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AN lMAS-l.A PLATA PROJECT, COLORAPO ANn NEW Hr:XICO INTRODUCTION The Animas-La Plata Project \iOuld be located in the Upper Colorado River Basit1 in La Plata And Montezuma Counties of southwestern Colorado and San Juan County of northwestern New Mexico. The Congress authorized it as a participating project in the Colorado River Storage Project. PROJECT OBJECTIVES The project would be a multiple-purpose water resource development. Municipal and industrial water would be furnished to Durango and to the rural La Plata area in Colorado and to Farmington, Aztec, Bloomfield and several smaller communities, as vell as the Navajo Tribe in New Mexico. The Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute Indian Tribes would receive industrial water primarily for the development of coal resources on their reservations. The project would provide water for the irrigation of Indian and non-Inaian farmland in the La Plata at1d Mancos River drainages, and opportunities would be made for recreation at project reservoirs. A progr~ for developing land for wildlife vould compensate for wildlife losses at both reservoirs, and a program would be instituted to collect and preserve cultural resources. Project construction would take about ten years. PRorOSED PLAN Located southwest of Durango, RIDGES BASIN RESERVOIR, one of two off stream project reservoirs, would store water pUlllped from the Animas River by the DURANGO PUMPING PL~~T. Reservoir releases would be made as necessary back to the Animas River for ~ew Mexico's municipal and industrial users downstream and to supplement DURANGO PUMPING PLANT flows to the DURANGO MUNICIPAL AND INDUSTRIAL PIPELINE, connecting witl. the city's water-storage reservoir. Vater pumped by RIDGES BASIN PUMPING PUL~, to be located on the western edge of ,the reservoir, vould be conveyed in the SHENANDOAH PIPELINE to municipal and industrial vater users in the South Durango Vater District. Part of the Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute Indian ~ribes' project water and irrigation vater for Colorado farmers and municipal and industrial vater users would be stored in RIDGES BASIN RESERVOIR and conveyed through the DRY SIDE CANAL and LONG HOLLO\l TUNNEL. \later would be pUlllped to the DRY SIDE CANAL from RIDGES BASIN PUMPING PLANT. The canal would carry vater vest to project land in the La Plata and Mancos River drainages and to the canal's terminus for the Ute Mountain Ute Indian Tribe's industrial use. Vater from the La Plata River could be diverted into the DRY SIDE CANAL during spring TUnoff by the LA PLATA DIVERSION DAM or continue to flow downstream. SOUTHERN Un: RESERVOIR, storing flows diverted by SOUTHERN UTE DIVERS 1011 DAM AND CANAL, would be .located off stream on the Colorado-New Mexico State line east of the La Plata River and would store water for the Southern Ute Indian Tribe for resource development and for New Mexico irrigators. \later for New Mexico irrigators would be released through SOUTHERN UTE DAM to the NEW MEXICO IRRIGATION CANAL. ..-..........-