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acre-feet. Irrigation ditches annually remove about 20,000 acre-feet <br />from Minnesota Creek. <br />Two reservoirs are located within the Minnesota Creek drainage. <br />Minnesota Reservoir is located on the Dry Fork. I[ has a decreed <br />capacity of 1,285 acre-feet, but the actual capacity may be closer to 500 <br />acre-feet. Beaver Reservoir is located on the East Fork of Minnesota <br />Creek and has an absolute decreed capacity of 1,620 acre-feet and a <br />conditional decree of 522 acre- feet. Both reservoirs store water for <br />irrigation purposes and are filled during spring runoff. They are <br />usually drained by late August or early September. <br />Water quality data have been collected at several sites throughout the <br />Minnesota Creek drainage. The data indicate that these waters are of a <br />calcium bicarbonate type with relatively low total dissolved solids <br />concentration. <br />Minnesota Reservoir appears to have an effect on the water quality <br />characteristics of Dry Fork. Detention of Dry Fork flows in the <br />Minnesota Reservoir results in a decrease in total suspended solids <br />(TSS) or turbidity, a slight increase in temperature, dissolved oxygen <br />(DO), and total dissolved solids (TDS). The increase in TDS is most <br />likely a result of evaporation losses. There is a slight increase in <br />alkalinity and, as a result, a slight increase in pH. In all likelihood, <br />these changes are also a result of evaporation losses. All of the changes <br />in water quality observed are what would be expected as a result of <br />impounding water in a shallow reservoir in a semi-arid climate. <br />There are three different types of springs within the permit area - <br />colluvial, alluvial and bedrock springs. Eighty-three springs have been <br />identified within [he permit area. Recent data indicate that 65 percent <br />of the discharge originates from alluvium and/or colluvium, and 35 <br />percent have bedrock formation as their source. Only 5 per cent of <br />discharge comes from the Upper and Lower Coal Series. The flow <br />rates of these springs are highly seasonal with peak flows occurring <br />during wet weather conditions.Measurements indicate that spring flows <br />generally decrease from a high in the early summer to a low in the fall. <br />A number of the springs are ephemeral, indicating that their sources <br />are small localized aquifers (i.e. landslide deposits, colluvium, <br />lenticular sandstones, etc.). There are a total of nineteen (19) decreed <br />spring water rights on or near the West Elk permit area. <br />Wetlands have also been identified within the permit area. Based upon <br />inspection of conventional and infra-red aerial photographs and <br />reconnaissance-level field investigation, there are estimated to be 2 to 3 <br />acres of wetlands (as defined by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in <br />33 <br />