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<br />001552 <br /> <br />Chapter 3 - Affected Environment and Environmental Consequences <br /> <br />Water Resources <br /> <br />Ute Water Conservancy District Pump Plant Intake <br /> <br />Issue: Dam removal would adversely affect Ute Water's ability to pump water from the <br />Colorado River. <br /> <br />Existing Conditions: Ute Water provides water to about 60,000 residents ofthe <br />Grand Valley. Their primary water supply is transported via a pipeline from the Plateau Creek <br />drainage off the Grand Mesa. Ute Water's pump plant, located approximately 2,000 feet <br />upstream of the dam, is normally used as an emergency backup water supply. <br /> <br />Ute Water is currently reconstructing their primary water supply pipeline from Plateau Creek. <br />Whenever the Plateau Creek pipeline is out of service during the next 3 to 4 years, the pump <br />plant will be used to pump water from the Colorado River. The pump plant can supply about <br />15 cfs, which is about 60 percent of the peak daily demand during the summer. As a result, the <br />pipeline reconstruction work will take place during lower demand periods in the winter and <br />spring. Unfortunately, the schedule for this fish passage project coincides with Ute Water's <br />pipeline replacement. <br /> <br />Pumping operations require a water surface elevation of about 4,722 feet in the river (Collins, <br />1999). The dam helps maintain the required water elevation for pumping operations, especially <br />during low flow conditions. <br /> <br />Impacts <br /> <br />No Action: The No Action alternative would allow Ute Water to operate their pump <br />plant as they have historically. Flashboards on the dam as proposed in the original FERC license <br />would benefit Ute Water's pumping operations by raising the surface water elevation at low flow <br />conditions. <br /> <br />Fish Ladder with Hydropower Plant: Same impacts as No Action, including the <br />benefit provided by the flashboards. . <br /> <br />Fish Ladder without Hydropower Plant: This alternative would allow Ute Water to <br />operate their pump plant as they have historically. <br /> <br />Dam Removal: As discussed above, the Ute Water pump plant requires a river elevation <br />of at least 4,722 feet. With the dam removed, the river elevation would drop below 4,722 feet <br />whenever the flow is less than 5,500 cfs. Review of historic flow data (average of monthly mean <br />flows from 1933 through 1996) shows Colorado River flows are usually below 5,500 cfs for 9 <br />months each year, from August through April. <br /> <br />20 <br />