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<br />prior to construction funding, In addition, consideration has been given
<br />throughout the document to Executive Order 11990 on the protection of
<br />wetlands,
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<br />2, Location
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<br />As shown on the frontispiece map, the project area lies within La
<br />Plata and Montezuma Counties of southwestern Colorado and San Juan County
<br />of northwestern New Mexico in what, because of the unique juncture of the
<br />States of Arizona, Utah, Colorado, and New Mexico, is referred to as the
<br />Four Corners Area'. The project would involve four river systems within
<br />the Upper Colorado River Basin.' They are, from east to west, the Animas,
<br />La Plata, and Mancos Rivers, which are tributary to the fourth river, the
<br />San Juan, in the south. The San Juan River is, in turn, a major tribu-
<br />tary of the Colorado River, which it joins at Lake Powell in southeastern
<br />Utah, The principal cities in the project area--Durango, Colo., and
<br />Aztec and Farmington, N, Mex.--are situated along the Animas River. All
<br />of the project agricultural land is within the La Plata and Mancoa River
<br />drainages and is predominantly within the general boundaries of the
<br />Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute Indian Reservations.
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<br />3. Water Uses
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<br />The project would provide average annual water supplies of about
<br />198,200 acre-feet, consiating of 118,100 acre-feet for irrigation and
<br />80,100 acre-feet for municipal and industrial use. Approximately 169,400
<br />acre-feet of water would come from the Animas River, 17,000 acre-feet
<br />from the La Plata River, and 11,800 acre-feet from reusable return
<br />flows. The irrigation water would provide full service for land that is
<br />presently not irrigated, but which studies (Bureau of Reclamation, 1979)
<br />have shown is suitable for sustained irrigated crop production. Supple-
<br />mental service would be provided for land that is now irrigated, but for
<br />which the present water supply is inadequate in most years to allow
<br />maximum crop production. With the exception of land in the La Plata
<br />drainage that is north of the general boundaries of the Southern Ute
<br />Reservation, ail project land would be sprinkler irrigated.
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<br />Of the water that would go to various municipal and industrial
<br />users, almost one-half would be provided to the two Ute Indian Tribes to
<br />accommodate industrial development of resources, principally coal, on the
<br />reservations. The remaining municipal an~ industrial water supply would
<br />be made available to meet existing or projected demands in Durango,
<br />Aztec, and Farmington and their immediate surrounding areas: the smaller
<br />communities of Bloomfield and Blanco, N. Mex.; rural users in Colorado in
<br />the La Plata drainage: and the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority for
<br />distribution to the t,owns of Upper Fruitland, Nenahnezad, and Shipro'ck,
<br />N. Mex. and the proposed cotmllunity of Ojo Amarillo, all on the Navajo
<br />Indian Reservation west and south of Farmington. The municipal and
<br />industrial water supplies are planned to meet projected needs of the
<br />project area until approximately 2010 in New Mexico and 2020 in Colorado,
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<br />A-2
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