[2] The dam was built as part of the San Juan–Chama Project, which transfers water from the San Juan River basin through the 12.8 miles (20.6 km) Azotea Tunnel under the Continental Divide into Willow Creek, where it is stored in Heron Reservoir as part of the Colorado River Storage Project.

[1] The dam was built strictly for storage and delivery of San Juan-Chama Project water for municipal, domestic, industrial, recreation, irrigation, and fish and wildlife purposes.

[1] Flows of "native" or "natural" water from Willow Creek and from the Rio Chama upstream of the dam are measured and bypassed through the reservoir.

[7] The dam provides up to 5,000 acre-feet (6,200,000 m3) of San Juan-Chama water annually to maintain the recreation pool at Cochiti Reservoir.

This means that contractors such as the City of Albuquerque or the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District often withdraw their water and arrange to store it in downstream reservoirs such as El Vado, Abiquiu, Jemez Canyon (by exchange), and Elephant Butte.