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season (October 1 through Apri130), 7 cfs or the reservoir inflow, whichever is less, will be <br />bypassed through the Willow Creek Dam outlet works. No fishery flows are required during the <br />rest of the year. During the irrigation season, water is bypassed in quantities sufficient to satisfy <br />the demands of the downstream water rights that are senior to the CBT project, in particular the <br />Bunte Highline Ditch (WDID 510546). It is noted that this ditch also benefits from the <br />availability of surface tailwater from the Redtop Valley Ditch (WDID 510848 and 511315). The <br />maximum capacity of the Willow Creek outlet works is in excess of 2,000 cfs. <br />Willow Creek Pump Canal and Willow Creek Pumping Plant (WDID 510958). Water from <br />Willow Creek Reservoir is released into the Willow Creek Pump Canal where it is carried by <br />gravity about 2.3 miles to the Willow Creek Pumping Plant for pumping up into Granby <br />Reservoir. The rated capacity of both the canal and pumping plant is 400 cfs. <br />When the inflow is being directly pumped to Granby Reservoir, the diversions are credited <br />against the direct flow right. <br />Green Mountain Reservoir (WDID 363543). This reservoir was constructed as an integral part <br />of the CBT Project with the primary objective of providing replacement water to Western Slope <br />water users of the water that would otherwise be usable if said water was not withheld or <br />diverted by the CBT Project (out-of-priority diversions/storage). A secondary purpose of the <br />reservoir is to store water for hydroelectric power generation and to supply existing irrigation <br />and domestic water users in the Upper Colorado River basin. Green Mountain Reservoir is <br />constructed on the mainstem of the Blue River and commands a drainage area of about 559 <br />square miles, including the area above Denver's Dillon Reservoir. In addition to the mainstem of <br />the Blue River, the reservoir is also filled using diversions from Elliott Creek via the Elliott <br />Creek Feeder Canal (WDID 360606) with a capacity of 90 cfs. In the CRDSS Upper Colorado <br />River Model, the Elliott Creek Feeder Canal is modeled as a carrier ditch which supplies water <br />for the Green Mountain storage right. <br />Green Mountain Reservoir has a total capacity of about 154,645 acre-feet of which 6,860 acre- <br />feet is dead storage and 147,785 acre-feet is live storage (4,785 acre-feet of inactive storage and <br />143,000 acre-feet of active storage). Pursuant to the provisions of Senate Document 80, 52,000 <br />acre-feet in the reservoir (the Replacement Pool) is reserved for replacement of the out-of- <br />priority depletions of the CBT Project (diversions through the Adams Tunnel and storage in <br />Shadow Mountain, Granby and Willow Creek reservoirs). The remaining capacity of <br />approximately 100,000 acre-feet (the 100,000 Acre-foot Power Pool) is used for the generation <br />of hydroelectric power generation and the water that is released for power is available to supply <br />existing irrigation and domestic uses on the Western Slope, at no charge. <br />In 1984, the USBR promulgated a new operating policy for Green Mountain Reservoir that <br />limited use of water from the 100,000 acre-foot power pool for existing Western Slope uses. The <br />policy states that water stored in the reservoir for all existing uses, whose water rights were <br />perfected by use prior to October 15, 1977, would be limited to 66,000 acre-feet. This modified <br />storage pool is referred to as the historic user pool. Subsequent to the implementation of the new <br />operating policy, the remainder of the 100,000 acre-foot pool (34,000 acre-feet) was set aside <br />and made available for contract purchase by industrial water users (entities that were not entitled <br />Upper Colorado River Basin Information 2-5 <br />