OCR Text |
Show Agreements Readied on Multi-Million Dollar Project WASHINGTON, Agreement on most of the unresolved problems surrounding autiioiizdtion of the Dixie Project has been reached by officials of the State of Utah and the Bureau of Reclamation, Senator Frank E. Moss (D-Utah) disclosed Thursday. Questions of recreation management, relocation reloca-tion of State Highway 15 around the Virgin City Reservoir site, and the quantity and quality of water supply available for downstream down-stream use were discussed at a May 10 mooting, a progress report re-port on the Southern Utah reclamation recla-mation project informed Senator Moss. He was told that the Bureau's Regional Director, A. B. West, at Boulder City, Nevada, is in the process of preparing his proposed report which will be circulated for the suggestions of the States and Federal agencies involved. Latest estimates indicate an overall cost for the Dixie Project of $11,831,000 of which $10,883,000 will be reimbursable. The non- reimbursable items will cover flood control, recreation, and fish and wildlife. The project will provide pro-vide water for irrigation of 1(;,2(K) acres in Washington County. Firm power will probably be sold around 7 mills, the Senator said. Informed persons believe there will bo no difficulty marketing mar-keting power at that price, even in an area near Glen Canyon's 6-mill power. The Senator said that a resolution resolu-tion has boon approved affirming affirm-ing the intention of the Utah Water Wa-ter and Power Board to assign water rights which it holds for use of the Dixie Project to the United States. One still unresolved matter is disposition of the water of saline character which comes from La-Verkin La-Verkin Springs. Construction of the Virgin River Dam will lower that river's stream flow and thus increase the salinity of the water wa-ter below the dam as the LaVer-kin LaVer-kin flow continues to enter It. The establishment of a saline water conversion plant at LaVcr- kin Springs has boon suggested. The Senator said ho understands some $2 million of the cost of the Dixie Project has boon allocated for the La Verkin Springs problem, pro-blem, and that this could be applied ap-plied to the plant's cost. Senator Moss said the Regional Director's report will be submit-; submit-; ted to the office of the Commissioner Commis-sioner of Reclamation. And the Commissioner's proposed report, when approved and adopted by the Secretary of the Interior, will be transmitted to the States of the Colorado River Rasin and interested in-terested Federal agencies for review re-view as required by law. After a 90-day review period, the report re-port will be submitted, through the Bureau of the Budget, to the President, and if approved, to Congress. j Fenator Moss has introduced a Senate bill to authorize the Dixie Project. It calls for two dams, one on the Virgin River at Virgin , City, the other on the Santa Clara River near Gunlock. |