PUB00039

• Year: 1992
• Title: Bureau of Reclamation Durango Projects Office Information
• CWCB Section: Water Conservation & Drought Planning
• Description: Information about various Durango projects
• Publications - Doc Type: Historical

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buried pip@ lateral systems. Vater is distributed to lands in the Montezuma
Valley area through a gravity distribution system oyned by the MVIC.

Municipal and Industrial

Municipal and Industrial (M&I) yater supplies for the communities of Cortez and
Toyaoc are stored in McPhee Reservoir and delivered through the Dolores Tunnel
to the treatment plant. Treated water is delivered to Cortez and Towaoc
through the Cortez-Toyaoc pipeline (not a project feature). Vater supplies for
Dove Creek and the surrounding rural areas are conveyed in the Dove Creek
Canal. Vater users are responsible for the required treatment and distribution
facilities.

Power

Power plants (currently under construction) yill be located on McPhee Dam and
the Towaoc Canal to generate power that will enter the Colorado River Storage
Project power transmission system. The McPhee Dam power plant will operate
year-round on fishery releases from McPhee Reservoir and will generate an
average 7,170,000 kVh annually. The Toyaoc Canal power plant yill operate from
April to October on the irrigation yater supply conveyed through the canal and
yill generate 30,318,000 kVh annually.

Salinity Control

Salinity control benefits are derived by lining sections of the Lone Pine and
Upper Hermana laterals in the MVIC distribution system to prevent seepage;
abandoning HVIC's Rocky Ford Ditch, Lower Hermana Lateral and Highland Ditch
and including their floys in the Toyaoc Canal and constructing buried pipe
laterals to provide pressure service to the Rocky Ford area. These project
features Yill reduce salt loading to the Colorado River system by
approximately 24,500 tons annually.

Flood Control

Flood control benefits are derived by operating McPhee Reservoir in accordance
with criteria developed by the Bureau of Reclamation and the Corps of
Engineers.

Recreation

McPhee Reservoir provides significant and someyhat unique recreational
opportunities in the project area. Boating and yater skiing are very popular
as well as the warm and cold yater fishing opportunities. Recreation
facilities including boat ramps, camping, and day use facilities are provided
at the reservoir. A trout fishery has been created in the Dolores River beloy
McPhee Dam as a result of year-round flows made possible by storage and release
of project water from McPhee Reservoir. The value of this fishery has been
greatly enhanced by the acquisition of public access. Both camping and day use
facilities are provided. Vith the abandonment of the Rocky Ford Ditch (a
salinity control measure), Totten Reservoir will no longer serve an irrigation
purpose for the MVIC. Eight hundred acre feet of project water yill be made
available annually to maintain the fishery in the reservoir and provide
recreational opportunities in the area. Money for operation and maintenance of
Totten Reservoir yill be provided to MVIC from appropriated salinity control