Imperial Valley press., 1927-09-26
TO
ATTACKS
RICH I s
Water Rights of Western
States Threatened by
CalifOrnia's Action.
PROJECTS ASSAILED
Childers Declares Suit
Expected to Be Ready
in Three Months.

DENVER, Colo, Sept. 26.-Per.
fected water rights acquired on the
Colorado River since 1896 by Colo
rado, Denver, Utah, Salt Lake City,
Wyoming, Arizona and New Mexi-
co will be attacked in a suit to be
filed in the United States supreme
court by California, it was learned
here today.
Announcement that the suit now
is in the course of preparation by
the attorney general and Colorado
River Commission Of California, was
made today by Charles l.. Childers,
attorney for the Imperial Irrigation
District.
Other members of the California
delegation here to attend the Sew
en- State Colorado River Farley ad-
mitted the suit was in preparation.
1t is expected to be ready for sub
mission in three months.
The suit will attack the Denver
Moffat Tunnel Water project and
will retard development on the Colo
RADIO River for the mex ten years in
addition to clouding the title of all
rights obtained since 1896, Childers
said.
The action w. affect approxi-
mately 100000 acres of land in the
river basin in Colorado, r. I. Meek
er. engineer on interstate river com
pacts for Colorado, declared.
Although present eonsumptive
uses of Colorado river water in the
state total 100000 acre feet year
ly, it is necessary to divert twice
that amount at the head gates of
the bitches, Meeker explained.
Upper basin states and Arizona
will he compelled to release water
for CALIFORNIA; 3 use during the
heavy irrigation months of July,
August and September, if the suit
is successful, observers pointed out.
The Strawberry Project under
which water will be diverted from
the Colorado basin to the Great Sal:
Lake basin in Utah will be one of
the developments attacked in the
action.
Denver's Right Que1tioned
Denver's right to divert 100000
acre feet of water yearly through
the Moffat Water Tunnel from the
Fraser River, will be questioned i'll
the suit, Childers said.
"California has been trying for
six or seven years to get storage
and obtain drought prorcction: silt
elimination and flood prot action Cor
Imperial valley" said Mark Rose,
advisor to the California delega-
tion. 4
'We had hoped to obtain stor-
age and so settle the matter out Of
court. We will predicate our ease
on a shortage that occurred in 1924
when crop losses from drought in
the Imperial valley totaled s5.000,-
900.
''In that year. we had to take
all the water from the lower river,
every drop of it, for 96 days. Even
then we did not have Il Sufficient
supply.
"We must protect our perfected
rights, and it seems now such an
action is the only way to do that"
he continued. eff we had large
storage dam in the lower river that
would store excess flood waters and
so guard against dry years and the
possibility of drought, we wouldn Z
need to go to court and tie up all
the development for years to come y
1mmeasurable loss will result to
the southwest if the action is sue
cessful, river experts said. Mexieo
in another decade will have 1,000.-
600 acres under irrigation and will
have an equitable claim to water
used by the time the suit is settled.
The California suit will seek to
compel delivery of 100000 acre
feet of waer yearly by the upper
basin to care for perfected rights
totaling 3,25O,000 acre feet in I'm.
Continued on page ~