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<br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br /> <br />3. FORT LYON IRRIGA TlON FACILITIES <br /> <br />The Fort Lyon Canal Company provides irrigation water for about 93,000 acres of <br />land located north of the Arkansas River and extending generally between La Junta and <br />Lamar. The Fort Lyon Canol Company owns and operates the Fort Lyon Canal, through <br />which direct flow water is delivered to its shareholders and through which water for the <br />Great Plains Reservoir system is diverted. It also owns the Horse Creek-Adobe Creek <br />Reservoir system and on interest in the Great Plains Reservoir system, both of which <br />supply supplemental storage water. Figure 2 shows the locations of these major features. <br /> <br />3.1 Direct Flow System <br /> <br />The Fort Lyon Canal headgate is located on the north bank of the Arkansas River <br />obout four miles upstream from La Junta. The canal extends generally east a distance of <br />about 110 miles. Water for Fort Lyon shareholders is released into over 200 laterals <br />distributed along its length. Water for the Great Plains Reservoir system is diverted into <br />the Fort Lyon Conal under its own priority and transported about 42 miles to 0 <br />bifurcation structure. At this location, the Great Plains water is released into the <br />Kicking Bird Canal. The capacity of the Fort Lyon Canal above the Kicking Bird <br />bifurcation is about 1,800 cfs; downstream, it ranges from about 1,500 cfs to about 600 <br />cfs. A Porshall measuring flume has been constructed on the Fort Lyon Canal about one <br />mile downstream from its diversion dam. This flume measures both diversions under the <br />Fort Lyon direct flow priorities ond diversions for the Great Plains Reservoir system. <br /> <br />The Fort Lyon has direct flow water rights permitting diversions at a total rate of <br />933 cfs, broken down into the priorities as shown below: <br /> <br />Amount (cfs) <br /> <br />Priority Date <br /> <br />164.64 <br />597.16 <br />171.20 <br /> <br />April 15,1884 <br />March I, 1887 <br />August 31, 1893 <br /> <br />T able I shows monthly and annual diversions into the Fort Lyon Canal during compact <br />years 1951-75. It was prepared from the Fort Lyon Annual Reports by subtracting the <br />reported Kicking Bird diversions from the reported total diversions. The diversions <br />averaged about 200,000 acre-feet per year during this period, ranging from a low of <br />about 100,000 acre-feet to a high of over 300,000 acre-feet. Diversions during the <br />winter season (November through March) averaged about 63,000 acre-feet per year, or <br />about one-third of the annual average. <br /> <br />5 <br />