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oCU~.o,NGo' COSTI llA i -----~----, // r i I I I CO NEJOS COLLECTION AND DIVERSION . ELEM NT --~-- LA PLATA CHAMA MAINTENANCE HEADQIJARTER " , JUAN i " , " 0 /~M C K J N lEY VAL ENe I A MIDDLE RIO GRANDE CONSERVANCY DISTRICT j------ I I L_T- _J I ,J , 0 , l IN eOl N FACTUAL DATA-SAN JUAN-CHAMP -)ROJECT-COLORADO-NEW'-~EXICO HISTORY Of~Se ;:r!':es~~,g~ananr~t:-e ~~~xi~~o~r~~~~~e~~eIs~~t~~~O~~ttlBedc~~~ .shortly before the turn of the present Cl<ntury. Thl< population within the San Juan area and immEXfiately south is sparse. Pagosa Springs, Colorado, the only major town in the vicinity, has a population of about 1,500. Much of the land In the SanJuan River Basin in New Mexlco is still Inhabited by Indian tribes. The Navajo, Southern Ute, and Jicarilla Apache Indian Reservations occupy a con. siderable pOrtiOD of the basin, and Navajo Indian allotments control the grl<atest part of the remaining wattmlhed lands. th~n U~~~~t~~ Ri~r:geSiy:r:r ~eth~~:dS;~~~tis~~en~CU~~c~;, ft contains threl< groups-the native Indians, the descendants of the Spanish set- tlers, and people of Anglo extraction who came after the American occupation. The first Spanish exploration into the area was made in 1540 by Coronado in search of the Seven Cities of Cibola. Colonization was started in 1598, and by the middle of the 18th century Spanish settlements were scattered throughout the baSin. More than 900 years ago the Pueblo Indians of thl< Rio Grande Val- leyhad used simple irrigation systems and methods to supply irrigation water to :~p~~eR~ ~~JyIn~~&~~ni~~~~~dc~~~~r~Jr~,~n~4~ Own ditches, diverting water dlrectiy from the river without benefit of storage.. The Indi.atLs revolted in 1680 and drove the Spaniards as far south as the present site of Juarez, Mexico. In 1692 De Vargas reconquered the region for ~~::gd ~~~Yo ~~~~ ::~oit:~ll~~~~ee';. the area. Settlement spread gradu- Pl~d~~lfr~1~:hf~ad~';rt~eg,:;t~t~~ ~i'afe~t;:~~li~:U~dh~ \~~ Aml<rican merchants were firmly established in the basin.. Actual occupation hy Americans did not OCCUr until after 1848 when the Rio Grande Valley lands were ceded to the United States by the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. The population of the Rio Grande Basin In New Mexico has shown a marked increase in the last three decades with most of the growth in the counties con-- tainingthelarger cities and towns. Import:arJt cities and towns Include Santa Fe, te :n~~ C~~~~bBllJ~~~j,a;~di~:ro;O-~~~~n~:' ~;0~9r~:.; 19~O the population of thesl< cities and towns increased mOre than fivefold, and the present tempo of growth indicates continued population increase. PURPOSE OF THE PROJECT In the State of New Mexico, with its arid ciimate, water is the most precious ~~;-t,;, rth~o~~~~ ~~ar..~~~e~~!~~~;~~~set~~~~~t ~t~y'f~ ~c~ the.available supplies and there Is a pressing need for additional supplies. Seri- ous droughts and general decreased riVff flows have charactffized the pl<riod since 1942 and have accentuated the widespread problem of water shortages. ti]J'~=ralast"ille pO!S~d ~~ go~~-e~~~d ~~t i~~ l~~thb":~~ ~~~n~o~ June 13, 1962. The project, authorjzed as a participating project of the Upper Colorado River Storage Project, will make possible an average annual diversion of about 110,000 acre-feet from the upper tributaries of the San Juan River In the Upper Colorado River Basin, through the Continental Divide, for utilization in the Rio Grande Basin in New Mexico. The imported waters are used to serve the city of Albuquerque with urgently needed additional water for municipal and industrial pUrpOSl<S (48,200 acre-feet ammally), provide suppleml<ntal water for irrigation of lands in the 81,610-acre Middle Rio Grandl< COIlServancy District, and replace depletion in the Rio Grande Basin caused by funtisbing a firm water supply to $,960 acres of land in thl< Llano and Pojoaque tributalY irrigation units In the Rio Grandl< Basin. Reerea" ~~:rtythJ,~r:r~~ti% ~~~>;jfo~~t~nO~~~o~~a~~~:t ~t wa;:/i~'"::d~ available for fish and wildlife and recreation purposes at Cochiti Reservoir. WATER SUPPLY The project water supply comes from the share of Colorado River water allo- cated to New Mexico by the Upper Colorado River Basin Compact. Water is .obtained by diversion of part of the flows of the Rio Blanco, Little Navajo, and Navajo Rivers, all of which are tributaries of the Sall Juan River. The total mean annual flow of the streams at the proposed diversion sites for the period 1935 through 1957 was 167,500 acre-feet. Criteria for determination of stream flows to be reserved for downstream uses and not available for project diversion were established by representativl<S of the Statl<S of Colorado and Nl<w Mexico. Theseuses included prior water rights, maintl<rulllCe of sufficient flows to preserve fish and wildlife values, and mainte- nanCe of sanitary conditions. The water bypassed averages 45,800 acre-feet per year, leaving for diversion a total of 121,700 acre-feet annually. After subtrac. tion of the various losses due to transportation, evaporation, and capacity of the siphons, a net amount of 110,500 acre-feet is divBrtlble to the Rio Grande Basin. COLLECTION, DIVERSION AND STORAGE FEATURES The collection and diversion facilities, located in the San Juan River Basin above Navajo Reservoir, consist of three diVffSion dams, two siphons, and a tulU1el system to bring San Juan River Basin water through the Continental Divide. The imported water will be stored and held for release in Heron Reservoir, located on Willow Creek, a tributary of the Rio Chama. The outlet works of El Vaelo Dam on the Rio Chama has been enlarged to permit passing project water without Interfering with the nonnal operation of El Vado Reservoir and to permit compliance with thl< Rio Grande Compact. Deliveries of S'ln Juan Chama Project water will be made in accordance witb the provisloIlS of the Rio Grande Compact. The threl< diveI1lion dams have concrete, ogee-;;r::e overflow sections, appro- ~~g~~~1 d'~~:~~~ to 4i:d~~e:'tha:BI~~;inttl~\I~fo~~ Little Oso on the Little Navajo River, and the Oso on the Navajo River. By- passes of water will be made as necessalY at each divffsion point to maintain a live stream for fishing and to furnish water to downstream water users who have prior water rights. The conduit system consists of thrl<e concrete-lined tunnels, varying in size from 8-feet 7-inches to lO-feet ll-inches in diametff, and two siphons with 8-foot diameters. The Blanco Tunnel extends from the Rio Blanco to the Little Navajo Rivff, a distance of about 9 miles, and has a capacity of 520 cubic feet per second. 000 Tunnel extends from the Little Navajo Rivff to the Navajo River, a distance of about 5 miles and has a capacity of 550 cubic feet per sec.- ond. Azotea Tunnel lies under the Continental Divide and extends from the Navajo River to Azotea Creek in the Rio Grande Basin, a distance of about 13 miles. Awtea Tunnel has a capacity of 950 cubic. feet per second. Approximately 7.25 miles of stream channel on Azotea Creek and Willow Creek between the outlet portal of Awtea Tunnel and the headwaters or Heron Rl<ser- voir were included under the heading of channelization. Prevention of erosion due to the increased flow In thesl< streams was accomplished by cbannel re- alinement; installation of concrete drop structures; andriprap bank protection. Heron Dam is located On Willow Creek just above Its confluence with the Chama River and provides a regulating and storage rese:rvoirwith a capacity of about 400,000 acre-feet. The dam is an earthfill structure rising 263 feet above the streambed. Heron Dike, also a rolled earthHll structure, contains thl< uncontrolled concrete spillway and is located approlcimately 1 mile northwest of Heron Dam. The cWl:e has a height of about 75 feet and a crest length of 2,400 feet. 'The outlet works and the spillway have a combined capacity of about 4,700 cubic feet per second at maximum water surface. PO~d ~:.:; fu:~Jt l:, ~:s~~~~witi:~~ta::rl~.t:l:.i~I~~~;s;~~~e ~~ ~~~b~tli:e7g~~~~J'~;~~~~c"te'dw~t~~w~~~e~~~~s ~c:st~~f 0: concrete-lined tunnel, four high pressure control gates and new intake structure. TRIBUTARY IRRIGATION ELEMENTS Llano UnIt The llano Unit is located along a relatively narrow bl<nch adjacent to the Rio Grande, extending from about 12 miles north to some 4 miles south of the town of Espanola. Supplemental water provided by the project Insures s~ adequat.e supply of water for 4,669 acres of irrigable land of which 1,922 acrl<S are Indian land. The average elevation of the irrigated area is approximately 5,700 feet above sealevel. The project works consist ofVelardl< Diversion Dam., located on the Rio Grande about 15 miles north of Espanola, about 19m1les of main canal, and the neces- sary appurtenant works to effect efficient water delivery. The average annual diversion requirement is about 2.37 acre-feet per acre of irrigable land In the IJano Unit, Including only the supplemental supply of those lands receiving sup- plementalwaters. Pojoaqul<Unit The Pojoaque Unit, about 16 miles north of Santa Fe, Is located in the bottom ~~s J:~ ~J'~~~u~ ~ ~o~a~~:-'ID~:;' ~t;i~e'1u~bG~;11e.~~~Pl~~~W water provided hy the project insures an adequate supply of water for 2,300 aCreS of irrigated land. Both Indian and non-Indian lands are Included. The ave- rage elevation of the irrigated area is approximately 5,800 leet above sea level. The storage featurl<oftheunitis the Nambe Falls Dam and ReservOir located immediately above Nambe Falls on Nambe Creek. The dam is an earthfill and concrete structure rising about 120 feet above streambed. The reservoir has a conservation capacity of 1,500 acre-feet at the end of 50 years and a surface area of 49 acres at normal water surface <!1evation. Two diverSion dams are used in water distribution, an existing dam on Nambl<.Creek at the UPPff end of the area, and a new concrete structure below the village of PoJoaque. The canal system has been enlarged and the ditches have been consolidatl<d. The average annual diversion requirement is about 3.80 acre-fl<l<t per aCre of irrigated land inthePojoaqueUnlt. Principal crops grown in the Pojoaque and Uano Units includl< apples, hay, corn,smailgrains,andavarietyofvegetables. The average annual precipitation at Espanola, New Mexico, is 10.11 inches. Temperature extremes range from -23.F. to a maximum of 106.F. The average frost-free period of 164 days occurs between April 29 and Octoher 10. Inquiries for additional information may be addressed to, Regional Director, Region 5 Bureau orRectarnatlon Post Office Box 1609 Amarillo,Texas 79105 ~PO 850.001