The Arizona sentinel., 1903-10-07
THE GREAT COLORADO RIVER


 The great Colorado river is the largest stream, both in drainage area and discharge, that lies wholly within the arid portion of the United States. II is formed by the june tion Of the Green and Grand rivers, rising in Colorado and Wyoming respectively, in re- giOns of great precipitation, mainly In the form of snow. Only small percentage of the water yielded by the basin of the Colorado has as yet been utilized toY irrigation GDd practically none for any other purposes. The obstacles are many Through most Of US course this river and its tributaries flow at the bottom of profound canyons, from which it Is impossible to divert them upon irrigabie lands. The river elnergeS rom It's canyon short distance above the Needles-the cross ing of the Santa Fe Pacific ElilrOad-and has Series of valleys which between thus point and the Mexican line aggregate about 0suuUO acres Tn this region the waters are heavily laden with sediment, which IS a serious OD- stacle to their diversion The grade or the f river is so fiat that q diversion canal taken out at the rivers bed must nave so Sllgnt a fall and so low velocity that it would quickly fill with sediment from the river For the same reason q canal must De very long in order to command any conSl lderaDle area of land in the river valley.
 TWO AND QUARTER BILLION GALLONS
 MINUTE.
 Measurements of the flow near Yuma show that the river sometimes discharges mimi mum of about 5000 cubic feet per second. Its maximum discharge is unknown, but pr0ba- | bly exceeds one-half million cubic feet per second As the river is supplied mainly by melting snOwS, it's season of high water cul- minateS in June, and the low water season is in the winter. when it's sources are frozen. | The liver is navigated more or less from it's 1 mouth to the Needles by fiat-bOttOm, stern | wheel boats, which sometimes even ascend to the mouth of Virgin river. Its navigation, however, is so difficult and precarious as to make it almost useless. At low water the l channel is so broad. shallow and changeable ! that boats are continually running aground. | sometimes being nearly a week in advancing ten or fifteen miles. lH times of high wateF r the swift current greatly iInpairs navigation Wherever wagon transportation is possible, this is preferred to the river
 The chief obstacle to the utilization 0f the waters of thIS basin are: First, tue greet fiuctuation in discharge; second, the paueity of klnd that can be reached by them; third, l the large quantity of sediment, making i'm practicable any diversion on a small scale. | A comprehensive project is here prcSented- which, if upon investigation, is found i'm practicable, will largely remove all of these difficulties, and will also greatly improve navigation at all seasons of the year.
 The development of the mineral resources, in which this country Is rich, is greatly ham, pered by the great cost of power and the Fac k l of transportation, both important requisites for the mining industry. The proposed plan will completely solve both probfems-
 sUBTRoPICAL CLIMATE.
 All of the land that can be irrigated from i the lower Colorado may be regarded as hav- ing & Semi-trOpical climate, where the gFOW ing season feg most products continues the year TOund-the requirements for water, now eveY being greater in the summer season than in the winter It is here assumed that the maximum use in July will be twice as gyeat as the minimum requirements in January and that a stream with the maximum How oa two cubic feet per second III July, furnlS ming about 1000 acre-fcet per annun, will supply 200 acres of land
 It is probable that with proper regulation the Colorado river will be able to furnish 2 continuous stream of water for industrial uSeS varying from l0,OO0 cubic feet per second Fin winter to 20,0e0 cubic fees per second IT summer, in years of smallest discharge, al lowing the great floods of wet years to sweeI to the sea as at present. This will be Sufh cient to irrigate 100000 acres of land and IS so far in excess of the requirements below the Grand Canyon that no restriction need to bt put upon storage and diversion of waters from the tributaries of the Colorado.
 : 4 considerable portion of the valleys of tho lower Colorado consists of sandy flood plains subject to occasional inundations, and rough gravelly foothills with soil unsuitable for cul tivation. There are also considerable isrea' of sand dunes ana some tracts renders4 s par ar claim by iIupOrnding upon them the Stl which annually passes down the Colorado : river.
 SERIES OF DAMS.
 The general plan here proposed is the pro vision of al series of reservoirs on the Colo
 
 at numerous points where the tlpography favorable and where the possible storage l ] large. All of these dams VIII be proVlue' with large Sl!ficewayS through the base, II ordeY that the stored waters may be entirel drawn off together with their load Of sill { : whenever it is found desirable to do SO. To reservoirs will serve as settling basins ior S' irunnt. The dams will also be utilized t : raise the waters into canals, for the dOubf 2 purpose of enclosing more irrigable lands o z such canals and of giving them @ veloclt IaV In suspension until it can be deposited upo
 the fields. The declivity given to the canal
 will depend largely upon the character or tn
 soil and will be the highest permissible with out involving destructive erosion. The fafl c
 the Colorado river is so slight that Tesel , [ voirs of enormous capacity may be construct ed without involving dams or 1mpractlcaol
 height At any time, by opening the slulce
 ways of the reservoir, the current of the rive
 will quickly cut channel through the dc
 pOSfted sediment from the upper end Of tn
 reservoir to the sluice gates; this being tn : longest dimension and deepest part or tn l. reservoir will in all eases form an importan F. part of this storage capacity, and to this eN e tent every reservoir can be permanently ker t clear of sediment without expense Wlt }, this exception. each reservoir IS expected [
 gradually fill; when this occurs It IS propose . to draw down the surface of the reservo1 ,, permanently 20 to 10 feet, and to convert a
 of the reservoir site except the river channt e into irrigated farming land, and, If necessary n construct another reservoir for storage pu
 poses higher up on the stream. This polio V will greatly increase the arabic area. ls VI '- then be practicable, whenever desired,
 close the sluicos and inundate all of the ;tgr
 cultural land in each filled reservoir and thu | fertiliZe it, as is naturally done by the rive
 Nile for the valley. This is done artlncIall
 in some parts of Europe and Africa. Wlt l, the deep, alluvial soil, semi-trop1eal cllmat l arid atmosphere, abundant water suppl.
 and the possibility of fertilizing the tield
 every year without expense, it is believe
 that such regions can be farmed the veg
 round and several crops taken off annually
 an acreage production being thus attalne
 entirely without precedent in history.