Laserfiche WebLink
<br />. <br /> <br />OPERATION SKIM <br /> <br />Big Thompson River water in excess of the minimum requirements, as recommended by the <br />State of Colorado Division of Wildlife and the Federal Fish and Wildlife Service, is diverted at <br />Lake Estes into the Foothills System for power generation. This operation is known as operation <br />"skim." The amount diverted depends on the flow at the Big Thompson River and the tributaries <br />above Lake Estes, importations through the Adams Tunnel, and the capacity of the Foothills <br />System. <br /> <br />The water taken from the Big Thompson River can be used for power generation immediately. It <br />can also be held in storage and replaced to the river with water from other sections of the system, <br />depending on the power requirements. In general, water taken from the Big Thompson River at a <br />variable rate, on a given date, is returned to the river at a flat rate, on the following day. <br /> <br />Operation "skim", and storage of surplus water from the Big Thompson River in project <br />reservoirs are managed according to the AOP and as prescribed by the Resources Division. <br /> <br />During water year 1999, a total of 18,400 acre-feet of water were diverted through Olympus <br />Tunnel for "skim" operations. Dille Tunnel diversions totaled 51,452 acre-feet for water year <br />1999. <br /> <br />26 <br />