WSP05388

• File Number: 8449
• Description: Platte River Projects
• State: CO
• Basin: South Platte
• Date: 9/9/1980
• Author: USGS
• Title: Hydrologic Analysis of the Proposed Badger-Beaver Creeks Artificial-Recharge Project, Morgan County, Colorado
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Publication

I

Table 2.--StorahZe fWws into the proposed Na.r'rows Reserooir
[Computed from U.S. Bureau of Reclamation analysis for 1947-1974]

Month

Percentage of the time that the indicated flow may be stored

10

80

90

20

50

I

,october-----n-
November-n-n-
necember-n-n-
Uanuary--------
'Februaryn-n--
~a rch--n------
Apr i l___n_n__
May-----n-----

lune-~:::~~~~~~ 740
I

I DELIVERY AND RECHARGE OF THE DIVERTED WATER

i The proposed project would divert water through much of the existing
Bijou Canal before diverting it into new canals to be built as part of the
project. Some of these canals would lead to depressions in the adjacent sand
hills where ponds would be formed. The purpose of these canals and ponds is
~o allow water to recharge to the adjacent and underlying aquifers. James
Pugh (Superintendent, Bijou Irrigation System, written commun., 1978)
es t i mates seepage a long the dOlvns tream I eng th of the B i j au Can a 1 to be 12 to
,15 percent of the flow. According to I1r. Pugh, and a local reti red farmer
who was interviewed, a ditch was constructed about 1900 in the vicinity of
part of the proposed system west of Badger Creek valley. This ditch was
~bandoned due to large seepage rates.
,
! During a field trip to the area June 12-14, 1978, several observations
of flow were made. On June 13, water was released from Bijou Canal into Bad-
ger Creek in sec. 6, T. 2 N., R. 57 W. The duration of the release was less
than 2 days and the quantity was unknown; the flow in the canal on the morn-
'ing of June 14 ",as measured at 8 ft3/s. The enti re release seeped from the
channel within a 0.5-mi reach below the release point. During the same trip,
water from the Fort Morgan Canal also was being released into Badger Creek in
~ec. 21, T. 3 N., R. 57 W. Discharge measurements indicated 12 ft3/s in Bad-
ger Creek about 1 mi dO\'instream and only 4 ft3/s, 2.5 mi dOI'instream from the
release point. The creek channel was completely dry 1 mi farther downstream.
Previous releases of unknown quantities from the Fort Morgan Canal had caused
seepage losses from Beaver Creek for a distance of about 2 mi downstream from
the release point.
I
I

"

Thousand~ of acre-feet

57
36
30
48
46
48
60
190
230

9.0
8.5
16
31
32
33
47
100
170

0.1
.1
.1
.3
.3
.2
.1
.1
.1

0.3
.1
.3
.5
.5
.9
.9
.4
.2

1.7
1.1
1.2
3.3
4.8
7.0
6.1
5.7
12

450

43

4.1

1.4

L2

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