exempt" well you do not even need a well driller's license and can do it with a "one-time" DIY permit so theoretically you could just buy some percussion rig for a couple grand off ali-express and go ham. Household consumption is also pretty trivial compared to agricultural and commercial use, so it doesn't have much meaningful negative impact on the the 'water rights' of commercial users.

As far as I know there is no way to sell the right away to drill an 'exempt' well. I hope CO looks into something similar.