The Coconino sun., 1925-11-13

/ years ago; they have been insisted
upon from that time to this; they
have never been changed or modified
/ in the slightest degree, as every
reader will testify
! The very last word on this subject
/ is contained in Water Supply Paper
No. 556 by e. G. LaRue just issued by
the United States geological survey
and of which mention has already
been made in these columns. Not
with any idea of boasting or self
glorification, but merely to show that
readers of the Verde Copper News
have been given accurate information,
the following extracts from the La
Rue report are given, the numbers
corresponding with those prefixed to
the principles" above enunciated:
/. "The Colorado river basin has
been under observation, survey and
study and has formed the subject of
reports to congress since the end of
the Civil war. The program of inves-
LEGATIONS initiated by the geological
survey is now substantially completed.
Maps of the Colorado river and its
, tributaries are available from the
headwater region to the Mexican
boundary and records of stream flow
in the basin have been placed on a
sound, continuing basis"
2. "The equalization Of the flow of
! the St. Lawrence river is accomplished
naturally by the Great Lakes. An
equally effective control Of the flow
of the Colorado is possible by means
! of reservoirs for which nature has
furnished sites of great capacity. The
value of power sites in Colorado river
may therefore be greatly increased by
building reservoirs at or near the up
per end of the stretch of great fall,
whereby the erratic natural flow of
the river, ranging between flood dis
charges of more than 100000 second
feet and low water DISCHARGES of less
than 1000 second feet, may be con-
verted to a discharge that will be
nearly uniform over period of
years"
3. 'ln order to obtain maximum
use of the water for power and pro-
vide the most complete use of the
water for irrigation, it will be neces-
sary to utilize a reservoir site below
the mouth of Green river and above
Grand Canyon to regulate the flow in
the interest of power development,
and another reservoir site below all
large power sites to prevent floods on
the lower river and regulate the flow
in the interest of irrigation.
a. "lf ten dams were built on the
main stream below the mouth of
Green river, the sites being developed
in their order, going up stream, their
cost would be maximum. If the first
dam were built at the site near Lees
j Ferry (Glen Canyon) and made suf-
ficiently high to control the floods,
then each dam lower on the river
could be built at a. greatly reduced
cost"
5. "These surveys disclosed the fact
that a dam Of moderate height con-
structed four miles above Lees Ferry
would create a storage reservoir with
q capacity sufficient to regulate the
flow of the Colorado river.
6. "It is estimated that building the
Glen Canyon dam first would result
in a saving of millions of dollars on
dams subsequently built on the river
below this point"
This should be the sufficient an
swer to those who are clamoring for
Boulder Canyon or the Bridge Canyon
dam to be built at once. 1t assuredly
is complete justification of the po-
sition taken and consistently held BY
this paper.