WSP05177 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

N OJ - serve the Town of Norwood and the rural residents on Wright's Mesa. Present water supplies for this proposed domestic system are inade- quate to serve the Towns of Nucla and Naturita. Water will be needed from the San Miguel Project for this purpose. We cannot minimize the strong desire of the local people for the San Miguel Project. The San Miguel Project is presently entering the plan formu- lation stage with a definite plan report due in 1977. A local advisory committee is being organized to provide input into the plan formulation. I am very pleased to report to you that several of the new proposals that we are considering look very promising for sub- stantially improving the project plan. First of all, we have virtu- ally eliminated salinity contributions by the sprinkler method of irrigation and by dropping out the western portion of the Dry Creek Basin area and the East Paradox area. Secondly, all of the new proposals have benefit-cost ratios well above unity. At the suggestion of local people, the Bureau of Reclamation is presently studying a plan which would involve an exchange whereby water from the southern tributary streams of the San Miguel River now used on the partially irrigated Wright's Mesa area would be diverted to the East and West Lilyland ereas and the eastern portion of Dry Creek Basin. San Miguel River water developed at the Saltado Reservoir site would be conveyed to the top of Wright's Mesa to: (1) replace the existing supply, (2) provide a supplemental supply for preE presently irrigated lands and a full supply for lands not now irri- gated, (3) operate e peaking power, hydroelectric plant by utilizing project water that will be delivered back to the San Miguel River to be used downstream for coal development. I am sure that you can fully realize the potential value of the combination of peaking and base-load power that can be produced with San Miguel Project water. 11