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1-1 I! Animas. La Plata Project - Colorado and New Mexico Water has always played an important role in the settlement of the west, and settlers and Indian Tribes always sought a dependable water supply for domestic use and irrigating crops. When supplies were scarce they moved on; when sup- plies were sufficient they remained. Because of the lack of adequate storage, the water supplies of the past cannot serve the future needs of a grow- ing area. The Animas - La Plata Project, a multi- purpose water resource project, is designed to serve the future water needs of southwestern Colorado and northwestern New Mexico. Project Objectives The project wili furnish water for municipal and industrial use and irrigation in southwestern Colo- rado and northwestern New Mexico. Project water will be provided for the City of Durango and to rural subdivisions in the surrounding area. Water for the rural La Plata area will serve residents in the La Plata River drainage area, and the Animas - La Plata Water Conservancy District will purchase water for future needs. The Southern Ute Indian Tribe and Ute Mountain Ute Indian Tribe will obtain project municipal and industrial water for future potential use. In New Mexico, project water will be provided for the San Juan Water Commission to serve the cities of Farmington, Aztec, and Bloomfield, and the sur- rounding rural areas. Project municipal and indus- trial water will also be provided to the Navajo Nation in the Shiprock area. Project water will be provided forthe irrigation of approximately 42,800 acres of non-Indian and Indian land in both states. Recreational opportunities will be made avail- able with the project. The developing of land for wildlife will compensate for habitat losses, and a program will be instituted to collect and preserve cultural resources. Project Financing and Indian Water Rights The United States Congress required a cost- sharing agreement between the project benefi- ciaries and the Federal government. Under this agreement of June 30, 1986, the project will be constructed in two phases. The parties to the cost- sharing agreement are the State of Colorado; Colorado Water Resources and Power Develop- ment Authority; Montezuma County, Colorado; Animas-La Plata Water Conservancy District; New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission; San Juan Water Commission, New Mexico; Southern Ute Indian Tribe; Ute Mountain Ute Indian Tribe; and the U.S. Department of the Interior. Non-Federal entities will finance Phase 2 construction. The Colorado Ute Indian Water Rights Final Set- tlement Agreement of December 10,1986, as pro- vided for in the cost-sharing agreement, includes the Animas-La Plata Project as a cornerstone in the settlement of the long-standing Indian water right claims of the Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute Indian Tribes in Colorado. The project pro- vides for eliminating competition between the Indian Tribes and non-Indian water users through an equitabie solution to these claims. ~; '- '.~~ l.:.~ ~~~, i , ~'.''', 1.,' \~- , Project Plan Under Phase 1, Ridges Basin Reservoir, an off- stream project reservoir located southwest of Durango, will store water pumped from the Ani- mas River. Reservoir releases will be made as necessary back to the Animas River for New Mexi- co's municipal and industrial users downstream and to the Durango Municipal and Industrial Pipe- I ine to provide water for the City of Durango. Water will be pumped from the reservoir and conveyed to rural subdivisions west of Durango through the Shenandoah Municipal and Industrial Pipeline. The Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Indian Tribes will receive project water stored in the reservoir. Water pumped from the reservoir for the Colorado and New Mexico irrigators will be conveyed through the Dry Side Canal and Long Hollow Tun- nel. Water can also be diverted from the canal to the La Plata River for irrigation in Colorado and New Mexico, as well as continue in the canal to irrigate land In western La Plata County. Colorado municipal water users in the La Plata River drain- age will also receive project water delivered through the canal and tunnel. The Southern Ute Inlet and Interim Irrigation Canal will convey water diverted from the river by the Southern Ute Diver- sion Dam for the irrigation of land in New Mexico. Sprinkler irrigation will be provided by pressure developed through gravity pipe laterals and, on one lateral system, a pumping plant. A total of }.