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8y D~le Rodebaugh Herald Sl.affWfiter c o N -.J o r-'" CD CD .... I u... Riverru La plata River' - overwhelms Bureau ofRec improvements ... c:> c:> ....... ..... c:> c:> D- CD c:> .... I I- I E o ... u... REDMESA - A section of the UI. Plata River lbat was r,e- aligned to be more environmen- ' tally functional was designed to handle heavy ~noff - but the test just came roo SOOD, aBu- rea~ of Reclamation" biologist said Tuesday. Michael Francis was explain- ing why snowmelt runoff in the past two weeks bas lorn through two sections of an S- shaped channel that was creat. ed RS part of a $1.2 million re- coo(igllred riparian area,,' two miles south or here. The re- design eliminated a l,700-foot .. " VODIJGI~/~efiid unobstructed channel that was Sbaron Dante\ talks aboul Ul~( constrUction of ,8 wetlands proJecl along tWo miles of Ihe La Plata River south of RedmeslI on causing environmental prob- Monday,A I:I~ S.shap~ C:~l1lin81 that was supposed, to relieve pressure downstream was oveMhelmed recently by h.8vy runoff. lems dowru;tream. The new channel was Rj)t dug deep e~p~lI!, Danl~1 said. The S-shaped channel was' . designed to carry up to 180 CIJ- bic feet cif water a seoond, Fran- cis said. But because of beavy runoff from melting snovv, Dows reached 475 efts last weekend and 4'50 cfts this week. Four bundred and eighty cubic feet a second is a five-year 1100d - a level calculated to occur once in fi ve yea \'S. Two southwest La Plata Cg~1y ,~side~t:s lhi.nk. .th~ s- , .....,' ..- .l'I.\~~. . I: " Heavy runoff In ftle La Plata . River recently forced water I~to the old stream cbannel, center, 8S wen as wbere a new $-shaped channel was constrUcted, left, In DecElmber ,to lessen ttte Impact on thEl channel downstream. The area 1& part of 6,000 acres of Iba ' Hunllngton Ranch that the Blll'8lu of ReclamatlDn bougllt to replace wlldllfe habitat ....... with 'hI> r.nnllburltlnn CD c:> ... on c:> I - ..... !.. a. ...::