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Show in Utah and in the Colorado River Riv-er basin than is revealed in a hasty survey. Much mature thought should go into proposals put forth by the government. The problem has both its ideal-ogical ideal-ogical and economic aspects. o While the controls on the Colorado Colo-rado are ostensibly set up to provide pro-vide water for parched soil, yet the Regional Director has designated des-ignated five of the initial units as sources of an immediate power pow-er supply for market needs in the Upper Basin and adjacent areas. Is this project a further opportunity for the entrance of government into the field of private power? If so, is that what we want in Utah? It might be well to remember in this connection that TVA was completed under the guise of flood control for the Tennessee River. To accomplish this purpose pur-pose two courses were open to the planners. They could build a series of low-cost self-controlled dams without any power features. fea-tures. Or, they could erect high-priced high-priced .multiple purpose dams with great generating capacity for electricity. The planners did the latter. They built ten high dams and entered into the power field. As it turned out, it was power first and flood control second. I fact the total investment cost for power plants and transmission systems is nearly one-half a billion bil-lion dollars, somewhat over one-third one-third of the complete proposed mainstream expenditure. There's more to the problem of getting water on dry land here I Much the same procedure is being followed in this state for the Upper Colorado River project. pro-ject. Although the overall picture pic-ture is painted as one tto bring the soil into productivity yet five of the first units to be built are urged for their immediate power potential and two of those, Crystal and Split Mountain dams are proposed only for the purpose pur-pose of generating electricity. In WATER FOR UTAH'S ARID LANDS by Merle Richa .Water for Utah's arid lands has been a long felt need. Indeed, it has "been a need that everyone recognizes. In spite of this agreement agree-ment Utah's water problem . is probable as knotty a one as any that confronts the citizens of the state. Just about everything has been suggested as a solution. Thousands of dollars have been invested in the new methods of seeding clouds to milk them. ' Billions are planned for' invest-, invest-, ment in basin projects. Between these two extremes are all the pet and local projects. The astronomical cost3 of the huge basin projects are beyond the ability of a single state to pay. Therefore, the federal government gov-ernment has stepped into this field and after much study came up with a comprehensive plan for the development of the water wa-ter resources of the Colorado River Basin. The course of the legislation through Congress which would bring these plans to a fruition has been a stormy one. There has been disagreement disagree-ment over the selected sites for the river dams. Some have thought that the timing of the project was wrong. We need the water, but with costs so high is now the time to build? To others oth-ers the ownership of the water is of paramount concern. Who will own the water after it has been harnessed? Who will control con-trol it? Then again, some point out what they believe to be a sinister sinis-ter aspect of the whole project. |