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Executive Summary <br /> be serviced through long-term water supply contracts between the Secretary of the <br /> Interior(Secretary) and the Navajo Nation. The Secretary would make the water <br /> available for contract deliveries under existing New Mexico permits that the Secretary <br /> holds. <br /> Jicarilla Apache Nation water would come from Navajo Reservoir as part of the water <br /> obtained through the Jicarilla Apache Nation Water Right Settlement. The Jicarilla <br /> Apache Nation has an existing water supply contract for this water. It is anticipated that <br /> the city of Gallup would contract through the Jicarilla Apache Nation and/or Navajo <br /> Nation for its water supply. A long-term water supply subcontract among the Jicarilla <br /> Apache Nation and/or Navajo Nation, the city of Gallup, and Reclamation would be <br /> needed to finalize this arrangement. <br /> ECONOMIC AND FINANCIAL ANALYSIS <br /> The economic analysis compares project benefits measured by willingness to pay and <br /> cost of alternative source of water to project cost. The benefit to cost ratio is 1.15, which <br /> represents a beneficial use of national resources. The financial analysis addresses the <br /> cost of project water delivered to the users. The levelized cost of project water to the user <br /> is estimated to be $6.98 per thousand gallons. This compares with $5.56 per thousand <br /> gallons for the Lewis and Clark Project and $8.32 per thousand gallons for the Rocky <br /> Boy's/North Central Montana Regional System, both of which are authorized Federal <br /> rural water projects. <br /> AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL <br /> CONSEQUENCES <br /> Positive impacts would occur from implementing the preferred alternative. The average <br /> flow in the San Juan River would be increased by approximately 5 cubic feet per second <br /> between Navajo Dam and the SJRPNM diversion. This increase would provide <br /> additional dilution for water quality improvement and would improve the habitat for <br /> fish (including the tail water trout fishery). Indian Trust Assets could be put to use by <br /> providing the Navajo and Jicarilla Apache Nations a water supply system. The <br /> socioeconomic resources would be improved by providing up to 650 jobs during <br /> construction and boosting the income to the region. An M&I water supply would help <br /> boost the overall economic growth to the region. <br /> Negative impacts associated with construction of such a large project are unavoidable. <br /> They consist of a permanent loss of 43 acres of vegetation and associated wildlife habitat, <br /> S - 9 <br />