Southwest - La Plata West Rural Domestic Water Supply_Basin Application

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WATER SUPPLY RESERVE ACCOUNT - EVALUATION CRITERIA LA PLATA WEST RURAL DOMESTIC WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM 3. Evaluation Criteria Promoting Collaboration and Cooperation a) The water activitv addresses multiole needs or issues, includina consumotive and/or non- consumotive needs, or the needs and issues of multiole interests or multiole basins. The water supply system is being designed to provide access to ALP water for several different parties. The water supply system will serve existing rural residents in need of domestic supply as well as provide for reasonable growth in outlying parts of the county. The water source, which has been fully allocated under ALP agreements, will bring a new supply to the very water-poor La Plata River basin, thereby alleviating some of the county's dependence on Durango. b) The number and tvoes of entities reoresented in the aoolication and the dearee to which the activity will oromote coooeration and collaboration amona traditional consumotive water interests and/or non-consumotive interests, and if aoolicable, the dearee to which the water activity is effective in addressina intrabasin or interbasin needs or issues. As stated above, the project will serve several different entities potentially including the residents of southwest La Plata County, the Southern Ute Indian Tribe, the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe and the Upper La Plata Water Users Association (New Mexico). In addition, the project will be achieved through the work of several parties, including local and federal government entities. By developing means to use the allocated ALP waters, this water supply system will alleviate competition within the La Plata River basin for limited groundwater resources and assist in meeting the La Plata River Compact requirements on this over-allocated river. Facilitating Water Activitv Implementation c) Fun din a from this Account will reduce the uncertainty that the water activity will be imolemented. For this criterion the aoolicant should discuss how receivina fundina from the Account will make a sianificant difference in the imolementation of the water activity (i.e., how will receivina fundina enable the water activity to move forward). The LPWWA has developed a project plan based on extensive feasibility studies and the collaboration of local entities. There is a clear plan for advancing the water supply system and coordinating timing with ALP construction. At this time, it is critical to progress with the development of the water supply structure. This includes the planning and permitting as well as design engineering, which will be funded by this grant. d) The lenath of time needed to imolement the water activity; oreference will be aiven to activities which can be imolemented in the least amount of time takina into consideration the comolexitv of the activity. The significant effort being made to complete the water supply structure before filling of Lake Nighthorse in 2009. Therefore, all tasks outlined in this grant proposal will be undertaken in the near future or are already in progress. The entire water supply system is a very large project that will be