Updated: April 15, 2002
DESCRIPTION:
This area extends from southeast Wasatch County,
across the western two-third of Carbon County and into northeastern Emery
County. It ranges from T9S to T21S
on the west side of the Green River. The
major stream in this area is the Price River; its main tributaries are the
White River in the upper reaches and Grassy Trail Creek in the lower reaches. This area is bordered on the north by the Uinta
Basin and the Nine Mile Creek drainage, on the east by the Green River, on
the south by the San Rafael River drainage, and on the west by the San Pitch
River drainage. The highest point
in the area is 10,285 foot Bruin Point in the Book Cliffs, while the lowest
is at the confluence of the Price and Green Rivers at about 4,200 feet, giving
a total relief of about 6,085 feet. Click
here to see a map of the area.
MANAGEMENT:
Six Proposed Determination of Water Rights books
were compiled and published in 1971 and 1972. No final decree has been issued.
There are eleven court decrees in this area covering the Price River,
Grassy Trail Creek, and other smaller sources.
There are two state-administered distribution systems in this area;
the Price
River Distribution System is administered by the Price River Commissioner
and the Grassy
Trail Creek Distribution System administered by the Grassy Trail
Creek Commissioner. Because this area is part of the Colorado River
basin, the conditions of the 1922 Colorado River Compact, the 1944
Mexican Treaty and the 1948 Upper Colorado River Compact and
the State
Engineer's Colorado River Policy apply.
Applications to appropriate or change water are subject to conditions
dealing with Green
River Endangered Species Protection. There are approximately 5,000 water
rights on file with the State Engineer in this area.
SOURCES: SURFACE WATER - Surface
waters of the area are considered to be fully appropriated except for isolated
springs. New diversions and consumptive
uses in these sources must be accomplished by change applications filed on
owned or acquired rights. However,
in the upper reaches of the area from about Sec. 1,T14S, R9W (where Garley
Canyon meets the Price River between Spring Glen and Carbonville) upstream,
exchange applications can be filed on shares in the Price River Water Users
Association based on storage in Scofield Reservoir. Most surface source exchanges concern recreational
or summer home use from springs in the Scofield area. Exchange approval requires the installation
of meters and regulation by the Price River Commissioner at the applicant=s expense.
Non-consumptive uses, such as hydroelectric power generation, would
be considered on the merits of each application.
Applicants are placed on notice that development should be pursued
as soon as possible, and requests for extensions of time in which to file
proof will be critically reviewed after an initial five year period.
GROUND WATER - There are some limited ground-water resources
available. Permanent applications for
isolated springs and underground water are generally limited to sufficient
acre-foot amounts to serve the domestic purposes of one family, the irrigation
of one acre, and a reasonable amount of stockwatering in areas where water is
not available from a municipal or subdivision supply. Again, exchanges are required in the upper reaches as described
in the previous paragraph to accommodate a well. Change applications altering the source from surface to
underground, or vice versa, are considered on their individual merits, with
emphasis on their potential to interfere with existing rights and to ensure
that there is no enlargement of the underlying rights. Fixed-time and temporary applications are
evaluated in a similar fashion.
Applicants are placed on notice that development should be pursued as
soon as possible, and requests for extensions of time in which to file proof
will be critically reviewed after an initial five year period.
GENERAL: Applications are
advertised in the Sun Advocate in Price and the Emery County Progress
in Castle Dale. The general irrigation
diversion duty for this area, which the State Engineer uses for evaluation
purposes, is 4.0 acre-feet per acre per year.
The consumptive use requirement is determined from the publication
Consumptive
Use of Irrigated Crops in Utah, Research Report 145, Utah State University,
1994, unless the applicant submits other data for consideration. This area is administered by the Southeastern
Regional Office in Price.
REFERENCES: Technical Publication
No. 15, Water from Bedrock in the Colorado Plateau of Utah; Utah State
Engineer; 1966.
Technical Publication No. 39, Reconnaissance of Chemical Quality of Surface Water and Fluvial
Sediment in the Price River Basin, Utah; Utah Department of Natural Resources;
1972.
Basic-Data Report No. 31, Selected Hydrologic Data, 1931-77, Wasatch Plateau-Book Cliffs
Coal-Fields Area, Utah; Utah Department of Natural Resources; 1978.
Basic-Data Report No. 32, Selected Coal-Related Ground-Water Data, Wasatch Plateau-Book Cliffs
Area, Utah; Utah Department of Natural Resources; 1979.
Basic-Data Report No. 38, Selected Hydrologic Data, Price River Basin, Utah, Water Years 1979
and 1980; Utah Department of Natural Resources; 1982.
Ground-Water Flow in the Navajo Sandstone in Parts of Emery, Grand,
Carbon, Wayne, Garfield, and Kane Counties, Southeast Utah; Water-Resources
Investigations Report 86-4012; U.S. Geological Survey; 1986.
MODELING: Navajo Sandstone
Ground-water Flow Model, 1986.