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2. A unique free-fall spillway, with four 15-foot-square BLUE MESA DAM MORROW POINT DAM openings in the crest of the dam, and a stilling basin at the toe of the dam. When water spills from the reser· Blue Mesa Dam, completed in December 1965, is a wedge Construction of Morrow Point Dam and Powerplant began voir, a spectacular free-fall of water will plunge from a of 3,080,000 cubic yards of earth and rock, 1,600 feet wide in June 1963. The dam embodies three "firsts" in the height of more than 350 feet into the 60-foot-deep pool at its base and gently sloping to a narrow crest width of 30 Bureau of Reclamation's 64-year history of outstanding of water in the stilling basin. feet. The dam rises 342 feet above streambed. It is 800 engineering achievements: 3. An underground powerplant in a room excavated in hard feet long at the crest. 1. The first large double-curvature, thin-arch, concrete rock about 225 feet in from the canyon wall. The The lake formed by the dam has a capacity of 940,800 dam to be built in the United States. Double-curvature generator room is 50 feet wide by 202 feet long and the acre-feet, covering 14.3 square miles with a shoreline of 96 design means that the dam curves not only from left to arched roof is 65 to 134 feet high. miles. When filled to capacity, the reservoir will be the right but also from bottom to top, so as to be known as Reservoir capacity is 117,000 acre-feet, covering an area largest lake in Colorado. the dome or cupola type. The dam will be 469 feet of 1.3 square miles with a shoreline of 24 miles. It will The lake provides water for irrigation, generation of elec­ high, 740 feet long, 52 feet wide at the base, 12 feet extend to the toe of Blue Mesa Dam. trical power, and recreation. wide at the crest, and contain 360,000 cubic yards of The powerplant consists of two generating units with a The powerplant consists of two generating units with a concrete. capacity of 120,000 kilowatts of electricity. capacity of 60,000 kilowatts of electricity.

CRYSTAL DAM

Construction of Crystal Dam and Powerplant is planned to begin in 1969. It will be an earthfill dam 219 feet above streambed with a crest length of 760 feet. The reservoir it forms will have a capacity of 27,240 acre-feet, covering an area of 0.5 square mile and extending 6.8 miles upstream nearly to the toe of Morrow Point Dam. The powerplant will consist of one generating unit with a capacity of 28,000 kilowatts of electricity. THE CURECANTI NEEDLE THE CURECANTI UNIT UPPER COLORADO RIVER BASIN Since white settlers arrived in western Colorado in the 1880's, the Gunnison River has been a curse and a frustra­ tion. Spring floods often ravaged the low-lying valleys, yet the river always dwindled to a sickly stream in late summer, when irrigation water was desperately needed. One of the . Bureau of Reclamation's first projects, the Uncompahgre Project (constructed from 1905to 1912), successfully tapped the Gunnison River. Yet there was still no major dam to t check the river's wide fluctuations. Blue Mesa Reservoir, the major storage feature of the Curecanti Unit, now serves to trap the raging spring floods. As the water is gradually released to meet downstream com­ mitments, it generates hydropower at Blue Mesa and at Mor· row Point Powerplants. When constructed, Crystal Power­ plant will also add kilowatts to the CRSP system. Revenues from the sale of hydropower help to pay for the cost of the dams and the smaller units of the Colorado River Storage • SAN J UAN·CHAMA Project. Construction of the three Curecanti dams will cost about $100 million, much of which is spent locally. But more im· portant are the long-range, stabilizing economic benefits to be derived in the coming years through the water and power resources developed by the Curecanti Unit and other features of the Project.

THE CRSP

The long-range, basinwide development of water resources of the Upper Colorado River The Curecanti Unit is part of the comprehensive water resource plan known as the Colorado River Storage Project. Glen Canyon Dam, Flaming Gorge Dam, and Navajo Dam are also major units in the plan. The CRSP Storage Units, including Curecanti, supply long­ term, carryover water storage and vitally needed hydroelectric power. CRSP Participating Projects are delivering irrigation water to farming areas, as well as municipal and industrial water to many communities. Additional Participating Projects are in various stages of planning or construction. Thus the CRSP and the Curecanti Millions of trout and kokanee salmon have been planted in are helping to make the economic future brighter in the four Blue Mesa Lake and most fishermen report limit or near­ Upper Colorado River Basin States. limit catches. The Gunnison River in this area has always been famous for its trout. Blue Mesa Lake has enlarged the trout habitat, providing more room both to the fish and to the RECREATION fishermen. Center Point, along the north shore of the lake, is the site Fishing, boating-even swimming and water skiing-are of the main National Park Service boat ramp. Another ramp common summer activities at Blue Mesa Lake. The surround­ is being constructed at Iola. Picnic and camping facilities ing high mountain country adds a greater dimension to the are also available. enjoyment of individuals seeking sport and relaxation. For more information on recreation facilities contact: Sightseeing, either from a boat or from a car, is popular in Superintendent, Curecanti National Recreation Area, National this land of mountain, stream, and lake. Park Service, Box 112, Montrose, Colo. 81401. POWER

From the three powerplants of the Curecanti Unit will flow up to 208,000 kilowatts of hydroelectricity. This is enough power to supply the entire Western Slope of Colorado, or a city of over 300,000 population. From Montrose, the Power Operations Office of the CRSP dispatches power received from Curecanti, from Glen Canyon Dam, from Flaming Gorge Dam, and from smaller plants. Interconnecting lines, both private and public, carry CRSP power to major metropolitan areas and to rural areas of the lntermountain West.

INFORMATION

If you have questions about the Curecanti Unit, please write or contact: Project Construction Engineer, Curecanti Unit, Bureau of Reclamation, 10th and Cascade, Box 1390, Mont· In its assigned function as the Nation's rose, Colo. 81401, or Region 4, Bureau of Reclamation, Box principal natural resource agency, the De· 11568, Salt lake City, Utah 84111. partment of the Interior bears a special obligation to assure that our expendable re· sources are conserved, that renewable re­ MOTION PICTURES sources are managed to produce optimum yields, and that all resources contribute their A number of excellent motion pictures can be obtained full measure to the progress, prosperity, and from the Bureau of Reclamation. All are 16-mm. sound security of America, now and in the future. films and nearly all are in color. For a list of films available and to borrow prints for showings, write to: Film Management (1967] Center, Bureau of Reclamation, Bldg. 67, Denver Federal Center, Denver, Colo. 80225.