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<br />. <br /> <br />OflO"/~G <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />PARTL SUMMARY <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />The Florida River drains a ZZl square mile area in SDuthwestern CDIDradD <br /> <br /> <br />and discharges into the Animas River at a IDcation fDur miles nDrth Df the <br /> <br />CDIDradD-New MexicD state line. The general IDcation of the FIDrida River <br /> <br /> <br />is shDwn Dn Figure 1. The river flows frDm north tD sDuth with its headwaters <br /> <br />in the San Juan MDuntains. ElevatiDns within the basin vary frDm 13,000 feet <br /> <br />in the San Juan MDuntains to 6000 feet at the cDnfluence with the Animas River. <br /> <br /> <br />Annual precipitatiDn varies frDm 60 inches per year in the mDuntains tD abDut <br /> <br /> <br />1 Z tnches at the IDwer elevatiDns. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />The Florida River provides a water supply fDr irrigation Df abDut 19,000 <br /> <br /> <br />acres and fDr a municipal water supply by the City of DurangD. MDSt Df the <br /> <br /> <br />irrigated area is IDcated Dn the FIDrida Mesa, a broad and relatively flat area <br /> <br /> <br />IDcated west Df the FIDrida River and southeast Df DurangD. The FIDrida PrDject, <br /> <br /> <br />cDnstructed by the Bureau of ReclamatiDn, provides supplemental irrigatiDn <br /> <br /> <br />water fDr farmers in the basin. The primary compDnent of the prDject is LemDn <br /> <br /> <br />ReservDir. ConstructiDn Df the dam was cDmpleted in 1963, and the reservoir <br /> <br /> <br />has a stDrage capacity of about 39,000 acre-feet. TWD majDr irrigation canals, <br /> <br /> <br />the FIDrida Canal and the FIDrida Farmers Ditch, deliver water fDr irrigatiDn <br /> <br /> <br />Dn the FlDrida Mesa. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />Gaging StatiDn recDrds are available fDr several sites alDng the FIDrida <br /> <br /> <br />River, but discharge measurements have nDt cDntinuously been taken at any <br /> <br />Df the sites olver a IDng-term period. The flDws Df the FlDrida River have been <br /> <br /> <br />histDrically affected by reservoir stDrage and evapDratiDn, diversiDns fDr irrigation <br /> <br /> <br />and municipal uses, and irrigation return flows. DiversiDn records and irrigation <br /> <br /> <br />practices were analyzed and estimates of histDric stream depletiDn were prepared. <br /> <br /> <br />HistDric flDws at BDndad near the cDnfluence with the Animas River have aver- <br /> <br /> <br />aged abDut 50,000 acre-feet per year, reflecting an histDrical net irrigatiDn <br /> <br /> <br />depletiDn Df abDut 30,000 acre-feet. Virgin streamflDws at BDndad were fDund <br /> <br /> <br />to vary frDm a IDw Df abDut Z9,500 acre-feet in 1977 tD a high Df abDut 150,000 <br /> <br /> <br />acre-feet in 1979. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />-1- <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />- <br /> <br />,~-",,,, <br />