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<br />In undertaking a multidisciplinary basinwide assessment of water quality, sources of available <br />water-related information for the basin, both descriptive and quantitative, need to be identified; <br />therefore, in 1994 and 1995, as a first step in conducting the Upper Colorado River Basin investigation, <br />already-existing water-related publications and data for the basin were compiled and organized. A <br />computerized literature search was done to identify many of the publications that would be useful in <br />the water-quality assessment of the basin. In addition, Federal, State, and local government agencies <br />and private organizations working, or having an interest, in the study unit were contacted regarding <br />their knowledge or possession of water-related publications and data for the basin. <br /> <br />Puroose and Scooe <br /> <br />This report presents a bibliography, coauthor and subject indices, and data sources of water- <br />related information and publications for the Upper Colorado River Basin in Colorado and Utah and <br />is a centralized source for this information. The bibliographic part of the report is a comprehensive <br />collection of approximately 1,400 references on water-related studies conducted in the Upper <br />Colorado River Basin. Journal articles, published reports and books, unpublished master's theses <br />and doctoral dissertations, conference proceedings, book reviews, approved in-press publications, <br />and maps dating from 1872 through February 1995 are referenced. Unpublished manuscripts are not <br />included. For some bibliographic citations, abstracts have been provided. <br /> <br />The listing of water-related data sources for the Upper Colorado River Basin includes information <br />on surface- and ground-water hydrology and aquatic biology. The hydrologic data consist of <br />streamflow and diversion records; water-quality information on inorganics, organics, pesticides, <br />salinity, and trace metals; water-level records; and well data. The aquatic-biology sources provide <br />information on algae, fish, and invertebrates in the basin. <br /> <br />Descriotion of Study Unit <br /> <br />The Upper Colorado River Basin study unit includes parts of the States of Colorado and Utah. <br />More than 99 percent of the approximately 17,800 square-mile drainage area is located in Colorado <br />(fig. 1). The main stem of the Colorado River originates in the mountains of central Colorado and <br />flows about 230 miles southwest into Utah. The major tributaries to this part of the Colorado River <br />are the Blue, Eagle, Roaring Fork, and Gunnison Rivers (fig. 1). These tributaries also originate in the <br />mountainous eastern and southern parts of the study unit that are bounded by the Continental <br />Divide. <br /> <br />The two-State study unit is largely rural and has a population of about 234,000 people (Bureau of <br />Census, 1991), most of whom reside in Colorado. The majority of the population in the basin is <br />concentrated in the Grand Junction, Colorado, area. Population fluctuates during the year as a result <br />of tourism, a major year-round industry in the basin, and large increases in population occur during <br />the summer and winter. <br /> <br />Most of the mountainous regions in the study unit have been set aside specifically for recreational <br />activities. In the river valleys and on the plateaus, irrigated agriculture is the principal land use. <br />Mining was the first major industry in the study unit and still is an important industry in some <br />locations. Urban land use, presently (1995) a small land-use category in the study unit, is increasing <br />as a result of people moving from more densely urbanized areas of the country to the less densely <br />urbanized mountain areas in the West. <br /> <br />2 Bibliography. Indices, and Data Sources of Water-Related Studies, Upper Colorado River Basin, Colorado <br />and Utah. 1872-1995 <br />