Cogjm.Cure Comp 1978-11-30.Pdf (1.011Mb)
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT of the INTERIOR
* *BUREAU * * OF * RECLAMATION * * * * * * * * ********newsRusho-801/524-5403 release Upper Colorado Region Salt Lake City, Utah
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 30, 1978
CURECANTI STORAGE UNIT COMPLETED
The three-dam Curecanti Unit, located 011 the Gunnison River in western
Colorado between the cities of Gunnison and Montrose, is now complete and fully
operational, Bureau of Reclamation Regional Director N. W. Plummer reported
today.
Clearing of Crystal Reservoir, completed in late October, was the final contract to be completed before the Curecanti Unit was considered finished. The clearing operation removed trees and brush from the Black Canyon walls between the high and low water lines of the reservoir. Crystal Dam was completed in August 1976 and water storage began in Crystal Reservoir in March 1977. The powerplant started generating power from its 28,000 kilowatt unit in July 1978.
Three dams--Blue Mesa, Morrow Point, and Crystal--make up the Curecanti Unit of the Colorado River Storage Project. Each dam and reservoir has a specific function but operations are coordinated. Blue Mesa Reservoir stores spring runoff water for release later in the year . Morrow Point serves as tJe principal hydroelectric generation dam. Since water releases from Morrow Point fluctuate widely acco~oing to power demands, Crystal Dam and Reservoir catch these flows and even out releases to the river downstream.
The Curecanti Unit started with a groundbreaking ceremony at the Blue Mesa damsite in July 1962. Construction on Blue Mesa Dam and Powerplant was completed in 1~67. The 14.3 square mile lake created by Blue Hesa Darn is, uhen full, the largest lake in Colorado. Morrow Point Dam and Powerplant were started in 1963 and were completed in 1971. A self-guided tour of the dam and powerplant is pro vided to the public. In the summer of 1978, the Bur·eau of Reclamation and National Park Service initiated a three-hour round trip cruise of the reservoir, which will be cor.tinued in 1979. Crystal Reservoir has limited recreation use because of its fluctuating water surface, but the river below the dam will be cpened to the public in the future.
A number of recreational projects are planned for development in the Curecanti National Recreation area durir.g the next decade to provide access to and facilities along the almost 40 miles of reservoir water surface from Blue Mesa to the Gunnison River below Crystal Dam. Approximately 870,000 visitors saw parts of the Cureccnti Unit in 1977. The Curecanti National Recreation area is administered by the Nation~! Park Service under an agreement with the Bureau of Reclamation. The three powerplants of the Curecanti Unit generate up to 208,000 kilowatts of hydroelectricity, enough power to supply a city of over 200,000. And Blue Mesa Reservoir provides storage of surplus flows in years of high runoff along with the other storage units of the Colorado River Storage Project- Lake Powell, Flaming Gorge, and Navajo.
* * * * * * *
NOTE: Other photos and slides are available upon request.