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. .. . . . . I . I . . I I . I I I -I I GENERAL AREA BACKGROUND Silt and environs~e located in west central Colorado in an area dominated by high mountainous terrain with a few deep valleys. The major-water course adjacent to the town is the_Colorado River which flows.to the west and is approximately 1000 feet south.of the town limits at the closest point. The town proper sits on a bench above the floodplain of the Colorado River, thereby putting it above the 100 year flood elevation. Approximately 4 miles to the north is Harvey Gap Reservoir which supplies water to both branches of the Farmers Irrigation Company Ditch. Less than 20 miles to the east, at the confluence of the Roaring Fork and Colorado Rivers, is Glenwood Springs, the present business center for the area. Six miles to the east is the Town of Newcastle. Seven miles to the west lies Rifle, the center of potential oil shale development in the area, having the potential for replacing Glenwood Springs as business center. Generally, between the towns along the Colorado River, agricul- tural activity persists with cattle ranching being the most prevalent. It is intuitively obvious that agricultural use will not remain the most attractive use of the land as energy development continues and pressures for development to accomodate population growth increases. Silt's economy is based on agriculture, trade from highway traffic, a.modular home factory, and some very light commercial/ industrial activities: It has a very limited Tange of retail shopping and most residents do ,the major portion of their shopping in either nearby Rifle or Glenwood Springs. Silt, although one of the smaller communities in the region, has a better industrial base than do other towns its size. The town has already experienced some direct impact from energy development in the area, However,past experience indicates that the most dramatic increase in its population will be due to activities supporting energy development. 1-2