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At the regular R.G.R.T meeting on June 10, 2008, the membership voted unanimously <br />to request funding from SB 2005 - 179 - Basin-wide and Statewide Funds for the Santa <br />Maria & Continental Reservoirs: Rehabilitation & Multiple Use Studies Project, as <br />follows: <br />PROJECT AND AMOUNT REQUESTED SOURCE <br />SIB 179 <br />Santa Maria & Continental Reservoir Studies STATE <br />$141,700.00 <br />Santa Maria & Continental Reservoir Studies BASIN <br />$ 50,000.00 <br />The need for the Project is summarized as follows: <br />• The Colorado State Engineer has placed a storage restriction of 15,000 acre-feet <br />on Continental Reservoir (Continental), due to safety considerations. The <br />reservoir was constructed in 1910. The spillway is significantly deteriorated and <br />there is a serious and long-standing seepage problem on the dam. Continuing <br />deterioration and the threatened loss of structural integrity of the dam are <br />causing serious concerns, particularly in flood control and irrigation. <br />• Continental is operated in conjunction with Santa Maria Reservoir, (Santa Maria). <br />Santa Maria gets controlled discharges of water from Continental. The transfers <br />are made through a complex century-old conveyance system of a pipeline, a <br />siphon and an open ditch, covering a distance of about 8.5 miles. The Santa <br />Maria stores irrigation water, Rio Grande Compact water, San Luis Valley Water <br />Conservancy District water, Colorado Division of Wildlife (CDOW) water, and <br />Trans-Mountain water. <br />• The structural problems at Continental and the deteriorated conveyance system <br />between Continental and Santa Maria combine to severely limit the amount of <br />water that reaches Santa Maria from Continental. In addition, although Santa <br />Maria has a designed storage capacity of 43,000 acre-feet, maximum storage in <br />recent years has been only 15,000 acre-feet due to seepage issues. Santa <br />Maria's inability to store at its design capacity presents some serious implications <br />for flood control. <br />The Project, to be partially funded by this proposal, consists of conduct engineering, <br />hydrological and hydraulic studies of all structures in this combined system (the <br />System), and the preparation of cost estimates of the mitigation measures to: <br />• Remove the State-imposed restrictions on storage <br />• Restore full operating efficiencies to the system <br />• Allow Continental to hold and control additional Rio Grande Compact water <br />• Improve SMR's ability to hold and more effectively manage irrigation water <br />• Increase the system's value in flood control <br />• Improve SMR's ability to respond in times of drought <br />• Increase options to serve third parties <br />Page 2 of 4