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Upper Colorado River and Its Utilization

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Upper Colorado River and Its Utilization UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Ray Lyman Wilbur, Secretary GEOLOGICAL SURVEY George Otts Smith, Director Water-Supply Paper 617 UPPER COLORADO RIVER AND ITS UTILIZATION BY ROBERT FOLLANSBEE f UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE WASHINGTON : 1929 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, Washington, D. C. - * ' Price 85 cents CONTENTS Preface, by Nathan C. Grover______________________ ____ vn .Synopsis of report.-____________________________________ xi Introduction_________________________________________ 1 Scope of report--------__---__-_____--___--___________f__ 1 Index system____________________________________ _ ______ 2 Acknowledgments.._______-________________________ __-______ 3 Bibliography _ _________ ________________________________ 3 Physical features of basin________________-________________-_____-__ 5 Location and accessibility______--_________-__________-__-_--___ 5 Topography________________________________________________ 6 Plateaus and mountains__________________________________ 6 The main riyer_________________________________________ 7 Tributaries above Gunnison River_._______________-_-__--__- 8 Gunnison River_----_---_----____-_-__--__--____--_-_----_ IS Dolores Eiver____________________._______________________ 17 Forestation__________________ ______._.____________________ 19 Scenic and recreational features_-__-__--_____-__^--_-__________ 20 General features________________________.______--__-_--_ 20 Mountain peaks_________--_.__.________________________ 20 Lakes....__._______________________________ 21 Flora and fauna________________________________________ . 21 Resort centers_______________________-_______________-_-__ 22 Climate_____________________________________ 23 Distinctive features.____________________________________ 23 Temperature. ______________________________ __ 24 Precipitation. ____________________________________________ 26 Evaporation..-.________________________________________________ 30 Available records___________________________________ __ 30 Factors influencing rate of evaporation_________________________ 39 Comparison of records___________________________________ 40 Variation in annual evaporation_________________________ 41 Water supply.-.__________________________________________ 41 Mean annual discharge___---_____________-_-____-___--____---_ 41 Variations in annual discharge___-____-____-____._______ ______ 43 High-water discharge-_-----___-_-__-_-___-__-__-__------_-_-_- 46 Low-water discharge_________________________________________ 47 Transmountain diversions.______________________________________ 49 Present development_________._________________________ _ 49 Future development.__________________________________________ 53 46018 29 n IV CONTENTS Page Storage. ______ _ __ 61 Developed sites.____________________________________________ 61 Undeveloped sites.. ______ _____________________________________ 68 The main river___________________________________________ 68 Tributaries above Gunnison River__________________________ 79 Gunnison River Basin_________-______-________-_____---___ 90 Dolores River Basin____________-_______-_--_----_-_--_-_-_ 101 Irrigation and agriculture______________________________-_---_---___ 115 Early history.________________________________________________ 115 Present development___________________________-___..__-_---_-_ 116 Character of agriculture._______________-______--___---_--_ 117 Summary of irrigated areas________________-__-_--_-----__- 117 The main river____________________________----_---_--_-_ 119 General conditions_-_____-_--___--_--_---------------- 119 Irrigation in Grand Valley----------------------------- 120 Tributaries above Gunnison River_-_________________-__ __ 125 Gunnison Rivet Basin_-___-__--__-_-__--___-_-----.----_ 129 Dolores River_____________________________ 136 Future extension of irrigation__________________________________ 140 General conditions_____________________-_____--____--_-__- 140 The main river__________________________-_______-_-__-___ 141 Tributaries above Gunnison River._________________________ 142 Gunnison River Basin__________--____________--_-_----___, 143 Dolores River Basin-____-_____----_-_____-__---__--------- , 144 Effect on discharge of Colorado River____-____---__-_-_- _ 147 Water power _____________________________________________________ 148 Factors affecting development.____________________-__-_-----_-_ 148 Topography-____________________ _ __ _ 148 Necessity for storage-___________________________________ 148 Climate.______________________________ . _ 149 Competition of steam power________________- ____________ 149 Factors affecting hydraulic structures_________________-_---___- 150 Ice___---.________________.___-_____________-___-__-_-_- 150 Moods.-______________________________ 151 Sediment-__-________________--______-____-__-__--_--_-_ 154 Basis of estimates of power capacity-----_-_-_-_-_--_--_--------- 156 Markets..._._______________________________ 157 Population and industry______________________-_____-_-_-__ 157 North-central Colorado________-_--_-_.__________________ 158 Railroad electrification_______-_--_-________-_---_-_--_-__- 159 Developed power_________________________________________ 161 General features________________-____-__--__---___---_---_ 161 History of development-_____________________ 162 Water-power plants______________________ __ . 165 Summary ______________________________________________ _ 180 Undeveloped power___________________________________ ___ 182 Scope of investigations________--___-_--___-----_--_----_-_ 182 the main river________-____________________---__-------__ 182 Tributaries above Gunnison River___________-________--____ 184 Gunnison River________________________.__--___----- 193 Dolores River_____________________-___-_____----_-------- 199 Recapitulation. __.__________________________-_-_-------_-. 204 Appendix. Records of stream flow-____---__------.-_-----_---------- 205 Index.____- ____-__-______-__ -_______--_-_-- --__------ 389 ILLUSTRATIONS PLATE 1. Map of upper Colorado River Basin showing utilization of water resources and lines of equal precipitation._______ In pocket. 2. Contour map of Hine No. 2 Reservoir site, on Colorado River_ 68 3. Contour map of Dewey Reservoir site, on Colorado River__ _ _ _ 74 4. Contour map of Hine No. 1 Reservoir site, on Williams River. _ 80 5. Contour map of Taylor Park Reservoir site, on Taylor River_ _ 90 6. Contour map of Dolores Reservoir site, on Dolores River____ 102 7. Contour map of Bedrock Reservoir site, on Dolores River____ 102 8. Contour map of Fiftymile Reservoir site, on Dolores River____ 102 9. Colorado River diversion dam, Grand Valley project.______. ' 120 10. A, Cut on High Level Canal, Uncompahgre project; B, Albin ranch, 1 mile south of Table Mountain.___________________ 121 11. Effect of snow on transmission lines of Western Colorado Power Co. at altitude of 13,000 feet_.___-___-__________ 148 12. Transmission-line tower of Public Service Co. of Colorado protected against snowslides by pier._____________________ 149> 13. A, Shoshone plant of Public Service Co. of Colorado; B, Snow- slide covering on timber flume from Trout Lake Reservoir of Western Colorado Power Co-_-_-----_---_--_-_--------- 164 FIGURE 1. Variation in annual precipitation at Meeker, Grand Junction, and Mancos, Colo_____________________________________ 29 2. Variation in annual run-off at Hot Sulphur Springs, Glenwood Springs, and Palisade, Colo___________________________ 45 3. Flood discharge of Colorado River at Yuma, Ariz., as it would be modified by operation of Dewey Reservoir...__________ 78 4. Hydrographs of Cache la Poudre River for 1884 and a normal year (1912)______.____________________________________ 152 5. Duration curve for Colorado River at Glenwood Springs, Colo _ 157 PREFACE By NATHAN C. GBOVER This report is one of a series of reports treating of the value and utilization of the Colorado River and its tributaries. The first of these reports,'Colorado River and Its Utilization, by E. C. LaRue, published in 1916 as Water-Supply Paper 395, has been regarded as authoritative with respect to facts pertaining to the river and its tributaries that were available at that time. The introduction of that report contained the following statement: Mr. LaRue has attempted the pioneer work of assembling the principal facts relating to the subject, and especially of studying the possibilities of controlling the flow of the whole river by means of storage reservoirs in order to avoid further danger of overflow to the Salton Sink and to render available for profitable use the enormous quantity of water which now flows unused and largely unusable to the Gulf of California in the form of floods. After that report was published many investigations and surveys WGT& made, the canyons were accurately mapped, possible sites for dams were studied, and additional reliable records of river discharge were collected. That part of the new information which related to the Colorado below the Green was published in 1925 as Water-Supply Paper 5J56, entitled "Water Power and Flood Control of Colorado River Below Green River, Utah," by E. C. LaRue. The following paragraph is quoted from the introduction of that report: The Geological Survey is not attempting to promote any particular project but is endeavoring to collect and make available the information needed as the basis for outlining a proper scheme for full development of the river and for selecting the site for first development. It recognizes the fact that
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