elephant butte recreation pool, new mexico

elephant butte recreation pool, new mexico Sec. 1401. (a) Pending the negotiation of contracts and completion of construction for furnishing water supplies for tributary irrigation units as authorized by section 8 of the Act of Congress dated June 13, 1962 (Public Law 87–483; 76 Stat. 96), and subject to the availability of stored water in Heron Reservoir in excess of one hundred thousand acre-feet, which water is not required for existing authorized uses, the Secretary of the Interior is authorized to permit releases from the Heron Reservoir of the San Juan-Chama project to provide storage and establish a minimum recreation pool in Elephant Butte Reservoir. Such releases, to the extent of the available supply, shall be limited to providing fifty thousand acre-feet for the initial recreation pool and up to six thousand acre-feet of water delivered to Elephant Butte Reservoir annually, for a period not exceeding ten years from establishment of the recreation pool, to replace loss by 88 Stat. 1499evaporation and other causes. Authorized releases, as provided above, are subject to and subordinated to any obligations under contracts for San Juan-Chama project water now or hereafter in force and for filling and maintaining a pool in Cochiti Reservoir under the Act of Congress dated March 26, 1964 (Public Law 88–293; 78 Stat. 171). The provisions of section 11(a) of the Act of June 13, 1962 (76 Stat. 96), requiring a contract satisfactory to the Secretary for the use of any water of the San Juan River are hereby expressly waived with respect to the use of water required to establish and maintain a permanent pool in Elephant Butte Reservoir: Provided, however, That nothing in this Act shall be construed to diminish, abridge, or impair any water rights of the Jicarilla, Southern Ute, Navajo and Ute Mountain Indians. Releases, as authorized by this title, shall be discontinued or reduced upon a finding by a court of competent jurisdiction that such releases are detrimental to such Indian water rights. (b) The releases of water from Heron Reservoir authorized herein shall not be permitted unless and until the Rio Grande Compact Commission agrees by resolution that— (1) the term “usable water” as defined in article I of the Rio Grande Compact shall not include San Juan-Chama project water stored in Elephant Butte Reservoir; (2) in the determination of “actual spill” as that term is defined in article I of the Rio Grande Compact, neither the spill of “credit water”, as that term is defined in article I of the Rio Grande Compact, shall not occur until all San Juan-Chama project water stored in Elephant Butte Reservoir shall have been spilled; and (3) the amount of evaporation loss chargeable to San Juan-Chama project water stored in Elephant Butte Reservoir shall be that increment of the evaporation loss from the storage of San Juan-Chama project water; the evaporation loss from the reservoir shall be taken as the difference between the gross evaporation from the water surface of Elephant Butte Reservoir and the rainfall on the same surface. (c) Fifty per centum of any incremental costs incurred by the Secretary in the implementation of this title shall be borne by a non- Federal entity pursuant to arrangements satisfactory to the Secretary.