PROJ00515

• Contract/PO #: FS0019X
• Contractor Name: Turkey Creek Snowball Creek Project CWRPDA 1985
• Contract Type: Loan
• Water District: 0
• County: Archuleta
• Loan Projects - Doc Type: Feasibility Study

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5.7 ACCESS ROAD TO THE DAM

The road from the treatment plant to the Snowball Dam site consists of
1.9 miles of good gravelled road and 3 miles of unimproved road. In order
to construct the dam, the unimproved road will have to be improved to allow
hauling of construction equipment and materials to the dam site access
during actual operation. The unimproved road lies on Forest Service land
and land owned by J. W. Hershey. The road would be widened enough for
construction vehicles, and if constructed to Forest Service standards, road
base gravel placement and turnouts would be required. For estimating
purposes, the road was assumed to be 14-feet wide with a 12-foot gravel
width and turnouts every 1,OOO-feet. Winter access could be obtained by
the use of sno~~obiles. The City of Grand Junction utilizes these vehicles
to maintian several reservoirs on the Grand Mesa during winter months.

5.8 PROJECT STAGING

Projects can frequently be planned to allow for future expansion of
the facilities. Specifically, a dam and its components such as embankment,
internal drainage, foundation, and spillway can be enlarged to increase
reservoir storage if it is properly planned and designed in advance.
Specifically, staging allows the entity constructing the facility to defer
costs. This is advantageous if project costs exceed current payback
capabilities, or if the uncertainties of the level of development may
dictate a smaller project.
The 2,900 acre-feet reservoir used for cost estimating purposes
assumed that the reservoir would store enough water to supply Pagosa
Springs at all times, even during a drought year such as 1977. The other
option examined involved sizing a reservoir to make up water shortages
occurring from the existing diversion on the San Juan River during drought
years. The required reservoir capacity of this option is 1,200 acre-feet.
Table 5.1 shows the area capacity relationship for reservoirs constructed
at the proposed site. In order to supply 1,200 acre-feet, the dam height
would be 110-feet or approximately 25-feet lower than the dam studied.

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