The Bureau of Reclamation announced today that it has awarded a contract in the amount of $10.8 million to Weeminuche Construction Authority (WCA) for a materials processing plant that will be used to prepare refined materials for construction of Ridges Basin Dam. This contract provides for the design, manufacturing and delivery to the jobsite of the materials processing equipment for creating dam embankment zones 2, 2A, 3, 4B, and 6. The majority of the processing effort involves producing the filter and drain materials for the dam which are carefully engineered key components of the dam.

The total volume of materials expected to be processed totals approximately 500,000 cubic yards. The processing equipment will be manufactured by METSO Minerals Industries, Inc. of Milwaukee, Wisconsin and is expected to be delivered to the jobsite by early fall.

WCA, based in Towaoc, Colorado, is a minority commercial construction company that is owned and operated by the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe. WCA has extensive experience in all phases of construction and related engineering disciplines, including: oil and gas field construction, residential and commercial buildings, heavy construction, road building, canals and water systems, sand and gravel and municipal improvements.

The Animas-La Plata Project achieves the purposes of the 1988 Colorado Ute Indian Water Rights Settlement Act and the Colorado Ute Settlement Act Amendment of 2000. The project will provide the Southern Ute Indian and Ute Mountain Ute Tribes with a reliable water supply for their future needs, while protecting scarce water resources for existing water users in southwestern Colorado and northwestern New Mexico.