WSP08316

• File Number: 8210.140.20
• Description: Colorado River Basin Organizations and Entities - Colorado River Basin States Forum - California
• State: CA
• Basin: Western Slope
• Date: 1/1/1976
• Author: Myron B Holburt
• Title: Annual Report for the Calendar Year 1975
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Annual Report

. ,'" ~

.L U.i. ~

Water Quality

A number of significant action..
occurred with re..pt.>ct to Colorado
River <,alinity problem...

Color.1do Ri"er 5Jlinih 5tJnd,1fd~

The sevt'n state Colorado River
Basin Salinity Control Forum and its
work group continued dctivitle.. on
development oj Colorado River
salinity standdrds, includmg .I plan oj
implementation, that were reportt'd in
the Board's 1974 Annual Report.
These activiti~ included a number of
engineering ..tudies conducted by the
Board's staff for the wor!.. group and
preparation oj the format drail of the
Forum's report on salinity standards,
which recommended numeric criteria
and a plan of implementation.
The Forum approved the report
prepiHed by the work group on June
20, 1975, and held IwO public
mt't'tings, on August 4. in Las Vegas,
Nevada, and on Augu..t 7, in Grdnd
Junction, Colorado, to receive
comments on the report. As a result
of the hearings, a supplement to thl:'
report was prepared by the Forum
that responded to the comments.
Sub..equently, each of the b.lsin stat~
commenced proct"t'dings It'ading to
adoption oj the report's numeric criteria
for salinity and plan of implementation,

pursuant to each state's lav...s. By the end
of 1975, si:\. of the seven .,tates had
completed their adoption proceedings.
Adoption b't' Colorado was delayed
until early 197& due to procedural
mallers.
The numeric criteria for Colorado
River salinity, set forth in the Forum's
report and adopted by the states,
establi..h three locations dlong the
lower mainstem of the river where
the niterid .Ire to be met The
locations and the flow. weighted
dverage annual numeric salinity
cnteria are as follows:

flo...-~\t'lllhled
,"I.eo-~e
"Infll'JI
5Jlmffllnmll/1

Below Hoover Dam..72]
Below Parker Dam....747
Impt>ridl Dam ............879

Thp plan of implementation
adoptPd b't' the states includes a
number of federdl .md non-iederdl
projf'Cts dnd measures to maintain the
ilow-weightt>d averd~e dnnudl sdlinit~,
in the lower mainstem dt or belov..
the rf'Commended numenc cnteria
through the year 1990, as the bdsin
stdtes continue to develop their
compdCl-apportiont'd waters. The
principal components of the pldn are
dS fottows:
1. Prompt construction and
S!f!;Jedbasscaug!1ral
L;!~e Havasu ...eigl1ed record
SOfJounds 40unces

,.,
-

'.

operation of the initial four salinity
control units authorized by Title II of
P.l. 93.320, the Colorado River Basin
Salinity Control Act.
2. Construction of the 12 OIher
units listed in Title II of P.l. 9].]20 or
other equivalent salt removal works
aiter receipt of favorable planninR
reports.
], The pldcing of eifluent limitations
on industrial dischargE'S, principally
under the National Pollution
Discharge Elimination S)-'stem
(NPDESI permit program provided
for in Se-ction 402 of P.l. 92-500.
4. The reformulation 01 previously
authorizro, but unconstructed, federal
water projects to reduce the salt
loading effect of ..uch prOJects.
5. The use oi saline water for
induslridl purposes whenever practical.
The forum's report cmered studi~
that dnalyzed the mdny nclturdl and
man-related factors that affe-ct the
river'.. salinity. One of the major
factors is tht' varidbilitv in dnnual
runoif. Becau~e this is beyond man's
control. the adopted stdndards
recognize thaI actual salinity will vary
dbove dnd below the ddoPted
numeric criteria. The objective is to
maintain salinity at or below the
ddopled criteria under streamilow
l'Quivdlent 10 the long-term average.
The Forum's studies as covered in its
repon shov.. that, through
implementation of the plan therein
and under conditions of rong-tt'rm
dv'erage runoff and a "moderate"
incredse in \vater deplelions. the
dveraRe salinity Cdn be maintained at
or belov.. the numeric criteria levels
durmg the ne:\.t 15 years.
The adopted standards also provide
that should wdter development
proje-cts be completed before control
medsures are identified or brought on
line, lemporar)- increases above the
criteria could result. which innedses
would be dcceptable within the
standards. With completion 01 sdlinih
control projects, either those now in
the e"istmg plan or those that mav be

7