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Colorado River Storage Project

ARIZONA DEPT. OF LIBRARY ARCHIVES & PUBLIC RECORDS DEC 04 , f The River-The Colorado is one of the most im• portant rivers in America. It drains one-twelfth the area of the United States. It is fed by the melting snows which, each winter, are piled onto the high Rocky Mountains of the Basin. But it flows to the sea through a dry and barren land that can be made fruitful only by irrigation.

c r. Dividing the Water-There is not nearly enough water in the Colorado River to irrigate all the land. Thus, an agreement had to be reached on sharing the water among the 7 States of the river basin. The of 1922 was the first step. It divided the Colorado River water between the Upper and The Colorado River Storage Project -In A Nutshell ..... ~ Lower Basins at Lee Ferry, Ariz., a point in the river l mile e~ below the mouth of the Perie River. ~ With Lower Basin rights to Colorado River water assured by n the 1922 Compact, rapid development and use of that water (}~ ~ 0 took place in Arizona, California, and Nevada. Hoover , a:... completed by the Bureau of Reclamation in 1935, was the key m ~... to Lower Basin development. Water is now diverted or pumped u :i ... directly from the river at many points downstream from Hoover J! cc Dam. In 1948, the Upper Basin States agreed on division of their share of water available under the Compact. Of the Upper Basin's share of Colorado River water (7,500,000 acre-feet per year), the State of Arizona is apportioned the consumptive use of not to exceed 50,000 acre-feet per annum and the remain• der is allocated as follows: Colorado, 51 % percent; New Mexico, 111,4 percent; , 23 percent; and , 14 percent. Upper Basin's Problem-In general terms, the 1922 Compact made a division between the Upper and Lower Basins of the long-time average flow of the Colorado River as measured at Lee Ferry. It specified that the Lower Basin should receive its share of the long-time average flow, even in years when the Colorado's flows are far below average. Thus, in some years, the Upper Basin would be short of water because the Upper Basin gets what is left in those very low-flow years. Herein lies the Upper Basin's problem if needed Upper Basin water• use projects are to be built in the future.

Solution for the Upper Basin-The big Storage Unit and reservoirs of the Colorado River Storage Project provide the solution for the Upper Basin States. Like huge barrels on the Colorado River and its main tributaries, they will catch and hold surplus water in years of high runoff. Then each year, regardless of whether the runoff is high or low, there will be water in the huge Storage Unit reservoirs for release to Lower Basin water users. With control of the Colorado estab• lished on the main stem and main tributaries, more than 40 projects could be built high on the smaller tributaries in the Upper Basin to divert and use water that is now lost in a few short spring months when the snow melts from the mountains.

Upper Basin Participating Projects-Of the more than 40 potential participating projects of the Colorado River Storage Project that may be built in coming years, 6 are now completed, 7 are under' construction, 4 are authorized, and 13 are now being planned. Direct benefits to the people will be realized on these participating projects. They will develop reliable supplies of water for farms, cities, and industries and will be the hard core of an ever-expanding Upper Basin economy.

Who Pays for the Colorado River Storage Project?-The Bureau of Reclamation is building the Storage Units and Participating Projects, but the reimbursable costs must be re• paid. Some money will come from the sale of water, but not nearly enough. Much more will come from the sale of hydro• electric power produced at the big dams. The dams' power• plants will be interconnected and also connected with other Federal and public and private utility systems by a Federal transmission system. All income from the sale of water and power will go into the special Upper Colorado River Basin Fund, and annual pay• ments will be made to the Federal Government to repay the project costs and interest, as required by law. The Storage Units Participating Projects The Participating Projects will assure steady growth of irrigation agricul• Four storage units were authorized in 1956 as key features of the Colorado ture in the Upper Basin. It is irrigation agriculture that does not add to crop River Storage Project. All are under construction or completed. Their com• surpluses. It is irrigation agriculture devoted mainly to production of livestock bined water storage capacity is about 34 million acre-feet. The Storage and the red meat which the exploding population of the Nation urgently needs. Unit hydroelectric powerplants, along with several small powerplants on Other crops will include the deciduous fruits, sugar beets, and cash crops not Participating Projects, will have a total installed capacity of about 1,300,000 in surplus. Through the Participating Projects and non-Government under• kilowatts. takings, large quantities of Upper Basin water will be developed for municipal and industrial uses.

Flaming Gorge-The 502-foot-high was , Wyoming. Under construction. New farms: 58, 775 acres. topped out in November 1962 and completed in 1964. The Water supply from Green River. , 345,000 acre-feet. thin-arch dam contains about 1 million cubic yards of concrete. Savery-Pot Hook Project, Colorado-Wyoming. Authorized. New farms: 21,920 The 91-mile-long, 3,789,000-acre-foot acres. Old farms: 13,345 acres. Water supply from Little Snake River and Savery began to fill late in 1962. The Flaming Gorge Powerplant will and Slater Creeks. Savery Reservoir, 18,600 acre-feet and Pot Hook Reservoir, have an installed capacity of 108,000 kilowatts in three 36,000- 65.000 acre-feet. kilowatt generating units. The first CRSP hydropower went on Lyman Project, Wyoming. Under construction. Old farms: 42,674 acres. Water supply from Blacks Fork. Meeks Cabin Reservoir, 33,000 acre-feet and China the line at Flaming Gorge in 1963. Meadows Reservoir, 13,000 acre-feet. , Initial Phase, Utah. Vernal Unit completed 1963; Bonne• ville Unit under construction; Upalco and Jensen Units authorized .. New farms: 44,240 Curecanti-Three dams in the deep canyon of the Gunnison acres. Old farms: 174, 100 acres. Water supply: principal sources-Duchesne and River make up the Cureccmti Unit. , a 342-foot• Provo Rivers, . high earthfill dam, was completed in 1966. , Silt Project, Colorado. Under construction. New farms: 2,416 acres. Old farms: a 465-foot-high, thin-arch, concrete dam 12 miles downstream 4,628 acres. Water supply from Rifle Creek and Colorado River. Rifle Gap Reservoir, from Blue Mesa Dam, was started in 1963. will be 12,650 acre-feet. built later downstream from Morrow Point Dam. Hydropower Emery County Project, Utah. Completed 1966. New farms: 771 acres. Old farms: 18,004 acres. Water supply from Seely Creek. Joes Valley Reservoir, 63,000 acre· plants at the 3 dams will have a combined total installed ca• pacity of 200,000 kilowatts. The first underground powerplant feet. Paonia Project, Colorado. Completed 1962. New farms: 2,320 acres. Old farms: built by the Bureau of Reclamation will be at Morrow Point Dam. 13,070 acres. Water supply from Muddy Creek. Paonia Reservoir, 21,000 acre-feet. Smith Fork Project, Colorado. Completed 1963. New farms: 1,423 acres. Old farms: 8,056 acres. Water supply from Smith Fork and Iron Creek. Crawford Reservoir, 14,000 acre-feet. Navajo- was dedicated by Secretary of the Interior Fruitland Mesa Project, Colorado. Authorized. New farms: 16,520 acres. Old Stewart L. Udall on September 15, 1962. The 402-foot-high farms: 6,930 acres. Water supply from Soap, Curecanti, and Crystal Creeks. Soap earth dam contains 26,840,000 cubic yards of materials. It is Park Reservoir, 48,235 acre-feet. the second largest earth dam built by the Bureau of Reclama• Bostwick Park Project, Colorado. Under construction. New farms: 1,315 acres. tion. Navajo Dam makes possible diversions of San Juan River Old farms: 4,293 acres. Water supply from Cimarron Creek. Silver Jack Reservoir, water for the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project and the San Juan• 10,600 acre-feet. Chama Project. Florida Project, Colorado. Completed 1966. New farms: 5, 730 acres. Old farms: 13,720 acres. Water supply from Florida River. Lemon Reservoir, 40,100 acre-feet. Hammond Project, New Mexico. Completed 1963. New farms: 3,933 acres. Water supply from San Juan River. Glen Canyon- is the key feature of the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project, New Mexico. Under construction. New farms: Colorado River Storage Project and one of the great dams of the 110,630 acres. Water supply from San Juan River. world. The 710-foot-high, concrete dam was topped out in 1963. Storage of water in (Glen Canyon Reservoir) San Juan-Chama Project, New Mexico. Under construction. New farms: 16,500 acres. Old farms: 104,400 acres. Water supply from San Juan River. Several began early in 1963; several years will be required to fill the reservoirs. 27,000,000-acre-foot Lake Powell. All 8 units of the 900,000- Other Participating Projects-Feasibility reports completed. kilowatt powerplant are now on the line. (1) Animas-La Plata, Colorado-New Mexico. (2) Dolores, Colorado. (3) Dallas Creek, Colorado. (4) San Miguel, Colorado. (5) West Divide, Colorado. llR Irrigation Hydroelectric The main purpose of the Partici• Power pating Projects is to provide irrigation water to land not now farmed and to The new CRSP powerplants will older farms which do not have enough total about 1,300,000 kilowatts of in• water. There are 28 Participating stalled capacity. Even so, they will Projects, now in all stages from early meet only a small portion of the future planning to completion of construction, power needs of the Upper Basin which will benefit a total of 1,448,300 States. But the sale of this much acres of land. About 835,000 acres power will pay for the Storage Units of this total are presently irrigated and will help pay for the Participating lands which are short of water. Projects. Anticipated growth in pop• Irrigated farming in the Upper Basin ulation and industry will create an States provides nutritious fruits and ever-growing demand for more and vegetables which are not on the sur• more power-much of which will be plus lists, and feed crops for the cattle, supplied by new preference-user and sheep, and poultry industries. Cattle privately owned utility company and sheep graze in the mountains and plants. on the open plains in the summer, but must be fed in the winter. Irrigation is essential to the livestock industry.

Municipal & ·Transmission Industrial Lines The Bureau of Reclamation is Water building a backbone system of high• voltage transmission lines to carry The Central Utah Participating CRSP power to key load points in the Project will supply water for towns and marketing area. These lines will be industry as well as for irrigation. integrated with preference-user and Water will be made available to the private-company transmission lines to growing industrial complex lying at form the CRSP Interconnected Trans• the western foot of the Wasatch mission System. Thus, all CRSP Mountains in Utah. hydropower will be delivered to the The Upper Colorado River Basin is preference-user organizations for dis• known to contain vast mineral re• tribution to their consumers. All sources. The availability of both CRSP power will be wholesaled to water and power will speed up the preference-user organizations as re• development of these resources. quired by Federal Reclamation law. Interior of the Glen Canyon Powerplant.

Water skiing on Lake Powell, behind Glen Canyon Dam.

Night view of Glen Canyon Switchyard. A former and his field of irrigated row crop.

Water treatm~n t Utah.plant and new homes in

h. h on the back side ~f!i~m~~g Gorge Dam. Filling •••••••••••••••• Motion Schedule Pictures If the project could start operations with all its reservoirs full, the plan of Available sharing the water between the Upper and Lower Basin States would work on Request excellently. Starting with empty res• (All are 16 mm., color, sound films) ervoirs is another problem. Glen A number of public interest motion Canyon, Flaming Gorge, and Navajo pictures showing the construction of all started filling in late 1962 and Glen Canyon and Flaming Gorge early 1963. Blue Mesa Lake began Dams and the Colorado River Storage filling in 1966. It may take many Project are ovo ilo ble for free loan to years to fill them and at the same time groups. keep an adequate supply flowing downstream. Just how long will de• For prints, write to Film Manage• pend on the weather. ment Center, Bureau of Reclamation, Building 67, Denver Federal Center, Recreation Denver, Colo. 80225 Areas

The Upper Colorado River Basin contains some of the most rugged and beautiful scenery in the world. Add lakes and reservoirs and you have •••••••••••••••• a tremendous recreation potential. Add roads, boat ramps, and other facilities and y;ou have a paradise for boaters, fishermen, and photog• raphers. The develops and administers recreation areas on some of the larger CRSP reservoirs. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, Other Federal, State, and local agen• STEWART L. UDALL, Secretary Bureau of Reclamation, cies handle smaller recreation areas Floyd E. Dominy, Commissioner as appropriate. The Bureau of Sport In its assigned function as the Nation's principal Fisheries and Wildlife, working princi• natural resource agency, the Department of the Interior bears a special obligation to assure that our expendable pally with State agencies, stocks resources are conserved, that renewable resources are managed to produce optimum yields, and that all re• reservoirs with game fish and works sources contribute their full measure to the progress, prosperity, and security of America, now and in the future. out wildlife management programs for areas affected. (REVISED-1967) U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1967-0-256-758