WSP05425

• File Number: 8101
• Description: Arkansas River Basin Description
• State: CO
• Basin: Arkansas
• Water Division: 2
• Date: 9/1/1962
• Author: High Plains SCD
• Title: Watershed Work Plan - Limon Watershed Protection Project - Elbert and Lincoln Counties - Colorado
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Report/Study

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O~1748

There
uatershec~.
are leased

are no forest, woodland, or wildlife areas in the
There are 1,574 acres of State-o,med rangelands which
to individual landowners.

The Limon area is served by blO mainline railroads and two
Federal highways. The Union Pacific Railroad and U. S. Highway
40-207 connect with Denver to the northwest of LiT-lOn, The Roc!:
Island Railroad and U. S. High'Tay 24 e::tend southwestward to
Co10ra<.1o Springs. Coloradv ,Citate Highway 71 provides access to
areas north and south of Limon.

There are 583 farms and ranches with an average value per unit
oJ' ,:.;31,104 and a per acre value of ':;;24.43 in Lincoln County. Also,
there are 654 farms and ranches with an average value per unit of
."55,436 and a per acre value of ~32.98 in Elbert County according
to Colorado Agricultural Statistics, Within the watershed the value
of the agricultural land varies from ;:'40 to ,,,'50 per acre for
ranGeland and fronl ,,100 for upland to JIGS per acre for floodplain
cropland,

HATER5HED PROBLB13

The principal problem is flvod,'rater and sedifc1ent dama<;ie to
agricultural, residential, comnlercial, and municipal properties,
This danlage is caused by floods originating primarily from high
intensity thunderstonns over the rill'gelands north"est of Limon,

The areas subject to significant damages are shown on the
Aroa Damage 11ap, Figure 1. Estimates of avera~e annual damages
are presented in Table 5.

Flood'later Damages

Intense thunderstorms occurring over the rangelands above the
To,m of Limon during the swrumer months have been the most frequent
cause of clill"aging floods in the watershed, Floodwater overtops
the stream channels and flows through the urban areas dilloaging
buildings and contents and depositing sediment on streets, yards,
and in buildings. The people who live close to the channels have
frequently been evacuated from their homes, Sandbags have often
been used in the commercial district to reduce flood damages,

Infonoation obtained fram local residents indicates that dilloaging
floods occurred in the 1,atershed in 1900, 1933, 1935, 1937, 1940,
and 1950. Smaller less damaging floods occur every five to six
years. However, very little ractual infonnatio!1 is available as to
total amounts or monetary dan,age or these floods. With the project
installed flood dilloages of the type suffered in previous floods will
be reduced to a very ulnor figure.