Laserfiche WebLink
<br />CHAPTER 1 <br /> <br />INTRODUCTION <br /> <br />1.1 Scooe and Puroose of the Studv <br /> <br />As established by the Colorado State Constitution, water is appropriated for beneficial use. In <br />the development of the state, water supplies have been appropriated for domestic, agricultural <br />and industrial purposes. As Colorado has continued to grow, the demands for domestic <br />(municipal) water supplies have created economic incentives to sell and transfer agricultural <br />water supplies. This report, authorized by the Colorado General Assembly as a part of Senate <br />Bill 92-87, documents a multi-disciplinary study of issues arising out of a possible large-scale <br />transfer of water out of the Ft. Lyon Canal to alternative uses. It examines changes to be <br />anticipated in such a water transfer and proposes alternative actions to such a water transfer. <br />This chapter presents introductory information on the Arkansas River Basin and the area of <br />study. <br /> <br />In Chapter 2, issues associated with water transfers in and around the study area are presented <br />along with information on historic water transfers. Chapters 3 and 4 present descriptive <br />information of the Ft. Lyon Canal Company system and the regional socia-economic <br />characteristics. They include a physical description of the system, operational analysis, historical <br />background, and characterization of the social, economic and environmental aspects of the study <br />area. Chapter 5 identifies current and future demands for Ft. Lyon water, inside and outside the <br />study area. Chapter 6 describes the methods employed in alternative analysis and identifies <br />alternatives to potential water transfers out of the FI. Lyon system. In Phase 2 of this report the <br />most promising altemative(s) and proposed plans for implementation will be developed. <br /> <br />1.2 Basin Characteristics <br /> <br />The Arkansas River originates upstream from Leadville at an elevation of over 14,000 feet and <br />exits the state near Holly at 3,400 feet. The basin is illustrated in Figure 1.1. In passing through <br />the plains east of Pueblo to the state line, the river gradient is less than 9 feet per mile. About <br />25,600 square miles is tributary to the Arkansas River in Colorado. Geologically, in the plains <br />the valley aquifer rests in a U-shaped trough, cut into cretaceous shale and limestone bedrock. <br /> <br /> <br />Climate in the Arkansas River Basin varies widely in both temperature and precipitation. On the <br />plains, annual precipitation levels increase moving eastward from Pueblo, reaching an average of <br />about 16 inches per year at the state line. Over the study area, average rainfall is 11 to 15 <br />inches, with a high degree of areal, daily, seasonal and annual variability. <br /> <br />The basin's water resources consist of snowmelt, rainfall runoff and ground water development. <br />Most of the surface irrigation systems were constructed between 1874 and 1890. As junior water <br /> <br /> <br />1-1 <br />