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regulates releases from Blue Mesa and Morrow Point, which are operated as peaking power facilities. The Aspinall Unit was constructed to provide water storage and hydroelectric power generation as well as to provide flood control, recreation, and fish and wildlife benefits. A primary purpose was to store water for delivery to the lower basin under the requirements of the Colorado River Compact. Consequently, the reservoirs of the unit store water during spring runoff, and release it gradually throughout the rest of the year. The Unit also produces electrical energy in conjunction with the other dams of the CRSP. The energy and water needs of the system dictate the schedule and volume of water releases into the Gunnison River. The net result of this method of operation is to decrease peak discharge during the runoff period and to increase streamflow during the rest of the year. A secondary effect is that water temperature is decreased during summer and increased during winter. These modifications are typical of the ecological changes in a river after the construction of a large dam (e.g. Vanicek et al. 1970). Other water-development projects constructed by the Bureau of Reclamation in the Gunnison River Basin include: Crawford Dam (Smith Fork Project), on a tributary to the Gunnison River, completed in 1962; Paonia Dam, on the North Fork of the Gunnison River, completed in 1962; Fruitgrowers Reservoir, a small reservoir on a tributary to the Gunnison River, completed in 1939; Ridgeway Reservoir (Dallas Creek Project), on the Uncompahgre River, completed in 1987. Bureau of Reclamation projects in the Colorado River Basin upstream from the Gunnison River include: Grand Valley Project, completed in 1915; Colorado- Big Thompson Project, which includes Green Mountain, Willow Creek, Grandby, and Shadow Mountain dams, completed 1943-1956; Fryingpan-Arkansas Project, 5