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<br />V. WATER SUPPLY <br /> <br />Uses <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />Irrigation is the principal use of the water from the Uncompahgre <br />River and its tributaries. Together with the water imported from the <br />Gunnison River through the Gunnison Tunyel, the water provides irri- <br />gation for about 111,000 acres of land. 5) <br /> <br />No <br />supply. <br />outside <br /> <br />community uses the Uncompahgre River as a source of municipal <br />Ground water, tributaries within the basin, or sources <br />the Uncompahgre Basin are used. <br /> <br />Fishing .activity in the Uncompahgre River is limited to a "put <br />and take" basis from Ouray to Ridgway due to poor water quality. The <br />Colorado Game and Fish Department also stocks the reach from Ridgway <br />to Montrose where fishing is somewhat improved over that upstream. <br />Below Montrose, the high water temperatures and silt load due to the <br />return irrigation flows prevents the use of the river for fishing!12) <br />With improved water quality, fish propagation is anticipated. <br /> <br />Water Quality <br /> <br />Mineral quality data of surface waters in the study area are <br />summarized in Table V, VI, and VII. <br /> <br />The data indicate that the East Fork of Red Mountain Creek and <br />the stream below the confluence of the east and west forks are <br />polluted as a result of acid mine drainage; pH values as low as 2.8 <br />were obtained. The acid from abandoned mine shafts and ground water <br />seepage in the vicinity of old mine workings contains a high level <br />of dissolved metals. After Red Mountain Creek is diluted by the <br />Uncompahgre River and other tributaries of the Uncompahgre, the pH <br />increase, along with the aeration, result in the dissolved metals <br />precipitating out of solution. These precipitated metals coat the <br />bottom of the stream or are carried downstream in suspension. The <br />effects of the pollution on biological life are apparent at all <br />points downstream to the proposed Ridgway Dam site. <br /> <br />A biological survey was carried out by the Public Health Service <br />to determine the biological condition of streamS in the area. Table <br />VIII indicates that the biological condition of the Uncompahgre River <br />above Dallas Creek is not conducive to fish propagation. Although <br />the number of bottom organisms per unit area of streambed increases <br /> <br />19 <br />