WSP09653

• File Number: 8443
• Description: Narrows Unit
• State: CO
• Basin: South Platte
• Water Division: 1
• Date: 3/28/1977
• Title: Statements related to the Narrows Unit
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Report/Study

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Details of Request

The President's recommended budget contains $103,842,000 for
construction, nothing for advance planning, and about 52,500,000
for feasibiiity investigations on projects in Colorado. The
State beiieves that these sums are, with the exceptions noted
above, ade~uate for the tlmely execution and continuatlon of
reclamation programs in Coiorado. We would cautIon, however,
that any reduction in these budget requests, particularly for
construction activities, would be detrimental to the water users
of the State of Colorado and, in the instance of the Closed Basin
project, to the Interests of the states of New Mexico and Texas
as well.

I would like to specifically mention the Grand Valley and
Paradox Valley units, both of which are components of the
Colorado River Basin Salinity Controi program. The seven states
of the Colorado River Basin have, acting through the auspices of
the Salinity Control Forum, endorsed a basinwide, coordinated
approach to the management of salinity, The construction of the
t~o u~lts l~ Colorado is an intregal compo~ent of that basinwide
effort. We endorse the funding for those projects which is con-
taIned in the President's recommended budget.

With respect to the Narrnws Project, we respectfully urge
that Congress include $400,000 in the FYS2 budget to continue
construction on this project. The Narrows was authorized by
Congress in 1970 and was actually under construction in 1977 when
it was included on the Carter Administration's infamous hit list.
At that time, construction activities were suspended, even though
property acquisition and final engineering and design work were
well under way. The $400,000 request which we are making would
serve to reactivate construction on this important project.

With respect to the Animas-La Plata project, we respectfully
urge Congress to include $2.87 million dollars In the FY82 budget
in order that construction on this project can be initiated.
This is a joint Colorado-New Mexico project designed, among other
things, to address many of the problems which confront the Indian
reservations in the project area, For example, in Colorado, both
the Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute Tribes have substantial
amounts of lands which could be irrigated by the project, In
addition, both reservatIons contain significant coal deposits
which could be converted into other forms of energy if water
supplies can be made available. Other components of the project
would serve non-Indian populations in Colorado and New Mexico
with municipal water. Finally, project water would significantly
strengthen the irrigated agricultural economy of southwestern
Colorado.

The construction of this project has been caught up in Con-
tinuing and long-5ta~di~g delays. ~hen authorized in 1968, it
was represented to Congress that all preconstuction planning

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