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<br />high-water mark. The steep slopes and lack of vegetation reduce the banks' resistance to <br />scour (Reference 6). <br /> <br />The Eagle River near Red Cliff flows north and then west through the Town of <br />Red Cliff. The channel is steep, narrow, and deep, with a slope of approximately 90 feet <br />per mile, a width ranging from approximately 20 feet to 50 feet, and a depth ranging <br />from 3 feet to 20 feet. The streambed is cobbled and fairly straight. The floodplain is <br />generally confined to the channel, but it becomes as wide as 100 feet in some places. <br />The only vegetation along the Eagle River consists of willows and grasses along the <br />banks, with conifer forests in the very upper and lower limits of the study area. Only a <br />few residential dwellings are in the floodplain, scattered throughout the study reaches. <br /> <br />Turkey Creek flows east from Shrine Pass into the Town of Red Cliff and joins the <br />Eagle River in the center of town. Like the Eagle River, Turkey Creek channel is steep <br />and narrow but, unlike the Eagle River, it is not very deep. It has a slope of 125 feet per <br />mile and a width ranging from approximately 10 feet to 20 feet. The channel depth is <br />only 2 feet to 4 feet. The streambed is very rough, with many boulders. The floodplain <br />narrows to 20 feet near the mouth and widens to approximately 600 feet at Eagle Street. <br />The floodplain has little vegetation, being mostly residential; a major portion of the <br />Town of Red Cliff is in the Turkey Creek floodplain. <br /> <br />The major soil types in the Eagle River basin are of the <br />Haploborolls-Argiborolls-Eutroboralfs association. These cool, well-drained soils range <br />from deep to shallow and moderate to steep, and occur on benches and mountain slopes <br />(Reference 7). <br /> <br />In the Eagle River basin, commencing at approximately 8,500 feet, mixed aspen-pine <br />forests are prevalent up to the timberline at 11,500 feet, where alpine vegetation begins. <br />Below 8,500 feet, sage and other types of scrub bushes provide a less dense cover, with <br />cottonwood trees growing in the floodplain along many streams. Above 8,500 feet, <br />willow bushes are found along the floodplain. <br /> <br />The Town of Basalt is located in southwestern Eagle County and north-central Pitkin <br />County, approximately 20 miles southeast of Glenwood Springs. The economy of Basalt <br />primarily depends on farming, government, and local business, with recreation <br />accounting for about 30 percent of the local economy (Reference 8). Population and <br />development have increased steadily over the past 50 years, particularly in those areas <br />affected by the ski industry. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the population of <br />Basalt was 2,681 in 2000 (Reference 4). <br /> <br />The Town of Eagle, the county seat, is in western Eagle County. Located on the <br />Eagle River at the mouth of Brush Creek, the town lies 7 miles east of the Town of <br />Gypsum and 10 miles west of the Town of Wolcott and occupies an area of <br />approximately 380 acres. According to the 2000 Census, the town population is 3,032 <br />(Reference 4), with some increase in population during the winter season. Most of the <br />town's commerce is centered around the county government and the surrounding <br />farmlands, with the timber industry the main occupation for residents (Reference 8). <br /> <br />The Town of Gypsum is located in western Eagle County, along the Eagle River at the <br />mouth of Gypsum Creek. The town lies 7 miles west of the Town of Eagle and 6 miles <br />east of the confluence of the Eagle and Colorado Rivers. Although it experienced a <br /> <br />11 <br />