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Show mm On Thursday, January 7th, President Eisenhower in his adc, rsss on the State of the Nation used these words: "Part of our Nation's precious heritage is its natural resources. It is the common responsibility of federal, state and local governments gov-ernments to improve and develop devel-op them, always working in the closest harmony and partnership." partner-ship." These words of the President of the United States indicate a broad vision and keen understanding. under-standing. As a citizen of the State of Utah, I welcome . the use of that word "partnership.1' I have searched the records from the time of the first meeting meet-ing in 1922, held under the direction di-rection of Secretary of Commerce Com-merce Hoover, concerning the division of the waters of the Colorado River and I am proud to' say that Utah has tried earnestly earn-estly and sincerely to bring about a real partnership between be-tween and among all seven States of the Colorado River Basin. I recite these facts: Utah was represented in 1922 at the writing of the Colorado River Compact by State Engineer Engi-neer Caldwell and Dr. John A. Widstoe. Dr. Widstoe was an eminent educator and scientist with long experience in soil and water study and experiment. He became President of the .Utah State College of Agriculture and ' later was elected President of the University of Utah. Recognizing the uncertainty of river flow, they were insistent insis-tent that no more than 16,000,-000 16,000,-000 acre feet of the Colorado River waters be allocated and set apart 8,500,000 acre feet for the States of the Lower Basin and 7,500,000 acre feet for the States of the Upper Basin. It was felt that it would be unwise for either Basin to plan for the use of greater amounts of water than the amounts allocated. al-located. At that time Secretary Hoover Hoov-er estimated the river flow at 21,000,000 acre feet. It appears that based on that estimate some plans were made for much more than the allocated share. As of today it is estimated that the river flow is 17,700,000 acre feet. Dr. Widstoe's foresight is justified. Utah was instrumental in having hav-ing written into the Boulder Canyon Project Act: "The Secretary of the Interior is authorized and directed to make investigations and public reports of the feasibility of projects pro-jects for irrigation, generation of electric power, and other purposes pur-poses in the States of Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, ,New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming for the purpose pur-pose of making such information available to said States and to the Congress and of formulating a comprehensive scheme of control con-trol and improvement and utilization ut-ilization of the Colorado River and its tributaries." (The Boul der Canyon Project Act provided provid-ed for the complete utilization by California,of her share of the waters of the Colorado River). It is under this provision that the United States has made the plans for the utilization of the water allocated to the States of the Upper Basin. In 1922 the States of neither Basin had the necessary information infor-mation upon which to divide the Basin water. We, in the Upper Up-per Basin, are fortunate in now having the office of Region 4 of the United States Reclama tion Service in Salt Lake City under E. O. Larson, Chief Engineer, En-gineer, and his associates. We are proud of the knowledge, the vision and the skill of these devoted de-voted men. Under their direction direc-tion we have learned the facts that have permitted us to agree upon a division among the States of Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, Col-orado, New Mexico and Arizona, which received the unanimous approval of every member of Legislatures, of all our Governors, Gover-nors, of the Congress of the United States, and of the President Pres-ident of the United States. Prior to the building of the Hoover Dam it had proven impossible im-possible to secure a -treaty with Mexico as to the division of the waters of the Colorado River. In conference in both Mexico City and in Washington, D. C, Mexico' remained firm in her demand for the annual use of 3,600,000 acre feet. After the completion of the Hoover Dam, throughout all the year a great volume of water in a fairly steady flow was passing into Mexico, subject to prior use by land owners in Mexico. Before we of the Upper Basin States could be sure of the full use of our waters, Tt was necessary neces-sary to limit irrigation use by Mexico. Representatives of the Department Depart-ment of State, the United States Second of the Boundary Commission Com-mission and two representatives from each of the States of Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico Mexi-co and Arizona, over a period of nearly three years, met in conferences many times and in many places in the West and in Washington, and finally agreed upon a treaty allowing: Mexico to use annually 1,500,000 acre feet of water. Many days hear- ings were held before the Foreign For-eign Relations Committee. The treaty was ratified by the Senate Sen-ate in a vote 73 to 10 and was approved on April 14, 1945. In these times of world wide strife and stress it is comforting and a pleasure to recite that i ten men, two each from the States of Utah. Wyoming, Col-! Col-! orado,' New Mexico and Ari-. Ari-. zona presided over by a wise , and experienced Engineer, Har-; Har-; ry Bashore, appointed for that 1 purpose by the President of the United States, not only agreed upon the fair division among the States of the Upper Division waters, but having before them the necessary facts and studies made over a long period of years by the engineers of the Bureau of Reclamation and by the engineers of the five interested inter-ested States, agreed upon the terms and provisions of the proposed pro-posed Act. which in a masterly way niv ; J " I hj mean" for the comprehensive development of the Upper Colorado River Basin waters and under which on a basis of real partnership these five states will continue to work together to the end that each will receive concurrent development. develop-ment. Sincerely, we would welcome such a cooperation and partnership partner-ship with all seven States in the Colorado River Basin. When you realize that out of the total area of Utah's 53,000,000 acres only 300,000 acres (about one half of one per cent) have a full season water right and only about another 1,000,000 acres have only an early season water right, you will realize how jealously jeal-ously we guard our water right of 1,713,500 acre feet of the Colorado River waters and how earnestly we have worked to ! protect and develop that right. Surely we may be permitted to be proud of the civilization that is Utah based upon so slender slen-der a water right. Thirty-two years is " a long time to wait. That is the time since the signing of the Colorado Colo-rado River Compact. During all these years we have studied, planned and worked. After many disappointments and rejected re-jected plans, there is before the Congress a plan that is feasible, j economically and financially sound and thoroughly worthwhile. worth-while. The States of the Upper Colorado Col-orado River Basin in cooperation coopera-tion and partnership are ready to follow the suggestion and leadership of President Eisenhower Eisen-hower in his address on the State of the Nation, which I again quote: "Part of the Nation's precious heritage is its natural resources. It is the common responsibility of federal, state and local government gov-ernment to improve and develop them, always working in the closest harmony and partnership." partner-ship." There is an old saying: "Count your blessings." Let us tell of two blessings that will be spread about through all the Nation by development devel-opment of the latent wealth so concentrated in the Upper Colorado Col-orado River Basin. Fears are expressed that before many years we will have a shortage of gasoline and motor fuel. It is comforting to know that in Eastern Utah, Western Colorado and Southern Wyoming (may we take the Echo Park Dam as a center?) we are within one of the world's largest coal fields extending for hundreds of miles in Wyoming-, Utah and Colorado and that running through the great mountains are great deposits de-posits of oil sands and shales and that from these coals, sands and shales, we, the United States, are assured a safe source of oils and motor fuels for generations gen-erations to come. One of the Counties in the River Basin is named Carbon County. The deposits of phosphate rock with the same area are so enormous that we have a dependable de-pendable supply of necessary phosphate fertilizer with which to replenish the fertility of hundreds of thousands of farm acres for at least a century to come. Low cost electric power and available water supply are the magic key. The history of Utah, one hundred hun-dred and seven years, tells of the value of a little water in a semi-arid land and that none should be wasted. To prefer one plan over another would result in the evaporation loss of hundreds hun-dreds of thousands of acre feet of water is unthinkable. There i is a great rejoicing in the State of Utah. Surely it must be true that after thirty-two years of watching, working and waiting more water is on the way. We, of Utah, are an outdoor people. Go twenty-five miles from any of our hundreds of towns and villages and you are in the wilderness. During the hunting season our mountains are a mecca for deer hunters from far and near. Less than twenty miles from our capitol city there is a great bird refuge and shooting grounds and on the Great Salt Lake there is one of the world's greatest Bird Refuges Re-fuges for hundreds of varieties of swimmers and waders. Our Fish and Game wardens are proud of the game fish in our lakes and streams. The deep snows in our mountains provide the keenest of winter sports. Earnestly we assure our friends from far away that we also are nature lovers. Yet, in our arid and semi-arid land, na ture forces us to know that the highest and best use of water is to sustain life and to produce bread. William R. Wallace (Reprinted from The Deseret News) |