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, (::::> r......... 'l"~ ....-j ,.~ '."" COLORADO WATER CONSERVATION BOARD 102 Columbine Building 1845 Sherman Street Denver, Colorado 80203 March, 1975 CLOSED BASIN PROJECT The Closed Basin project lies in south central Colorado in the San Luis Valley. The project is bounded on the east and north by the Sangre de Cristo mountain range and on the west and south by the Rio Grande River. The project was authorized by the Congress in 1972. The r.:'.gG:":':11clc ,V;;"tE':l' Conservation District was created by an act of the legislature in 1967 and is acting as the sponsoring agency for the project. The district includes the counties of Alamosa, Conejos and Rio Grande and parts of Mineral and Saguache. The project is also being supported by the Conejos Water Conservancy District, the San Luis Valley Water Conservancy District, the Rio Grande Water Users Associa- tion and the San Luis Valley Irrigation Well OWners, Inc. Plan of Development The project would salvage unconfined ground water and available surface flows in the Closed Basin now being lost through evaporation. The salvage water would be delivered through a conveyance channel to the Rio Grande River below Alamosa. The present plan contemplates salvaging about 100,800 acre-feet of water annually, of which about 85,600 acre-feet would be pumped ground water and 15,200 acre-feet would be surface water. The project would be constructed in successive stages and would include a main conveyance chcnnel about 39 miles long beginning where Saguache Creek crosses State Highway 17, thence southeast along the west side of San Luis Lake and south of ,the confluence of the Rio Grande with La Jara Creek. Out- lets would be provided at the lower end of the main channel to provide water for the Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge. About 129 shallow wells would be constructed and pumped to salvage the waters now being evaporated in the lower end of the Closed Basin. The Mishak National Wildlife Refuge would be established as a part of the project and additional water would be provided for the existing Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge. Recreational facilities would be provided at San Luis Lake and the proposed Mishak National Wildlife Refuge. The salvaged waters would be used to ameliorate the effects of the Mexican Water Treaty and the Rio Grande Compact. This would mean that existing water uses in Colorado could continue with little or no curtailment. At the present time, existing uses in Colorado are being curtailed to meet treaty and compact requirements.