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I I I I I CHAPTER 2 DESCRIPTION OF THE STUDY AREA Location and Land Use I I I I I I The Big Sandy River unit is located in southwestern Wyoming, approximately 30 miles north of the town of Green River. The study area encompasses parts of Sublette, Fremont, and Sweetwater Counties. The watershed as outlined in Figure I-I (page 1-2) is made up of two major drainages--the Big Sandy River and Little Sandy Creek. The Big Sandy River is a left-bank tributary of the Green River. The total watershed area is 1,918 square miles (1,227,520 acres) with 758 square miles in Sublette County, 91 square miles in Fremont County, and 1,069 square miles in Sweetwater County. Included in the Big Sandy Unit is a noncontributing area named Sublettes Flat lying directly north of the lower reach of the Big Sandy River. The Big Sandy River and its major tributary, Little Sandy Creek, originate at elevations of about 13,000 feet mean sea level (msl) in the Wind River Range of the Bridger National Forest. These streams flow in a southwesterly direction--coming together within the irrigated area of Eden Valley near the community of Farson. From this confluence, the Big Sandy River continues southwesterly for another 26 miles before entering the Green River. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation withdrawal area comprises approximately 90,000 acres. The area is approximately 21 miles long in a north-south direction and about 7 miles wide (east-west direction). The upper north end of the withdrawal area encompasses the Big Sandy and Eden Reservoirs. I I I I I I I I The Eden Valley Project comprises 18,370 acres of water-righted lands. Detailed investigation indicates approximately 15,700 acres are presently being irrigated. The principal crops grown in order of acreage are alfalfa, other hay, pasture, and small grains. Some 68 percent of the watershed is national resource Lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management. About 15 percent is national forest land administered by the Forest Service and about 9 percent is Bureau of Reclamation withdrawals for agricultural purposes. The remainder of 8 percent is equally divided between private and State ownership (see Table 2-1). The major land use is range or pasture lands which constitute 1,096,970 acres or 89.0 percent of the total watershed area, The forested land of the mountains total 74,600 acres of which 62 percent is suitable for grazing by domestic livestock. The water-righted cropland accounts for 18,370 acres or only about 1.5 percent of the area. No dry cropland is currently being farmed in this area. Other land uses total 37,580 acres. U'\. J r {' .', . ,,,.;Jv.t 2-1