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;;<. ~ - -- - --- - . ------ - "" -33- -" for water and dependable supplies are becoming limited. The increase in energy development ac~ivities brings with it an increase in the need for power generation and municipal water supplies. -, ...r: A major water user on the Yampa River is the Colorado-Ute Electric Association which reportedly is trying to obtain a I firm supply of 40,000-60,000 ac~e-feet. It is not known_~o~_______~1 ~---=---------much of this amount has already been -acquired, but the Four _ Count~~~~j~~~ghts and storage in-St~mb~~~~T.~~.e-ne~r Clark are known to be a part of Colorado-Ute water inventory. +-.-: I , , v - The towns of Steamboat Springs, Hayden and Craig are ex- periencing rapid growth due to the energy boom and are in need of additional supplies. Projects proposed by the USBR could provide municipal water, but are not likely to be in operation soon enough to meet the towns' needs. Water from the Public Service Company rights could be released to the Yampa River to meet the needs of these communities. . . Mining and energy development activities, including coal, oil shale and synthetic fuels require water but reliable estimates of how much are not available. It is also diffi- cult to predict with any certainty when the demand will occur and how long the water would be needed. In the case of strip mining, the lands ,acquired with coal leases often include irrigation water rights that can be converted to storage and industrial use in amounts exceeding that needed .. for mining and reclamation. It is anticipated that augmenta- tion plans to accomplish this will be obtained by various mining companies in the next several years providing a source of water to meet some of the demands in the Yampa River Basin. . 14 ij I~ c\) Leonard Rice Consulting WalBl Engineers./nc,