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I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I OC168~) EVALUATION OF SALVAGE WELL PRODUCTION PROBLEMS IN THE CLOSED BASIN OF THE SAN LUIS VALLEY, COLORADO By Dr. John W. Hernandez For the New Mexico Water Resources Research Institute PURPOSE OF THE STUDY In September 1997, the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) asked the New Mexico Water Resources Research Institute (NMWRRI) to evaluate the operation of Reclamation' s San Luis Valley Project, Closed Basin Division, The San Luis Valley is located in the headwaters of the Rio Grande in southern Colorado, The Project consists of a large number of shallow wells ~ located in a northwest to southeast pattern along the thread of the Closed Basin (see Figures I and 2), The purpose of the wells is to recover ground-water being lost from the Basin to evapo- transpiration, The Project includes pilot and test wells, observation wells, 170 salvage wells,115 miles of pipe-laterals, and a complex system of controls and flow-measuring devices, Water pumped from the wells is carried to the Rio Grande via a 42-mile canal (see Figure 2), The production from the Project's system of salvage wells is intended to help Colorado meet its Rio Grande Compact commitments, to help the D,S, to meet its treaty deliveries to Mexico, and to provide water to two wildlife areas in the San Luis Valley, A summary of the Bureau's design objectives for the Project is provided in Table 1. The first salvage wells were drilled in the early 1980's and the last wells were put into service in the mid-1990's, In 1994, a reduction was noted in the yield from some of the Project wells, and this led to efforts to determine the causes, and to rehabilitate affected wells, Reclamation has continued to be concerned about the decline in the production and the failure of the Project to fulfill design-yield expectations, This concern led to Reclamation's request to the NMWRRI for an outside evaluation of the production-loss problem, I