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<br />j <br />I <br /> <br />The rcduction in the salinity load at the White River below Meeker <br /> <br />! II <br /> <br />gage and ,at the mouth of Piceance Creek is noticeable in the samples <br /> <br />collected and shawn in the attached tables. The salinity load of the <br /> <br />White River and the Colorado River system has been reduced by about <br /> <br />62,500 tons annUll.lly. This is about 19 perccnt of the average Elnnual <br /> <br />salinity load at the ,fuite River near Watson, Utah, gage and should be <br />I <br />noticeable when the Geological Survey's 1968 and 1969 ~uality records <br /> <br />become avbilable. <br /> <br />FWPCA has estimated that the benefit of the salinity reduction at <br /> <br /> <br />llo'ovef Dam has a present net worth value of $4.95 million. This bene- <br /> <br />, <br /> <br />fit gives a benefit-cost ratio of about 126:l (over l44:l for the Meeker <br /> <br />well and over 53:1 for the Piceance Creek well). <br /> <br />This project d"monstrates that plugging some flowing saline wells <br /> <br />.~ll improve the ~uality of the stream receiving their discharge. Future <br /> <br />sampling of White River will indicate the amount of improvement ob- <br /> <br />tained. The Meeker and Piceance Creek wells were the largest man-caused <br /> <br />point sources contributing saline flow in the Upper Colorado River Basin <br /> <br />and therefore had a better benefit-cost ratio than any other wells. How- <br /> <br />ever, the benefit-cost ratio for the Piceance Creek well of over 53:l <br /> <br />indicates that it could be beneficial to plug wells dischargi~g consid- <br /> <br />erably less salt than the Piceance Creek well. <br /> <br />.. <br /> <br />2012 <br /> <br />11 <br />