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/::::. "~) -"1> \ ,-J" 'I . i .,\ COLORADO WATER CONSERVATION BOARD 823 State Centennial Building 1313 Sherman Street Denver, Colorado 80203 March 1977 DALLAS CREEK PROJECT The Dallas Creek Project is located in the Uncompahgre River Basin of west-central Colorado. The project was authorized by the Congress in 1968 under the provisions of the Colorado River Basin Project Act as a participating project of the Colorado River Storage Project Act. The Tri- County Water Conservancy District was organized in 1957 to act as a sponsoring and contractual agency for the project. This district includes portions of Delta, Montrose, and Ouray Counties. Current Status r .;1 , I ,- , I Advance planning studies were initiated on the Dallas Creek Project in FY 1971. These studies are completed and the report has been reviewed. The draft environmental impact statement has been completed and was distributed and filed with the Council on Environmental Quality on March 8, 1976. The final EIS was filed on September 28, 1976. A repayment contract was signed on January 14, 1977. Total Federal expenditures to September 30, 1976, including feasibility and advance planning, amount to $3,005,671. Approximately $75,000 has been expended by the State of Colorado on the project. By far, the greatest sum has been spent by the Tri-County Water Conservancy District, which to date has expended over 4.5 million dollars. This includes the construction of a domestic wate~ system, which is predicated upon the eventual construction of the Dallas Creek Project. After Congress authorized the project, the people of the Uncompahgre Valley approved a bond issue to construct a rural water system. This system has now been completed and serves 1,432 rural families in three counties. This rural water system was constructed on the basis that project water from the Dallas Creek Project would be available by 1979. In the interim period, the water conservancy district entered into a temporary arrangement with the City of Montrose to purchase water from the city for a ten-year period, provided that such water would be available. At the present time, the Montrose area is expanding rapidly. In recent years, the Bureau of Reclamation has constructed a power operation center in Montrose which controls the distribution of power from the entire Colorado River Storage Project. The operating headquarters for the Colorado- Ute Electric Association is also situated in Montrose. A major candy- making facility has been constructed in the area by the Russell Stover Company and employs about 600 people.