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WAYNE N. ASPINALL UNIT BLUE MESA, MORROW POINT, AND CRYSTAL RESERVOIRS (GUNNISON RIVER) Water Year 1995 The Wayne N. Aspinall Unit, is comprised of Blue Mesa, Morrow Point, and Crystal Reservoirs. Blue Mesa provides nearly all of the long-term storage for all three powerplants. Blue Mesa and Morrow Point provide peaking power, and thus have highly variable releases. The primary function of Crystal Reservoir is to regulate the variable releases from Blue Mesa and Morrow Point. Live storage capacities for Morrow Point and Crystal Reservoirs are 144.3 and 21.5 million cubic meters (117,000 and 17,500 acre-feet) respectively. In water year 1995 the April through July unregulated runoff into the Aspinall Unit was 1,980 million cubic meters (1,605,000 acre-feet) or 230 percent of average. Water year 1995 unregulated inflow into Blue Mesa was 2,027 million cubic meters (1,643,000 acre.feet) or 151 percent of average. Water year 1995 powerplant bypasses were 1,175 million cubic meters (953,000 acre-feet) at Crystal, 350 million cubic meters (284,000 acre-feet) at Blue Mesa, and 231 million cubic meters (187,000 acre-feet) at Morrow Point. ACTUAL CRYSTAL RELEASES 1995 IIII.LIOM CUM: II~ 100 7DO 100 100 400 TNOUUIID ACIII-Pur "I 117 OIl .... ". IU ,.. II --- - - - - / II \ ./ \ V / ""'" aoo 200 '00 o 0 .P "'~ 04' -I' ~ .; ., ..~ ~+ ~ ..~ "" ~ Section 7 consultation with the Fish and Wildlife Service on the operation of the Aspinall Unit was continued in 1995. As part of this consultation, a 5-year plan to study the effect of various release patterns on habitat and possibly on the reproductive success and reintroduction of endangered fish in the Gunnison River was outlined. Water year 1995 was the fourth year of this 5-year study and was considered a high flow scenario. Additionally, the Aspinall Unit was operated as if the draft contract between Reclamation, the National Park Service, and the State of Colorado to deliver water from the Aspinall Unit to the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Monument was in place. The operation was coordinated with the National Park Service, State of Colorado, and the Fish and Wildlife Service and others interested in the operation of the Aspinall Unit. BLUE MESA RESERVOIR Reservoir Storage Capacity - -~ -1.023 millioD cubic meters (829,s23 acre-feet) Normal Pool Elevation 2291.8 meters (7519.4 reet) Minimum Power Pool 2253.3 meters (7393.0 reet) Surface Area, full 3,715 hectares (9,t8O acres) .Reservoir Length, full 39 kilometers (24 miles) Powernlants (Blue Mesa. Morrow Point and Cnstall Number of Units Tolal Capacity 5 208,000 KW 9