WSPC01779

• File Number: 8272
• Description: Colorado River - Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Program - CRBSCP
• State: CO
• Basin: Colorado Mainstem
• Water Division: 5
• Date: 2/1/1989
• Title: Salinity Update - February 1989
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Publication

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11 ' INTERIOR ROLE

Valley contributed an average of
580,000 tons of salt annually to the
Colorado River. Most of the salt is
leached from the soil and under-
lying marine shale by water
delivery system losses and deep
percolation from overirrigation in
agricultural areas. The total USDA
and Reclamation efforts in the
Grand Valley area are expected to
red uce the salt load by about
324,000 tons annually.

\ Paradox Valley in southwestern
lorado is a collapsed salt anticline
_.dderlain by a salt dome. The dome
adds about 205,000 tons of salt
annually to the Dolores River from
ground water which originates in
the valley. The plan is designed to
prevent 180,000 tons of salt annually
from entering the Colorado River
system by pumping the saline
ground water (brine of
260,000 mg/L TDS) from shallow
collection wells along the Dolores
River, thus preventing it from
surfacing in the riverbed.

Deep-well injection was selected
as a test method to dispose of the
brine because it is technically sound,
and environmentally and economi-
cally attractive. A test injection
well has been drilled to a depth of
16,000 feet. Construction of surface
collection system and treatment
facilities is nearing completion.
Actual injection of brine into the test
well is expected in late 1989.

For the Las Vegas Wash Unit, a
3.5-mile pipeline (Pittman Bypass)
constructed to detour fresh water
around saline soils is complete and,

in operation. The expected salt load
reduction is 3,800 tons annually.

Other Activities Under the
Colorado River Water Quality
Improvement Program (CRWQIP)
have been or are under study and
are categorized by the type of
control method being studied for
each unit.

Irrigation source salinity control
activities within Reclamation would
reduce salt loading by improving
irrigation delivery systems that
currently leach salt from marine
shales and other saline sources. In
addition to construction activities in
Grand Valley and Dolores Project
areas (formerly McElmo Creek
Unit), planning continues in the
Lower Gunnison Basin Unit in
Colorado and the Uinta Basin Unit
in Utah.

Point source salinity control
activities would remove salt from
localized areas such as mineral
springs, abandoned oil wells, and
geysers. In addition to Paradox
Valley and Las Vegas Wash,
Glenwood-Dotsero Springs and
Meeker Dome Units in Colorado, as
well as La Verkin Springs Unit in
Utah, are point sources.

During verification studies, three
wells in the Meeker Dome area were
successfully plugged, reducing salt
loading by 19,000 tons annually.
Studies have been concluded on
La Verkin Springs Unit. Costs of
salinity control programs at this site
were determined to be beyond an
acceptable cost-effectiveness range.