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OPERATIONAL INFORMATION <br />The Bijou Irrigation District and Company jointly divert, store and deliver water to users within <br />the System. The System is bounded by Empire Reservoir on the west, the South Platte River on <br />the north, Fort Morgan Canal and Badger Creek on the east and Bijou Canal on the south. <br />The sequence of water rights calls affecting storage in the System in a typical year is as follows: <br />• The District typically begins to fill the reservoir under its storage water right at the <br />beginning of November, after District irrigation deliveries have stopped. <br />• Empire Reservoir will store throughout the winter under its storage water right until the <br />threat of freeze, which typically occurs in late January. In early March, after the freeze <br />period, the reservoir will store again and fill up to the gage height of 29.0 feet. <br />• After the reservoir has filled, the District will continue to make diversions into storage to <br />match the reservoir seepage to maintain a full reservoir. During this same period, the <br />Company diverts direct flow water for augmentation. <br />• Users begin to request delivery of direct flow irrigation water during the early part of <br />April, depending on the weather. The System delivers direct flow water for the entire <br />irrigation season with very senior water rights, using reservoir releases as a supplement to <br />the direct flow water. <br />• Users will cease requests for irrigation deliveries in mid-September, at which point the <br />Company will again divert direct flow water for augmentation. The Company will <br />continue augmentation until the beginning of November when the reservoir will start to <br />store. <br />Where to find more information <br />The Water District 1 Meeting Notes prepared for SPDSS Task 3 -Identify Key Diversion <br />Structures contain additional information on ditch and reservoir operations within the <br />water district. <br />^ The Irrigated Acreage Assessment GIS Coverage prepared for SPDSS displays the <br />boundary of the Bijou Irrigation District and Company service area. GIS coverage is <br />available on the CDSS website (cdss.state.co.us). <br />REFERENCES <br />1. Division One Water Court, Colorado Judicial Branch. December 2003 Water Resume. <br />http://www. courts. state. co.us/supct/watercourts/wat- <br />div 1 /2003 resumes/decemb er2003 . pdf <br />Bijou Irrigation System 13 of 13 <br />