PUB00095 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Colorado's Major River Basins Four major river basins drain most of Colorado, all with their headwaters in the high mountains of the Continental Divide. The South Platte flows northeast into Nebraska, the Arkansas runs southeast into Kansas, the Rio Grande flows south into New Mexico, and the Colorado drains westward into Utah. Rivers east of the Divide flow ultimately Into the Gulf of Mexico, while the western streams find their way, via the Colorado River, to the Gulf of California and the Pacific Ocean. COLORADO RIVER The Colorado River system drains over one third of the state's area. Originating in the north central mountains, the main stream of the Colorado flows southwesterly, is met at Grand Junction by the Gunnison River and continues west into Utah. The Yampa and the White move westward across the northwest quadrant of the state and to the Utah border where they join the Green, another tributary of the Colorado. The San Miguel and the Dolores begin near the southwestern corner and travel north along the western border. The San Juan and its tributaries collect the water in the southernmost regions west of the Divide and carry it into New Mexico. Less than 20% of the Colorado River Basin lies inside Colorado, but about 75% of the water in the river originates in the state. The area receives nearly 60% of the state's total precipitation but has only 12% of its population. However, millions of gallons of this seemingly surplus water have been allotted. by treaty, compact and diversions, to a variety of claimants in eastern Colorado, in several other states and in Mexico. Now, Colorado residents of the Colorado River watershed have the use of less than half the water flowing there. SOUTH PLATTE RIVER The South Platte River drains the most populous section of the state and serves the area with the greatest concentration of irrigated agricultural lands. its waters originate chiefly in the mountain streams along the north half of the Front Range of the eastern slope. The main stream moves north, then east, and meets the North Platte in southwestern Nebraska. The basin includes less than 20% of the state's area but over 67% of the population lives there. Page 8 A large portion of the water diverted from the Coiorado River is used in this region. Here new industry and rapidly expanding urbanized areas compete with agriculture for the limited supply of water. Although data indicates both rural and urban centers are growing, this growth does not represent agricultural growth since the trend is toward urbanization. Less than one third of the land in this basin is public iand. ARKANSAS RIVER The Arkansas River begins in the central mountains of the state, near Leadville. It travels eastward through the southern part of Colorado toward the Kansas border. Several tributaries flow from the high southern mountains toward it from the southwest, and there is some drainage from the higher plains north of the main stream. The basin includes slightly less than one third of the state's land area and 20% of the state's population. Over 20% of the land is publicly owned. A high percentage of the iand is devoted to agriculture and about one third of this land is irrigated. Increasing urbanization is apparent in the Arkansas River Basin. RIO GRANDE RIVER The Rio Grande drainage basin is located in south central Coiorado and is comparatively small with less than 10% of the state's iand area and only 1 % of its population. Land is about evenly divided between public and private ownership. It is largely rural and it contains approximately 15% of the irrigated land in Colorado. Since it lies between two high mountain ranges, the San Juan and the Sangre de Cristo, it is somewhat isolated. This factor coupled with a lack of employment opportunities has resulted in a recent decline in population. Because of the low populationdensily the Rio Grande is the only large river that leaves Colorado with relatively clean water.