WSP07801

• File Number: 8220.106
• Description: Animas-La Plata
• State: CO
• Basin: San Juan/Dolores
• Water Division: 7
• Date: 10/1/1979
• Author: BOR
• Title: Animas-La Plata Project
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Project Overview

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SUMMARY SHEETS

Animas-La Plata Project

LOCATION

Southwestern Colorado anp northwestern New Mexico in the San Juan River
Basin of the Upper Colorado River Basin.

PLAN

The Animas-La Plata Project would utilize flows of the Animas and
La Plata Rivers for irrigation and municipal and industrial use. It
would also provide fish and wildlife measures, recreation facilities, a
cultu,ral resources program, and area redevelopment. Service would be
provided to the La Plata Water Conservancy District in Colc"ado; the La
Plata Conservancy District and the cities of Aztec, Bloomfield, and
Farmington in New Mexico; the Ute Mountain Ute Indian Tribe; the Southern
Ute Indian Tribe; and the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority.

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prim-ary storage would be provided at the offstream Ridges Basin Reser-
voir, which would receive water pumped from the Animas River near
Durango, Colo" and conveyed through' the Ridges Basin Inlet Conduit.
Secondary storage would be provided at the offstream Southern Ute
Reservoir, which would receive water diverted from the La Plata River
near th", Colorado-New "l1exico State line and conveyed in the Southern Ute
Inlet Canal.

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Irrigation water would be provided for full and supplemental service
land in Colorado and New Mexico. Water for land in Colorado would be
pumped from Ridges Basin Reservoir by the Ridges Basin Pumping Plant and
conveyed through the Dry Side Canal, except that land too high to he
served from the canal would receive water diverted directly from the La
Plata River. Some water in the canal would be released to the La Plata
River for use downstream during periods of low streamflow. During
periods of high flow, La Plata River water would be diverted into the
Dry Side Canal to augment the supply west of the river, Water for land
in New Mexico would be stored in Southern Ute Reservoir and released to
the New Mexico Irrigation Canal. Eleven buried pipe lateral systems
would distribute the water to farms in both states, except that the land
to be served directly from the La Plata River would continue to be
gravity irrig"ted. Pumping plants to provide pressure for five of the
lateral systems would be provided along the Dry Side, Southern Ute
Inlet~ and New Mexico Irrigation Canals.

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In Colorado, municipal and industrial 'water for Durango would either be
diverted from the Ridges Basin Inlet Conduit or released from Ridges

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