WSP10175

• File Number: 8141.200
• Description: Fryingpan-Arkansas Project - Mailing Lists and Correspondence
• State: CO
• Basin: Arkansas
• Water Division: 5
• Date: 1/1/1975
• Author: various
• Title: Fourteen Statements History of Fryingpan-Arkansas Project and Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Project Overview

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In order to get the approval of the State of Colorado, it was nec-

essary to create 0 Review Committee, and the Calorodo Water Conser-

vation Boord - whiCh hod been formed by Legislation in Colorado in

1937 _ then activated the POllCY and Review Committee, whiCh come

into existence from the years 1948 to 1951, and this wos the Commit-

tee that first negotiated the Operating Principles. The major results

of that Co~nittee were to change the nome of the Project from the

Gunnison _ Arkansas projecit to the Fryingpon-Arkonsa& Project. The

Fryingpan was merely the first phose of a Gunnison - Arkansas Project,

The second phose was the building of what ore now the big Dams below

Gunnison, pumping the waters sever'al hundred feet, impounding them

below Taylor Pork, and putting a tunnel through Cottonwood Pass to

spill into the Arkansa5 River roughly 40Q,OOO acre feet of water.

This plan was so big in si~e that it drew all kinds of opposition,

and it became obvious that the only way you could ever get any Fed-

eral financing through would De to drop the major diversion, and limit.

it to what is called the first phase - or now known os the Fryingpan.

This was agreed to reluctantly, but was necessary.

In February 1951, the first draft of the Operating Principles were

approved. We then set out to go baCK to Congress to get Federal

blessing. and the first Federal Document ever pUbliShed, was Senate

Document 106, th. 87th Congress, in 1952. Thi. was the result of the

joint efforts of Senators Millikin and Johnson. The first Hearings

scheduled were in the House in 1953. Between 1952 and 1953 Judge

Clifford Stone died, and Colorado was without any leader on the

Water Conservation Boord, end was greatly handicapped. The House