WSP10594

• File Number: 8131.600
• Description: Southeastern Colorado Water conservancy District - SECWCD
• State: CO
• Basin: Arkansas
• Water Division: 2
• Date: 1/1/1972
• Title: Brochure No 2 - Operating Principles Fryingpan Arkansas Project and Excerpts from Letter to Secretary of Interior -- The Future of the Arkansas Valley is It's Water---
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Report/Study

ing Fork River above the town of Aspen which might
occur os a result of the project enlargement of the
Twin lakes Reservoir, the Ashcroft Reservoir on Castle
Creek, or some reservoir in lieu thereof, shall be con-
structed on the Roaring Fork drainage above Aspen
to a capacity of approximately 5,000 acre-feet: PRO-
VIDING, HOWEVER, That the Ashcraft Reservoir shall
be constructed only if the Secretary of the Interior
after appropriate study shall determine that its bene-
fits exceed the costs. AND PROVIDING FURTHER, That
no part of the construction, operation, or mainten-
ance of said Ashcroft Reservoir shall be chargeable
to the Fryingpon-Arkansas project.

3. The receipts from the sale of water from
Ruedi Reservoir, as permitted in paragraph 6(b) here-
of, shall be applied solely to the operation and main-
tenance costs and to those reimbursable construction
cos1s of said reservoir which exceed $7,600,000. The
cost of perpetual operation and maintenance of the
Ruedi Reservoir shall be borne by users of project
water and users of water stored in Ruedi Reservoir in
such proportion os may be determined by the Secre-
tory of the Interior.

5. The Ruedi Reservoir shall be completed and
in operation before any water is diverted to eastern
Colorado by means of the project.

6. (a) The replacement capacity of Ruedi Reser-
voir, and any reservoir constructed in addition there-
to, is that portion of the total reservoir capacity re-
quired to permit project diversions at times when
such diversions could not otherwise be made because
of simultaneous demands of senior diversions in west-
ern Colorado existing at the time of the adoption of
these operating principles, and shoJI be so operated
to accomplish this purpose. Water stored in such
capacity sholl be released by the United States, up-
on the request of the Colorado Stale engineer, to the
extent that water would have been available to said
decreed rights except for stream depletion resulting
from diversions by this project to the Arkansas Volley.

(b) The regulatory capacity of Ruedi Reservoir,
and any reservoir constructed in addition thereto, is
that portion of the total reservoir capacity nol needed
for replacement purposes. Water stored in such cate-
gory may be sold or leased by the United States to
water users in Colorado for any purpose recog-
nized by the laws of the United Stales: PROVIDED,
That the sale of water for use outside the natural
basin of the Colorado River can only be mode with
the consent of the Colorado River Water Conserva-
tion District. Charges for the use of such water shoJi
be established by the Secretary of the Interior by
appropriate contract in accordance with the payment
ability of such water users.

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7. The primary purpose of Ruedi Reservoir, and
any reservoir constructed in addition thereto, is to
furnish, to the extent of its capacity, in like manner as
if the project were constructed by a water conserv-
ancy district organized pursuant to the laws of the
State of Colorado, the woter required for the pro-
tection of western Colorado water users by the pro-
visions of Colorado Revised Statutes 1953, 149-6-13.

9. The respective decrees which may be or hove
been awarded to the parties hereto as a part of the
Fryingpan-Arkansas project and Basalt project shall
be administered by the proper officials of the State
of Colorado in accordance with the applicable lows
of the State of Colorado, and with the following
principles and procedures, to wit:

(1) That the demand on the waters available
under such decrees shall be allocated in the follow-
ing sequence:

(a) For diversion to the Arkansas Valley through
the collection system and the facilities of the Frying-
pan-Arkansas project in an amount not exceeding an
aggregate of 120,000 acre-feet of water in any year,
but not to exceed a total aggregate of 2,352,800
acre-feet in any period of 34 consecutive years reck-
oned in continuing progressive series starting with
the first full year of diversions, both limitations here-
in being exclusive of Roaring Fork exchanges as pro-
vided in (c) below, and exclusive of diversions for
the Busk-Ivanhoe decree; and with the further and
absolute limitation that in order to protect existing
and future beneficial uses of water in we~tern Co\o-
rado, including recreational and fishing values, the
State engineer shall so regulate the transmountain
diversions above referred to, to the end that no di-
versions shall be made which will reduce the remain-
ing aggregate streamflows to less than the minimum
standards.

(b) For storage in Ruedi Reservoir to the extent
of its actual capacity, which is to be not fess than
100,000 acre-feet.

(2) The effectuation of the above principles re-
quires concurrent Fryingpon-Arkansas project diver-
sion and Ruedi Reservoir storage to be accomplished
in the manner following: The State engineer annual-
ly shall collect pertinent data, including information
pertaining to snow pock and 011 other available
evidence, and shall thereafter so divide and appor-
tion the surface runoff os to achieve, as nearly as
possible, the foregoing diversion of water and the
maximum of concurrent diversions and storage. The
diversions herein contemplated shall be on the basis
of a water year hereby defined as that interim of
October 1 through the following September 30.

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