Please contact the responsible office for current information. The McElmo Creek Basin is located in southwestern Colorado and covers approximately 720 square miles. About 150 square miles of the basin, mostly in the east, are agricultural land. Early studies show that salt-loading results from both irrigation and diffuse sources.
Irrigation is the main contributor.
The total irrigation diversion into the area averages 105,200 acre feet per year. The average salt load contributed by the McElmo Creek Basin was estimated at 119,000 tons per year. The Montezuma Valley Irrigation Company diverts water from the Dolores River to serve irrigation in the McElmo Creek Basin. Buried pipe laterals have been brought down from the Towaoc Canal to serve areas once served by the now abandoned Rocky Ford Ditch. These actions reduce groundwater seepage from canals by 4,060 acre feet a year and reduce the amount of salt returned to McElmo Creek.