Рет қаралды 32
From the Wednesday morning January 8, 2025, meeting of The Forum inside Cascade Hall on the campus of Colorado Mesa University Montrose.
Water: The lifeblood of our valley...
We hear a lot about the Gunnison Tunnel and how the water through that tunnel has become the lifeblood of this valley, but we don't hear much about HOW the water actually gets from the tunnel to us.
The Forum welcomes Uncompahgre Valley Water Users Association (UVWUA) Manager Steve Pope.
1902-The Uncompahgre Valley Water Users Association was organized and charged with developing a plan to divert the Gunnison River into the valley.
The UVWUA quickly ran out of funds, but the Federal Government was also interested in getting water into the valley and stepped up.
1903-The Uncompahgre Project was the first major project approved by the Secretary of the Interior under the Reclamation Act.
1927-Although a United States Government Project, in 1927 the Bureau of Reclamation turned the tunnel and irrigation system over to the UVWUA as operating agents.
1948-The Bureau opened more land for irrigation and reclassified some of the land already in the project. The employees of the Bureau mapped out these changes and classifications, and the UVWUA entered into a new contract with the Bureau.
UVWUA is still using those excellent maps from 1948 and operating under the 1948 contract today, delivering irrigation water to:
• 83,000 acres of land
• 128 miles of major canals
• 438 miles of laterals and
• 216 miles of drains
• without using any pumps.
And they have added hydro!
Don't miss learning how this 122 years-old organization has evolved, continuing to bring water to our valley today.
The Forum meets each Wednesday morning at 8 a.m. in Cascade Hall on the Colorado Mesa University’s Montrose campus.