OCR Text |
Show b. Smith Fork Smith Fork Project is located in Delta County, along the Smith Fork of the Gunnison River. The project was completed in the fall of 1962 and was dedicated on April 20, 1963. The principal features include Crawford Dam and Reservoir, Smith Fork Diversion Dam, Smith Fork Feeder Canal, and the Aspen Canal. The Crawford Reservoir, capacity of 13,650 acre-feet, has been constructed on Iron Creek, a tributary of Smith Fork. The reservoir regulates the flow of Iron Creek and surplus flows of the Smith Fork that are conveyed to it by the Smith Fork Feeder Canal. Small quantities of reservoir storage water are released to Iron Creek and diverted by several small existing ditches. The remainder is released to the new Aspen Canal and conveyed by this canal to existing ditches for distribution. Some of the storage water releases through the Aspen Canal replace present direct flow diversions from Smith Fork, thus permitting additional direct flow diversions to be made higher on the streams through existing ditches. Smith Fork Project will ultimately provide a full water supply for irrigating 1,423 acres of new land and a supplemental supply for 8,056 acres of irrigated land located near Crawford, Colorado. The project was transferred to the Crawford Water Conservancy District for operation and maintenance on January 1, 1964. The diversion works for Smith Fork Feeder Canal have not performed satisfactorily due to the excessive bedload of sand, gravel, and cobbles carried by the stream. The Crawford Water Conservancy District requested the Bureau to proceed with necessary modification of the diversion structure to alleviate this situation. A contract for modifying the diversion structure was awarded January 27, 1967. Work under the contract was accepted on September 27, 1967, as substantially completed. Recreation facilities for boating, picnicking, and camping have been developed at Crawford Reservoir. Local use of the reservoir is significant. Approximately 64,500 visits were recorded during the 1967 season. c. Florida Project The Florida Project is located in southwestern Colorado, southeast of Durango in the Florida River Valley and on Florida Mesa. Its principal features include Lemon Dam on the Florida River with a reservoir capacity of 40,100 acre-feet, enlargement of the existing Florida Farmers Ditch and Florida Canal, Florida Diversion Dam, and construction of the Florida laterals to serve approximately 2,210 107 |