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- Colorado River Basin Salmlty Control Proaram I , W (,.'", be 8.800 tons per year with about 7.700 Ions resu]llng from lateral improvements. AboUI 57 land- owners and 15 lateral companies or groups of landowners ""ould be involved. This unit has nOI yet be!:n included in [he Colorado River Salinity Control implementatIOn plan and no implementation actIons have been taken. . -- McElmo Creek Unit - Dolores Project The ;\1cElmo Creek Basin is located in southl,l,estern Colorado and covers arrrD.'<imately 720 square miles. Aoout 150 square miles of the basin. mostly in the eaSI, are agricultural land. Early studies show [hal sail-loading results from bolh irrigation and diffuse sources, with irrigation he 109 the main contrihutor. The IOta I irrigation diversion into the area a\'erages 105.200 af/yr. The average salt load contrihuted by the McElmo Creek Basin was e<,timated at 119.000 tons per year. The Montezuma Valley Irrigation Company divem water from the Dolores RIver to serve irrigation in the McElmo Creek BaSin. The salinity of the diversion averages 130 mg1L. Return flows from agriculture increase the salinity in McE]mo Creek (0 about 2.600 mg/L al the Colorado-Utah State line. Reclamation-The study included testing canal seepage. devel(lping a hydrosalinity budget. and evaluating salinity contra] alternatives. The sludy tested canal seepage at 15 sites along 115 miles of canals. Groundwater monitoring included 125 wells for water table elevation. salinity. and hydraulic conducllvity. Irrigation research was done on seven tesl famls representing various soil Iypes. fann sizes. ifTIgation methods. and faml managemem. Results indicate seepage rates for most of the Montezuma Valley Irrigation Company distribution system are low 10 moderate except for locations where canal sections have been CUI through shale. The plan was 10 imprO\e three secliom. of ~Iontezuma Valley Irrigation Company canals. IWO all the wne Pine lateral and one on the Upper Hemum lateral. and to install laterals from the Touaoc-Highline Canal to serve Ihe Rocky Ford Ditch service area The Rocky Ford Ditch would then be abandoned as part of Ihe plan. and its flows would he combined imo the TOW311c-Hlghline Canal. The plan will reduce groundwater seepage from canals by 4.060 acre-feel a year and reduce the amoum of sail returned 10 ~lcElmo Creek. The McE]mo Creek Unit was authorized for construction by Public Law 98-596 m October 1984 as pan of the Dolores Project. a participating project of the Colorado River Storage Projecl. Included in the project were seepage centro] from the Towaoc-Highline Canal. Roc~y Ford laterals. Lone Pine lateral. and the Upper Hennana latera] The improvements have been completed. l'S[):\- The McElmo Cred USDA salimty contra] report was published in 1983. with the final environmental impact statement released in 1989. The recommended plan calls for treatment of about ~ 1.550 acres with spnnkler Irrigation systems and about ;::70 miles of onfann ditch and laleral ]ming. 53