South Platte River Basin Assessment Report

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Conduct of the Stu This basin assessment study consists of four major components: (1) stream - flow analvsis of the South Platte River system; (2) selection of criteria to measure economic, social, and environmental impacts; (3) description of a set of water resources development alternatives; and (4) evaluation and comparison of the various alternatives and their impacts. A preliminary analysis of these four study components was presented in an interim report by Woodward -Clyde Consultants published in August 1981. Based upon the comments received from the interim report reviewers, the analyses and evaluations were revised and expanded upon as appropriate. The revised analyses and evaluations are presented in this final report. Limitation of the Stu It is important that the reader understand the limitations of the analyses developed by this study. Failure to do so could result in the study's results either being taken out -of- context or being used to reach ' conclusions not supported by the evaluations set forth in this report. The study is based upon existing information from which broad generalizations and assumptions were made concerning the characteristics of the water resources development alternatives under consideration. The introductory paragraphs of Chapters 4 and 5 detail the major assumptions used in evaluating alternatives. The study's results must be viewed in the context of the limitations imposed by those assumptions. Specifically, several of the analyses performed in the study were based on the assumption that certain conditions or circumstances would be identical for all water resources development alternatives. For example, conveyance losses will, in actuality, vary from project to project and system to system. However, given the constraints on this study and the narrow -5-