ap

Skip to content
Environment | Why Crystal Dam in the Black Canyon of the…
Friday, May 1st 2026

Trending:

News
Environment

Why Crystal Dam in the Black Canyon of the Gunnison is releasing billions of gallons of water

“We’re in pretty good shape for filling our storage buckets this year across the Western Slope,” Jason Ullmann, a deputy state engineer with the Colorado Division of Water Resources, said.

Bureau of Reclamation employee Grant Watson watches as about 900-cubic-feet-per-second of water flows over the top of the Crystal Dam power facility located near the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. The Crystal Dam rises 227 feet above the stream bead of the Gunnison River. The Crystal, Morrow Point, and Blue Mesa Dams form whats known as the Aspinall Unit part of the Colorado River Storage Act of 1956, which stores water for the Colorado River. The last time this dam spilled was in 2019. (Photo by William Woody/Special to The Denver Post)
Bureau of Reclamation employee Grant Watson watches as about 900-cubic-feet-per-second of water flows over the top of the Crystal Dam power facility located near the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. The Crystal Dam rises 227 feet above the stream bead of the Gunnison River. The Crystal, Morrow Point, and Blue Mesa Dams form whats known as the Aspinall Unit part of the Colorado River Storage Act of 1956, which stores water for the Colorado River. The last time this dam spilled was in 2019. (Photo by William Woody/Special to The Denver Post)
Conrad Swanson - Staff portraits at ...
By | The Denver Post
PUBLISHED: | UPDATED:
Getting your player ready...
Billions of gallons of water are rushing this week out of the Blue Mesa Reservoir on Colorado’s Western Slope, through the Black Canyon of the Gunnison and ultimately into the Colorado River.
Already have an account Log In
This article is only available to subscribers
Trusted Local News

Standard Digital

$1 for 1 year
Offer valid for non-subscribers only

RevContent Feed

More in Environment