Imperial Valley press., 1918-07-09
AWAIT WORD
FROM j. s. ON
PERMIT F D R
A NEW WEIR
Yuma Promises to Maintain
a Passive Attitude if the
War Department Grants a
Permit for Reconstruction
of Weir.
-W.S.S.-

Permit for Reconstruction
of Weir.
Officials Of Imperial Irrigation
District who attended a conference
yesterday with committee from the
Yuma Water Users Association at
Yuma, returned this morning with
very little accomplished through the
conference except perhaps a better
understanding of the stand of the
Yuma people.
At the conference it developed that.
although the Yuma people do not
propose 20 fight the rebuilding of the
rock Weir in the river at Hanlon's
Heading if permit Tor its rebuild
ing is granted by the War Depart
tment, they decline to give their Of
ficial sanction and thereby assume re-
sponsibility for any disastrous re-
suits to property on the Arizona
side
Arrived at home after the confer
ence, officials of the District We're
today going forward with arrange
ments to put in the weir as soon as
Chief Engineer C. X. Clarke thinks
the river has declined enough to
make it advisable to start the work
Application for permit from the
War Department was made more than
week ago through Captain {. t.
Leeds, local engineer in charge. AL
though this permit has been expected
every day for several days, it is be-
lieved it will be given without any
difficulty and that it will arrive In
time for actual work to start as soon
as the river goes down enough to per-
nit work.
Reports from the river received by
the District indicated that the dis
charge at Hanlon's heading yester-
day was $4,000 second-feet. At the
rate the river is going down it is only
a matter of hours until it will have
reached point where work on the
weir can be started. Last week En-
gineer Clarke was planning to start
on the weir when the discharge
reached 10000 second-feet.
j A clear statement of the position
taken yesterday by representatives of
the Yuma Water Users Association
was given to The Press this morn
ing by Phil D. Swing, attorney for
the District
He said that, while the Yuma CON-
mittee passed resolution declining
: to give its official sanction to the
reconstruction of the weir, individual
members said after the meeting that
the committee would not enter any
! interference with its reconstruction
if the War Department grants per-
nit 1t was stated, however, that
Yuma will seek guarantee from the
War Department against any damage
to property in the limits of the Yu-
ma Water Users Association.
"The Yuma people took the posi-
ton that since Imperial Valley has
not signed up the contract for a con-
nectioa with Laguna dam, they are
not bound to live up to their agree
ment in that contract to sanction the
weir," he said. at was suggested
by them that, inasmuch as we have
not yet signed the contract. we had
no intention of doing so, but are US
ing the contract as a wedge to gee
the weir back.
"The main objection they inter-
> posed was that they do not want us
coming to them every year to dump
more rock into the river at that point.
In this contention they are right.
Officials of the District realized ths
some time ago, and it was for this
: reason that we went to Washington.
Wv .k.S.