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3429 SUMMARY OF POTENTIAL WATER RESOURCE DEVELDPMENTS IN THE UPPER COLDRADO RIVER BASIN OF COLORADO Introduction Potential water resource developments in the Colorado River Basin in w~stern Colorado are described in the following pages. Those projects which have been investigated by the Bureau of Reclamation are grouped ac- cording to the degree of detail in which they have been studied. The proj- ects are presented as an inventory of development potentialities with no attempt to indicate a desirable order of construction or to relate the potentialities to the water supply available to Colorado under the terms of existing interstate compacts involving the waters of the Colorado River. The current active interest in western Colorado's oil shale reserves-- by far the largest in the world--leads naturally to a question of what water resources will be available for municipal and industrial uses associ- ated with oil shale developments. These prospective water needs are being recognized in planning the projects outlined in this statement, eight of which could provide a total of 500,000 acre-feet of water annually for oil shale uses as shown below. Project Fryingpan-Arkansas (Ruedi-Reservoir) West Divide Yellow Jacket Bluestone Una Reservoir Flattops (Rio Blanco and Bear Wallow Reservoirs) Red Cliff (Iron Mountain Reservoir) Azure Total Annual diversion supply (acre-feet) 30,000 77,000 50,000 9,000 104,000 128,000 52,000 50,000 500,000 Stream depletions from oil shale uses would be substantially less than diversions because of return flow. Depletions to the Colorado River from present water uses in Colorado are estimated at an average of 1,786,000 acre-feet annually. These and further depletions that would result from potential developments have been estimated by the Bureau of Reclamation partly on the basis of reconnais- sance data. The estimated depletions are shown on the following page and those from future developments are shown by projects on pages 9, 10, and 11.