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<br />WATER FACT SHEET
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<br />U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
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<br />NATIONAL WATER-QUALITY ASSESSMENT
<br />PROGRAM-uPPER COLORADO RIVER BASIN
<br />
<br />In 1Y91. the U.s. Geulogical Sun C). U.S Dcp;u1mcnlof
<br />the lmenor. ~gan.. Nationa] Waler.Quality Asse~,menl
<br />(:-'AWQAI rrogram 1lK' Illng-Ienn j;oa]s of the NAWQA pro-
<br />gramarcwdcs,rihclhe'latu,anJtJC'n,hlnlhequ.Jlltynfa
<br />Luge. fepre\cntaUH' part of the :\':illlln'~ surf...:('- ;mJ ground-
<br />""alef re""uree, and Co lJ.:nllf~ Ih<.- maJ('f n"lUra] and human
<br />faclllfslhalafkcllht'quahl)uflhc-..:rcSllurces.lnmecling
<br />th('S(' goak the pmgram "'Ill produc'c a ....('..lIh 1'( wall'r-quallty
<br />infonnalltlO that ....IIII'IC u\..fuJ tu poh.:) ma~cf"i anJ m,lnag<'1'S
<br />allheNallon..l,Swlc."mlhJ<:alll:\d,
<br />1l1e ."lAWQA pfll!!folm C'mph"'l' h on rq~lUn:it-,...:..k
<br />...aler-quallt) prlll>lcms The pmgram ....111 nul dimim,h thl."
<br />need for sutm:gLOnal and ~Ile-~p<'cllic studie\ and momtonoll
<br />rr<.'\<.'nll~' design~'d and ronducted h~ federal. Stale. and 1".::.1
<br />a~.'nCle' I,l m."1:'tthl'lr indl~'ldu,,1 nl'eds. 111<' N,""WQ,-\ pro-
<br />gram, hO"'e."H':r, "'III pro\'ide a r<."l;lonal frame.""'wllor conduct-
<br />ing many Ilf these a.'li\-itll" and;m Unlkl'\l;mdmg ahout
<br />Il,"gional and oaliN1JI "'at,'rquality thaleannlllhcacquired
<br />frnmlndl\1l1ual.\ItC'-,pt"citicpro!!r"msandsltldiC',
<br />SrudiC', of 60hydnll,)gl': sy',tems th"t in.:lude p"ns IlJ m,,,t
<br />mJJor ri,C'r ha,im and aljl,llfrr 'y'tems hlud~-areJ in"'llga-
<br />!Jons) arc the hUlldlflg hlu.:l, uf the natKlnal assessment The
<br />60 ~tuJ~ ;,reas r;,ngc< in Silt" from lJ'-~-' '4l.larC' mill.' lU more
<br />than 6OJ):~) s<juarl' mile, and repn:sent (,4) 10 7tl percent of the
<br />NallUn\ watef 1.1..... ami populatlun <;.\.'["I.,'d h~ publK'."atcr sup-
<br />plies. T"'C'nl~ studY-.lfe" lfl'''liplh1n'i "l.n. st"rted In I'N],
<br />:!O additional started lfl l~j4. and:!O more Jre rbnncd III ~t.u1
<br />in 19'17, The." Uppt"r COI')fado RIH.r (la'ln lfl Coloradu anti
<br />l:tah "a~ "Iecl,.d:.l' I'ne of :!U study arc;,s thai began as",,-
<br />menla.OI"ttleSIn \'1'1-1
<br />
<br />1>t:~CR1PTIO."Ii OFTllt: f'PI'FR COI.OR..\I>O Rln:R
<br />U..\SI'
<br />~10f.' th:m IN per.-ent of the l'p['<-'r C"lor:,Jo RI~er Basin
<br />study Jrt";'lsrnColllTaJu;thefcm"mingr,inL'rJ.h lthasJ.
<br />dr"mage ar,.J of atxlut I 7J'OO"'luall," mllc\ The rnm:.~ rivef
<br />Wl1hln lheb"\ln,lhe CohlrJdo RI\~r,\lngmate\lnthc n}{lUn-
<br />Iam\Of,\"flrr"IColor;:lIioandtlo"sJ.b"ul:"...Omil<.,....,uth"e'i
<br />InlO L:t"h The heaJ,,:.rcrs of the Colur"do RI\er JnJ m'htof
<br />Ih tnhl.ltanes onl,':in"te m lh.. rnounlam, th:.ll ("nn the l'",t,'rn
<br />J.nd ~(luthern t""und:ones of the ,tud, ar~" ThiS I-otlundff\ I' the
<br />ClInlmelllal Dn Ide The m;IJnr lrl~utane' tll the Col<,r;Jo
<br />RI\Cf III the ~II.lJy :ifca are the Hlu~. bgk', Roanllg F"rl. Gun-
<br />nlson,anJ l:ncomp;,hpl."Rl\cr..
<br />Thl' '''o-Sl''l\'' ~tuJ~ ;u-ca IS predomlnanlly rural,:md 1\
<br />illhJhlledhyat>.lut:!J.1,l~(lrcOrle, murclh:OIl'}Q['<-'n:cntfesld-
<br />ing rn Coh,raJo The maJon1y of tht" ha<,lr\ po.-'pulahnn IS COli-
<br />centrated in th," Gr..nd JUnClif'n_ Col.'rad" "fCa Tllunsrn I'"
<br />rn<lJc>r ye<lf'R'unJ IOdu,t~ and a~nlunls for sub,tantJJI
<br />maca""" to rnpubUlln pnm.lt1l~ durtn~ "mlef and summer
<br />PhysinJ!:ntphy. G.:olul1...\, and lIydn.lol1...\
<br />lll<:'ludY"fl""ISalmn'tC'<juallydl\ldedt>cl"el.nlhe
<br />Southern R"..:~~ ,\lnuntJ.in rm' tn,'c Mtll,' eJ.<.\ and the Colo-
<br />faJo Platc311 pT\l\in.:,. In the "'e\t Thearea-,ruggeJlano:l...-::.pc
<br />dlsrlJ.y,nonh.rlOnh"'eq.trenJllllllllllunt.llllr.lf1j.":l',mlheea'l
<br />The mounlJto~ "r,' Ilaflled by ~t,"epl~ dlppJllf o;edJm,'nt:lfY
<br />n>cls. To the "".,t .He tllgh pIJl("JU' o.lrJeTeJ ~y \te,.p dill-
<br />al,'ng. th," ~alk~, DI\un":lI\e mc,,,' .1r,' ..:on'ph:Ui"'U' fcalurn
<br />m tho: J!ea. Th,. h'r"'parhy ':me, !lfl'"tl:-, "nJ JltJluJe\ range
<br />
<br />from more thJ.flI.U:lfll) feel along the Conllnental Divide to
<br />allllut -I.JOO f~l near the Colorado-Ut.m Slate line _ The pre-
<br />d"minant \egctalwn is pine. lir. and spruce foresls in the moun-
<br />rains and greao;.e",uo.\J and ...agehru,hinthclo",erallitudes.
<br />The Upper Colurado Ri~-cr Ba$in is underlain b)' rocls
<br />r:.lngmg, in age from Precamhnan (1.800 million ~'e"~J to Qua.
<br />temar-y. The long hi'lory of <;('dirnentation, t"rosion. and lec.
<br />tonic ,,"i,il,' a'iSOCialed with th~ fonn"tion of these wcks h:l-~
<br />n.'ulled in a' ellmple\ g,."ologle 'iCllmg, Preramhnan fonna-
<br />110ns of gneis...cs, '><:hislS. and granites fonn the core orthe high
<br />mountams Jnd are '~f)' resl~t,mt tot"ro\ion. S...dimelllaf)' ror~s
<br />predominate through the fe,t of the slud~' area J.nd cunsi~t pn-
<br />manh' uf sand,tunc. '1I1SIOn.c, "nd ,h:.le and loc:.ll occurrences
<br />of e\'apomcs_ Sever"l WIdespread grolog.i, fonnaltons were
<br />deposited in manoc en\"lronrTlent5 and resulted In bcdJcJ aoo
<br />Jlsseminated sodium ehlonde lhalue) and ,-alcium sulfate
<br />19ypsuml.as "'0:11 :.'clay th"t has hrghconct"ntratlOnSof
<br />e"hang~ahle sodium and magn,'sium_ Tht"sc fonnallOns con-
<br />tnhu\e suh,tantlalh-lllthe natm,,1 sourcl'sllfSJ.limt" in the
<br />\tudy J.re:l SeUlmentaf) fonnatrnn, also contain d;['<-lSlts of
<br />oil. I,il shale. elMI. and nalUral gas, The "Ihnillm CLln~i,lS of
<br />uncon~olidal~d dqx"II' thaI t~ (',,:ally tr"n,mit the m'lS! ground
<br />waleftnthestudyarca Struduralft""lUres, mdudlnganll-
<br />dines_ d.)mcs, and 1'"ulls, ("'rose IMge sequences of strat3 in
<br />thC'stud,:.Ir("a.
<br />Stre~mll(l\l. I1;\S nl:.lr~cd ".",on;,[ and annllal \;In,,hlltr)
<br />~Ilht annu,,1 'lfeJlllll'J" In lhe Urp..:r C"I,'rado Rt\er Basin
<br />fesuh~ from sno",mc]t dunng spnng J.nd early summer Mo~'
<br />annual llllOl.i\ on the\<' slre"m, "CCUf dun"/,! the snowmdl
<br />['<-.riod_ .-\Ithough the magllltude of thCSl" [Ioods c"n tx. quire
<br />large, eu-eptionalt) I<lfl:e ~nowmclt thxxh th"r could cause
<br /><.c'vere tllluJmg arc \el) uncommon 1..0" nl'''' on perennial
<br />SIreJ.m\ afe \U'lamed rn1l1anl~ h:- 11\1", from gruund waler.
<br />Gradual mcltmg of rcrrctual sno.....lie1J\ and rt"scnoir relcao;.es
<br />Jlso augmenlluw tllI"s nn some ~lreams_ Thunder'llomls in
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<br />IlILUMfTUIS
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