9387

• UCREFRP Catalog Number: 9387
• Author: Brookshire, D. S., M. McKee and S. Stewart.
• Title: A Four Corners Regional Focus on the Economic Impact of Critical Habitat Designation for teh Razorback Sucker, Humpback Chub, Colorado Squawfish, and Bonytail.
• USFW Year: 1997.
• USFW - Doc Type: Albuquerque.
• Copyright Material: NO

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Chapter 2 The Study Area
A. Physical Description of the Region
The Four Corners area (see Figure 2-A-1) is situated on the Colorado Plateau, with elevations
ranging from 2,760 feet to 10,388 feet. Climate is generally and and semi-arid with average
monthly temperatures ranging from the upper 20 degrees Fahrenheit in the winter to the upper 90
degrees in July and August.
The San Juan River is a tributary of the Colorado River. It originates in the San Juan Mountains
of southern Colorado, flowing through northern New Mexico and southeastern Utah before
flowing into Lake Powell, the point of confluence with the Colorado River. Major tributaries of
the San Juan include the La Plata and Animas rivers. Like many other rivers in the American
West, the flow of the San Juan is characterized by large seasonal and temporal fluctuations. The
flow of the San Juan is largely regulated by Navajo Reservoir, located approximately forty miles
east of Farmington, NM. Under the management plan adopted for the critical habitat of the
endangered fishes, both the timing and the quantity of water released from that reservoir will be
altered.
This study includes the economies of four Native American tribes: the Navajo, the Jicarilla
Apache, the Ute Mountain Ute, and the Southern Ute. The relevant tribal lands are located in.
and the study region encompasses, the counties listed in Table 2-A- 1.2
z Note that a small portion of the Jicarilla tribal land is located in Sandoval County, NM. Inclusion of this
county is inappropriate given that its economy is dominated by the NM municipalities of Corrales and BernaliIlo.
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