WSPC04554

• File Number: 8200.765
• Description: Colorado River-Colorado River Basin-White River General Publications-Corresp-Reports
• State: CO
• Basin: Colorado Mainstem
• Water Division: 5
• Date: 5/1/1943
• Title: A War-Time Water Facilities Plan for the Lower White River Basin in Rio Blanco Moffat and Garfield Counties Colorado
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Report/Study

7

Surface-Water SupDlies

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Most of the water available for irrigation purposes comes

from snow'melt on the higher portions of the drainage basin. Dis-

charge records for the White River are available at Meeker and near

Watson, Utah. These two stations present a record of the water

entering and leaving the lower basin in Colorado. The discharge

of the ./hite River near Watson represents the unused water supply of

the White River Basin, as all irrigation rights supposedly have been

satisfied before the stream reaches this station. Tables 2 and 5

show the discharge of the YIhite River at Beeker and near Watson.

The ave:rage (depleted) di3charge of the 1',llite River near ~Peeker,

for the 56-year period of record, is 465,200 acre-feet. lfuwever,

the average annual discharge, for the 10-year period 1929-50 to

1958-59, has been only 88.5 percent of the long-time record or

410,210 acre-feet. The lowest annual discharge, 245,500 acre-feet,

and the lowest mont~ly discharge, 9,200 acre-feet' in July, were

recorded during the water year of 1955-54.
y
Assuming a net water duty of 1.4 acre-feet per acre for

11;000 acres irrigated, the discharge of the 1Vhite River near Meeker

would be depleted by 15,400 acre-feot. The average annual dis-

charge of the vihi to River at the eastern end of the Lower White

,

River Basin, for the years 1929-50 to 1958-59, v~uld be 410,210

acre-feet minus 15,400 acre-feet, or about 594,800 acre-feet plus

11 Colorado River Development, 70th Congress, 2d Session, Senate
Document 186, Dec. 10, 1928.