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<br />Actual Operations Under Criteria - Water year 1990 <br /> <br />Climatic conditions in the Colorado-River Basin for water <br />year 1990, as in 1988 and 1989, were again dry. Precipitation <br />for the water year was 80 percent of a~rage, for both the <br />Upper Colorado Basin and the Lower Colorado Basin. <br />Because of the extended drought and the associated soil <br />moisture deficit, spring runoff in the Upper Basin was <br />considerablybelowa""rage. Unregulated April-Julyinflowto <br />Lake Powell was 3.21 million acre-feet, 40 percent of the <br />long-term average. U nregulaled runoff is the inflow to Lake <br />Powell adjusled for the change in storage of the upstream <br />reser",irs. Lake Powell recorded a peak regulated inflow of <br />26,000 cubic feet per second on June 15, and reached a <br />maximum elevation on July I at 3,650.5 feet, with a <br />corresponding storage of 17.9 million acre-feet. The total <br />unregulated runoff into Lake Powell for the water year was <br />5.48 million acre-feet. 46 percent of the long-term average. <br /> <br />All of the Upper Basin reser",irs recorded below.normal <br />inflows in waler }<'ar 1990. San Juan Ri""r inflow into Navajo <br />Reservoir was 64 percent of the long-term average. <br />Unregulaled inflow of the Gunnison River into Blue Mesa <br />Resermir was 53 percent of normal, while unregulated inflow <br />of the Green River into Flaming Gorge Reservoir was 56 <br />percent of the long term average. Inflow into Fontenelle <br />Resecmir was 67 percent of normal. <br /> <br />Upper Basin reser",irs, flaming GOTge, Blue Mesa, and <br />Na vajo, experienced modest rebounds in storage in water year <br />1990. These increases in storage occurred because releases <br /> <br />frorn these reservoirs were primarily constrained to minimum <br />le""ls. Storage in Lake Powell and Lake Mead, however, is <br />down 3.6 and 1.4 million acre-feet from last }<'ar. respcctively. <br />The October I, 1990, system vacant space was approximately <br />17.6 million acre-feet. Aggregate Colorado Ri""r li"" slorage <br />at the end of the }<'ar was 43.9 million acre-feer. Aggregale <br />storage decreased in warer year \990 by4.6 million acre-feet. <br /> <br />Total releases from Glen Canyon Dam (deliveries from lhe <br />Upper Basin ro lhe Lower Basin) for water year 1990 were <br />8.25 million acre-feet. Calendar year 1990 was an historic one, <br />as it was the first year that a consumptive use of more than the <br />full hasic apportionment for the three Lower Basin slates, 7.5 <br />million acre-feet, was requested. The 1990 operation plan <br />aUo'Wed the 'Water needs of the Lower Basin states to be <br />satisfied~ up to 7.5 million acre-feet ofbeneficiat consumptive <br />use, during the calendar year. <br /> <br />During wa1er }<'ar 1990, Mexico received a tola! delivery of <br />aboul 1,390,000 acre-feet it the Norlherly International <br />Boundary (NIB). Of the 1,390,000 acre-feel of <br />Colorado River water reaching the NIB, about <br />570,000 acre-feet were delivered through the Pilot Knob <br />Powerplant and Wasteway from lhe All-American Canal. An <br />estimated 300,000 acre-feet were released thtough <br />Laguna Dam. The remainder of the flowa1 the NIB was made <br />up of return flows to the Colorado River below Laguna Dam, <br />and returns to the Gila Rher below the gaging station near <br />Dome. <br /> <br />2 <br />