2006-12-05_REVISION - M2001035 - Laserfiche WebLink

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t~ area and went underground with no significant surface drainage to the Arkansas River. One remnant of a possible Arkansas River connection is visible in aerial photography although it is not known if this is recent or historical in nature. in 1924 a major flood in Trout Creek buried the ranch including an orchard and the ranch was abandoned, becoming known as the "sand house". The apple orchard is still visible today with the tr may have been caused in part due the poor ripazian condition of Trout Creek that existed at that time. Today, TrouYCreek above the dam is in a much healthier condition with numerous beaver ponds and well established vegetation although uplands areas may still be in need of vegetation improvement to prevent land and reservoir damage. In some areas, the local landowner, Paul Moltz has removed some of the outwash materials that were deposited during the flood events of the late 1800s and 1900s and today those areas are being fanned utilizing center-pivot sprinkler systems. These areas are readily visible in the first map. Trout Creek today is held back in the reservoir shown on the map. The reservou• today holds and releases water during the summer time period (April to November). According to Mr. Moltz, during the winter months there is excess water that runs through the area and causes damage to the irrigated field at the lower end of the map. This is shown in a winter gicture of the field area below. The proposal is to create a water detention basin on the public lands that will allow the water to percolate back into the ground water at a faster rate than the current situation where it simply runs across the open fields. Tn order to develop the detention basin, ACA products is proposing to remove the flood ouiwash materials down to a silt layer that approximated the land surface prior to the late 1800s. It is anticipated by ACA products that the amount of water on the surface will be less with the detention basin in place than the current situation. Apparently the fields become lazge pond areas during the winter. There are existing gravel and quarry operations in the area and the public land will be incorporated into an overall Colorado Mined Land Reclamation permit (IVI-2001-035). Proposed Action: The Proposed Action is to authorize a gravel pit to be developed on 20 acres of public land in the area below the Trout Creek Reservoir. The sand and gravel material would be mined in a phased approach where the southern part of the public lands would be mined first.