PROJ01952 ‎(2)‎

• Contract/PO #: C150131
• Contractor Name: Paonia, Town of
• Contract Type: Loan
• Water District: 0
• Loan Projects - Doc Type: Feasibility Study

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

General

Paonia is located on the South Bank of the North Fork of the Gunnison River
in Delta County (see Figure 1). The Town is located at about Elevation 56001. The
North Fork of the Gunnison River does not provide a good drinking water supply
because of the high concentration of salts in the river that result from the run-off
over shale bedrock in its drainage basin.

Paonia's raw water supply system has been designed to take advantage of
the unique topographical and geological features of Mount Lamborn and Landsend
Peak, located approximately 5.5 and 7.0 miles southeast of the Town, respectively.
Mount Lamborn and Landsend Peak are formed by igneous rock intrusions through
Mancos shale. Over geologic time, the deterioration of the igneous rock peaks has
resulted in numerous talus deposits along the northern slopes of these peaks.
Several springs were formed where the permeable, deteriorated igneous rock
overlies the much more impervious Mancos shale. These springs produce water
sources that are fed by snowmelt. Most of these springs are located between
7,000 to 8,000 feet in elevation.

Paonia was incorporated as a municipality in the State of Colorado in 1902. In
1905, the Town borrowed about $50,000 to install small raw water transmission
pipelines from the springs on Mount Lamborn into Town. Since that time, Paonia has
continued to develop additional springs and install pipelines to increase the capacity of
its raw water system, In 1992, the Town purchased Todd Reservoir to provide
additional storage for its raw water supply system. A plan view of the Town's water
supply system is provided on Figure 2 and a schematic of the Town's collection system
is provided on Figure 3.

, All elevations are reported in feet above the National Geodetic Vertical Datum.

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