Laserfiche WebLink
<br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br /> <br />U.8.DEPARTlIIENTa'lHEINTERIOO <br />IlUIlEAUOf1.AIID..t'JI/l(lEl.lENT <br /> <br />[:-I REPLY REFER TO: <br /> <br />United States Department of the Interior <br /> <br />BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT <br />Colorado Slate Office <br />2850 Youngfield Slreet <br />Lakewood, Colorado 80215-7093 <br /> <br />DEe 20 ,C02 <br /> <br /> <br />www.co.blm.gov <br /> <br />CO-932 <br />7250 <br /> <br />Mr. Dan Merriman <br />Colorado Water Conservation Board <br />1313 Sherman Street, Room 721 <br />Denver, Colorado 80203 <br /> <br />Dear Mr. Merriman: <br /> <br />The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is writing this letter to formally communicate its <br />instream flow recommendation for Red Dirt Creek, located in Water Division 5. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />Location and Land Status. Red Dirt Creek is tributary to Rock Creek approximately three <br />miles north of McCoy. The reach that was surveyed starts at State Highway 131 and extends 2.3 <br />miles downstream to the confluence with Rock Creek. This reach is comprised of 40 percent <br />federal and 60 percent private land. <br /> <br />Biological Summary. Fishery surveys indicate that the stream environment is in stable condition, <br />and supports a rainbow trout fishery. Charmel and bank stability, substrate, and water quality are <br />excellent for salmonids. However, lack of pools, suboptimal cover, and variable flows are limiting <br />factors for fish habitat, underscoring the importance of adequate flows to prevent further stress to <br />the fishery. <br /> <br />R2Cross Analysis. BLM collected one data set on the creek and the resulting recommendations <br />were within the confidence interval for theR2Cross model. BLM's data analysis indicates that <br />the following flow is required to protect thll fishery and natural environment to a reasonable <br />degree: <br /> <br />1.75 cubic feet per second is recommended year round. A separate, lower instream flow <br />for the winter months is not recommended because the flows necessary to meet two of <br />three criteria are identical to the flows necessary to meet three of three criteria. This type <br />of result from the R2Cross model is to be expected with this type of cham1el morphology, <br />where depth does not vary dramatically as you move across the cham1el cross section. <br /> <br />. <br />