Nogales international., 1937-04-24
VAST ACREAGE
IN ARIZONA is
BADLY DENUDED

OAFFOfGb, fA1lZO1lo, AplA 90
That more than eight million acres
of land in Arizona-one acre in nine
are now so badly washed, blown or
denuded, that cattle, horses and
sheep often cannot get enough pala-
! tible forage to exist, was announced
here this week in an informal re-
port by G E. Busby Chief soils man
of the Gila District u S. Soil con-
| servation Service.
! Actually. what has happened on
one-ninth of Arizona's land, Busby
pointed out, is described best by
older cattlemen whose ranges carry
many less cattle than 40 years ago.
They have seen many drainages like
the San Simon, changed from lux
uriant natural meadows on which
hay was cut to almost barren waste
land dug out by crooked arroyos,
and big areas in the Santa Cruz,
Stafford and other valleys, changed
from fine grass ranges to thlnly
vegetated land, supporting only
creosote bush and other shrubs With
as little forage value, and a few an
nual weeds.
cat the same time, stream flows
have become more flashy, water has
been short more often, and floods
have done more damage. Irrigation
farmers are having to clean more
silt from their bitches because soil
from the thinly vegetated and rain
washed ranges is being taken into
the main rivers, and then into their
canals or deposited as silt in the
reservoirs slowly destroying their
usefulness.
C. M. Stokes, acting manager OF
the Gila District Soil Conservation
Service. who received the report de-
clared that poorly covered and bad
lv washed or blown lands, crooked
arroyos, flash floods and increasing
silt deposits make erosion control IN
Arizona problem that deeply con-
Germs stockmen. farmers, and peo-
ple in towns and cities throughout
the entire state.
To more efficiently conserve SOIL
and water. reduce flood damage ana
sitting. a coordinated program OF
work on a complete watershed is
necessary, irrespective of county
lines and including private, State
and Federal land, Stokes asserted
''To check soil and water losses
and maintain the natural and dell
cate balance between vegetation
soil and water for the future, the
people. the state and nation need
to establish and actively maintain a
reasonable and adequate policy fol
using the land"
The Congress of the United
States recognized that problems Of
soil and water conservation cannot
be solved entirely by work in isolat-
ed demonstration areas. To ade'
uuately handle the economic anc
= social problem, Congress felt that
2 all washed or blown land in every
I watershed needs to be brought un-
= der some form of erosion control
the Arizona soil erosion chief as,
= serted. With that in mind, Congress
S authorized the Secretary of Agricul-
. ture to request the passing of state
| legislation providing for suitable
s control of soil erosion, be pointed
!, out
< "The Secretary of Agriculture anc
representatives of State and Federal
agencies comparatively prepared q
Standard Safe Soil Conservation
Districts law to assist Arizona and
{ other states in preparing legislation
f that would make it legal within
each state to set up soil conserva-
ton districts to enable the people
! who rent, own, or operate the land
to take more active part in soil ero-
sion and flood control"
1.-THE Secretary of Agriculture said
) this standard act was to be used as
a guide to establish state legislation
providing a way to organize soil con-
servation districts as governmental
| subdivisions of the state, and to
legally and democratically prescribe
: land use regulations for checking
soil erosion. Because. the operation
of such a program can be effective
only when it meets with the whole
hearted support of land operators,
provision was made in the standard
act for democratic control through
majority vote by interested land
owners"
l. The Secretary also stated that the
standard act should not conflict and
does not concern the operation of
state plans submitted under the