The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1909-11-03
INVESTIGATING RECLAMATION

!
The Congressional committee that are
now in tho midst of Investigating irrl'
cation projects, and the reclamation
work SO far put in in whole or part,
are expected IN this city tonight. We
/ trust that they made thorough invcs-
/ tigaton OF the great Gunn,son project
| in Colorado, and that They will make
their inspection thorough rs they 20
along If so (and there is no reason
| TO expect othcrwisc) the tour of thus
committee will be of the utmost value
to the country
In Utah we havc one project that
! is a work of considerable extent. partly
completed, under the reclamation policy.
That is the Strawberry Valley project,
which viii divert water enough from
| the Strawberry stream 10 irriCate about
seventy thousand acres in the vicinity
of Spanish Fork This project is well
under way, and it viii resemble more
nearly thc Gunnisou project than any
other OF any consequence in the coun-
! try. The reclamation projects IN gen
cral arc the throwing across streams
of dams to impound the water and make
immediate delivery of the water upon
thc land in the valley Of the stream.
In the Gunnison project the water o!
one valley Is taken through mountain
! by n tunnel INTO another valley, and
there used for irrigation purposes. It is
tho same in the Strawberry project. The
water of that stream naturally flows
out in the Green River system. This
tunnel will divert it into the opposite
side of the divide, and will he Of I'M
mcnsc service. There is ample water
in the Green River system TO irrigate
all the land that is irrigable there. The
Green River, itself, must eventually be
come the most important supply for al!
! that region.
1t was hoped at first that the great
est reclamation project of all would be
in Utah, as it was ft that it should
be. using the great Utah Lake as 4
reservoir for the irrigation Of lands in
Salt Lake, Tooele, and Davis counties,
but the canal companies here could
not agree with the reclamation service,
Some of those companies were afraid
| that their primary rights would be IN
tcrfercd with and that they would lose
something through the governmental
operations. That this fear is a V.
ono is a matter of course, and yet the
disloyal Dining for years TO the eff.
feet that the government was hostile
and would operate against the interests
Of the people could not be overcome IN
a wear or two, and the reclamation
service was forced to give mp this most
promising project Utah Lake is tho
natural reservoir for this region. 1t is
but little utilized compared with what
II might be. and we have faith that
some time in the future the large capa
bilitics of irrigation by the use OF
l-tah Lake as reservoir will be made
available.
The Congressional committee will re
ccive warm welcome in all of tho
arid regions. it is most important that
the whole of Tic reclamation service
should be understood in Congress. and
that il should receive that National at
tcntion which is its due, President Taft
on passing through this region on his
recent tour became wholly converted tc
the reclamation and irrigation practice
and promise, and in his message t.
Congress he will recommend an appro
priation by Congress Of Sl0,000,O00 in
bonds for the completion Of the pro
iccts now in process of construction
This will, Of course, include The Straw
berry project the BoisePayettc pro
iect. and others that are pending il
various quarters.
The whole subject is ono of National
interest, and we hope for the best re
suits through the investigation and per
sonal inspection of this committee.