<br />COLO~ADO RIVER STORAGE PROJECT,
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<br />5,
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<br />Tlleffiue Mesa Dam, located 30 miles downstream from Gunnison,
<br />would be the largest of the series in the Curecanti unit. It would he
<br />an earth-fill structure about 3,50 feet high abo<'e its foundation 'and
<br />about 820 feet long at its crest. The reservoir would have a capacity
<br />of ahout 940,000 acre-feet at a high-wltt,er eh',vation of 7,520 fo,et,
<br />About 200,000 acre-feet of the reservoir capacity would be inactive:
<br />The active capacity ~ould provide the principal seasonal river rcgu~
<br />lation for the unit :powerplants. Recreational facilities would be
<br />provided at the resel'voir.'
<br />Investigation and iplanning of the Curecanti unit are cont,inuing.in
<br />more detailed scope as required by the authorizing act.
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<br />Transmission division
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<br />The authorizing act of April 11, 1956, provides that project power-
<br />pl"ntB "nd tr"nsmission fMilities shall be operated iu conjunctiou with:
<br />other Federal powerplants, present and potential, so as to produce the
<br />gre"test practicable' amount of power and energy that can be sold at,
<br />firm power and energy rates, To carry out the provisions of the law,
<br />a high,voltage trausmission and grid will be constructed to inter-
<br />connect the plants Of the authorized units of the storage project and
<br />to effect interconnection with other existing Federal powerplants and
<br />utility systems in the area, '
<br />The transmission; division includes the high-voltage lines from stor-,
<br />age unit switchyard;s to substations at major load centers and points Of
<br />interconnection and the substations at those points. Facilities of the
<br />trausmission division will be extended as necessray to provide intercon"
<br />nections with futuie units of the storage project and with Other }<'ed-
<br />eral plants and to provide for interconnection of future participating
<br />project transmission lines with the high-voltage grid. The extent and
<br />location of the high-voltage transmission grid will depend on the
<br />market area requirements for project power, the desires of power users,
<br />to purchase,projeet power, points of interconneCtion with other sys-
<br />tems, and the final allotments of power to various users. ,
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<br />PARTICIPA'l'ING PROJECTS
<br />
<br />Participating projects are those which will cons1lme water of the
<br />uPl?er Colorado River system for irrigation and other purposes and
<br />which will require; assistance from power revenues of the storage proj-
<br />ect in the repaym~nt of irrigation costs. An initial group of 11 partiCl-
<br />pating projects "flas ltl~thorized by tI,e act of ,April ,11, 1~56. These
<br />mclude the Paoma, Smlth Fork, Flomla, and Silt proJects m Colorado i
<br />the Pine River extension in Colorado and New Mexico; the Hammona
<br />project in New Mexico; the centra.! Utah project (initial phase) and
<br />Emery County project in Utah; and the Seedskadee, La Barge, and,
<br />Lyman projects p:> Wyoming. The pr?jects .combined will provide
<br />water for 0. total pf about 365,100 acres, mcludmg about 132,800 acres
<br />of full service land and about 232,300 acres of supplemental service'
<br />~~ ; ,
<br />Brief descriptIons of the 11 initial participating projects appeal"
<br />below. Data Oil irrigable area, reservoir' storage capacity, and water'
<br />supply are summarized in the table on page 8. :
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