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Show Recreation Activities Initial recreational development for Navajo Reservoir was at the Pine River Site, just above the dam in New Mexico, where a launching ramp, marina, campground and picnic areas, and other facilities are now provided. It is expected that a lodge and restaurant will be built in the near future. Construction of facilities is underway at the Arboles Site, located on the Colorado portion of the reservoir, and future development is planned at Sims Mesa. 4. Curecanti Storage Unit The Curecanti Storage Unit involves construction of three major dams and powerplants along a 40-mile canyon cut by the Gunnison River below Gunnison, Colorado, and above the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Monument. The Blue Mesa, Morrow Point, and Crystal Dams will capture and control the flows of the Gunnison River, which drains the western slopes of the high Continental Divide of the Rocky Mountains into the Colorado River. They will provide storage capacity for controlling the Gunnison River and for the production of hydroelectric power, as well as irrigation, flood control, and extensive recreational benefits. Flows of the Gunnison River will be largely controlled by the 940,800 acre-foot Blue Mesa Reservoir, the largest and uppermost of the reservoirs. Water released from the Blue Mesa Reservoir through a 60,000-kilowatt-capacity powerplant at the dam will receive short-term regulation at the Morrow Point Reservoir immediately downstream. The reservoir behind Morrow Point Dam will have a total capacity of 117,190 acre-feet and an active capacity for power production of more than 42,000 acre-feet. The power-plant capacity at Morrow Point will be 120,000 kilowatts since the downstream Crystal Reservoir can regulate flows released at Morrow Point. In addition, Crystal Dam will have a capacity of 28,000 kilowatts. Construction Activities Blue Mesa Dam, an earth- and rockfill dam, will contain 3 million cubic yards of embankment material. It will rise approximately 342 feet above the streambed, with a crest length of 800 feet. The prime contract for completion of the dam and powerplant structure is nearing completion with about 97 percent of the work accomplished. During the past year the contractor has pushed placement of the earth- and rockfill embankment with the goal of finishing the dam about November 1. The concrete structures to 77 |