Arizona republican., 1912-12-06
STORED WATER DECREASING
SiXty-one Thousand Acre Feet Less Than Last Year But Still Plenty With Winter Supply to Come.

Seven feet less water altitude in the Roosevelt reservoir than on the same day year ago on December means q difference of over 61 ,000 acre feet in the water contents of the big basin.
 What is the cause of this deficit in the Water Bank"
 Arizonas climate is touchy at best
 That is the reason for the Roosevelt dam. In cycles of about eleven years
 there come dry seasons, when rain is
 very light in the hills to the north
 Corresponding wet seasons follow, when torrents of water are shed upon
 the mountain sides and run into the tributary streams of the reservoir. But
 this cycle is very irregular. It is only by taking a long period of time and correlating the observations taken in that space that government weather sharps are able to draw the diagrams which show the cycles.
 On account of this irregularity of | rain seasons. it is impossible to predict | the state of the weather for the re-
 mainder Of the year. If it turns in and 1 pours down for a week or two during | the reXt two months. the reservoir will | be nearly if not quite filled. It has 1 been positively shown that win l ter and not summer precipitation is 1 responsible for the increase in height : of reservoir water. Tn the hot season. rains come for a short while and are 1 caught by the thirsty soil of the noun ! tain sides There is little or no run 1 off at that time of year. It was shown 1 from the weather bureau records for
 last summer that big rains in July did
 not add an inch to the water level.
 Tn cold weather. the soil of the wa
 ter shed is not so porous. and if a ! freeze has come before the rain and 1 still further hardened the surface of
 the hills, the amount of run off is large, indeed There are so many things that | enter calculations on water supply that | it is hard to figue except in generali- ties Rainfall. which seems the main l thing is about last among the cOnsid-
 erations that enter the calculations.
 The condition of the water shed is eV-
 erything
 The height of water in the reservoir
 is also conditioned upon the amount of
 water that has been used in the valley.
 This last summer has been an exceed ingly busy one for the zanjerOs. and a moist one for most of the farmers fields The use of water in the past
 summer has been excessive Not only
 has little economy been prlcticed un- til the new acre foot rule was estab- l lished by the reclamation service las' | October, but also, great deal of new :, land was opened up in the project. al of which took a lot of water, as raw fields need more moisture than ole { | ones.
 With practically no water adding { and almost steady drain on the res { ervoir all summer, the level has beer { lowered steadily sipce last spring } There remains. however. ample sup. } ply for a year to come. even if not ; } drop falls Tn that time. After that. by special economy, water can be served te the valley for an additional space by which time there will undoubtedl, ! be rains enough to make up for tn ! preceding drOuth.
 ] Tn the opinions of the reclamation ] engineers there will be no need t' ] draw much longer on the water bank { The drain from now on until late spring will be light. Rains are predicted fo }t the next months, and as the hills ar ! cold and the surface good. great dea ! of dampness will be added to the basil ! stock
 "The valley was never in such goo { condition" said John Orme, presiden }i of the Water Users association, yes q terday. T have been among the farm q CTS and I find prosperity everywhere q The crops of the last few weeks ar <i being gathered. Plans are in the mak S ing for next seasons work, and all i { peace in the project. We are going { { have a bumper season next year. Las q years educatiVe meetings of farmer } and land owners is having it's effec <l Crops are being planned to give tn }l best results in market yield as well q $i full fields. The farmers are also walk ] ening to the advantages of selectin ] their crops. Early crops will be plant { ed this spring to get the cream ( { the markets demand By the time W St have shipped the last of our earl { crops. other points will just be putin ! theirs on the market. Then, when ou ! early stuff is all out of tlic way, W ! can go ahead witt t:'e reulla" sun ! mer- work"