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-26- Two mines in the region draw water from the alluvium of tributaries to the North Fork; the Blue Ribbon Mine draws from the alluvium of Hubbard Creek and the Orchard Valley Mine draws water from the alluvium of Stevens Gulch. Pumping tests conducted by Colorado Westmoreland Incorporated at the Orchard Valley Mine indicate that the Stevens Gulch alluvium could support a pumping rate of 28 gpm. No pumping test was conducted by Blue Ribbon Coal Company at the Blue Ribbon Mine on the alluvium of Hubbard Creek. Terror Creek may have alluvial aquifers that could be developed as water supplies. However, no detailed analysis of this alluviwn has been conducted. The Terror Creek alluvium may be used as a source of water at the Morrell Cow Camp to the north of the Orchard Valley Mine. Water quality analysis for the Stevens Gulch well water indicates good quality water, with none of the parameters exceeding the recommended drinking water standards. The only treatment necessary is chlorination, as required by the Colorado Department of Health for public drinking water supplies. The water quality for the Hubbard Creek well water is fair to poor and contains total dissolved solids and sodium levels which exceed secondary water quality standards for drinking water. Occurrences of ground water have been noted in the Mesaverde Formation from information obtained from drilling, experience in the mines and from the presence of sprinys anu seeps in the region. This information also indicates that the only potential regional bedrock aquifer in the general area is the laterally continuous Rollins sandstone. The laterally discontinuous lenticular sandstones within the Upper Mesaverde Formation support only localized ground water flows. Recharge to the Rollins sandstone occurs along outcrops, along subcrops beneath stream alluvium and in the channels of the North Fork and its tributaries. However, due to the steepness of the topography in the outcrop areas (i.e, sandstones are cliff formers) and the narrowness of the stream valleys, the Rollins sandstone receives little recharge, except in the area under the North Fork of the Gunnison River and its associated alluvial deposits. Some recharye to the Rollins sandstone may come indirectly from the percolation of snowmelt and precipitation downward throuyh faults and fractures. Drill holes which penetrated the Rollins sandstone near the Orchard Valley Mine were initially dry, but after allowing these holes to recover they accumulated water, up to 300 gallons in the casing. However, this amount of water is insufficient to provide a desirable well yield. This indicates that recharye alony outcrops and subcrops above the level of the North Fork is insufficient to sustain ground water wells developed in the Rollins. The only domestic use of the water from the Rollins sandstone is from wells along the North Fork near the Hawk's Nest Mines. The water quality elsewhere is considered too saline for domestic use (Prince and Nrnow, 1974).