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Show PARE II DESCRIPTION OF REGION in southwestern Colorado. Three small tributaries are Dirty Devil, Esca- lante, and Paria Rivers which drain a portion of the eastern slope of the Wasatch Plateau in Utah. The subregion includes portions of Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, and Colorado. It has a total area of about 3&>6kh square miles, 3^ percent of the Upper Colorado Region. The largest towns of the subregion are Durango and Cortez in Colo- rado, Monticello and Blanding in Utah, and Farmington in New Mexico. Page at Glen Canyon Dam is the only community of significant size in the Arizona portion of the subregion. Most of the remaining Arizona portion is in the Navajo Indian Reservation. The subregion is served by U.S. Highways 84, 89, 160, l6h, 550, and 666 and by an extensive system of state highways and secondary roads. Mining and agriculture form the economic base for the San Juan- Colorado Subregion. The agricultural development is similar to that of the Upper Main Stem Subregion with most of the cropland devoted to live- stock feeds but with production of diversified market crops on lands with favorable air drainage. The main market crops are fruit, vegetables, and dry beans. Oil, natural gas, and coal are the most important minerals produced. There is also a significant production of vanadium and uranium. Gold, silver, and associated minerals are produced, but their importance has declined considerably from the boom production of the early settlement days. Recreation and associated industries contribute substantially to the local and region economy. The San Juan Mountains, known as the "American Alps," are renowned for their scenic beauty and recreational opportuni- ties and attract vacationers from throughout the country. The subregion also is noted for its national forest and for its national parks and monuments, many of which preserve prehistoric Indian ruins. It contains Bryce Canyon and Mesa Verde National Parks and the major part of Canyon- lands National Park. Also, it includes nine national monuments-Yucca House, Nava,jo, Capitol Reef, Rainbow Bridge, Canyon de Chelly, Natural Bridges, Hcrvenweep, Aztec Ruins, and Chaco Canyon. Also notable in the subregion sure the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and the "Four Corners," -the only point in the United States where four states join. Many recreational facilities are provided on the public domain and by state, localL, and private developments. Economic subregions In addition to the three hydrologic subregions described above, the region was divided into three economic subregions for use in economic analyses. CThese subregions are similar to the hydrologic subregions but are defined by county lines rather than by river drainage. This simpli- fied the collection of statistical data for the economic analyses which 8 |