The Coolidge examiner., 1946-01-18
Three Large Water
Projects Planned
In 1916 Program


busiest years In the bureau OF rec
lamatiou's 43-year history. +. A.
MoritZ. director OF the bureau s
region III office at Boulder City.
Nevada. has announced compre-
hensiye reclamation program for
1916 calling for further develop
ments OF land and water resources
along the lower Colorado River
Basin to bring additional irrigation.
river control. and power benefits
to the southwest.
With the war over the green
light having been received on pro-
jects TO develop and conserve ma
tural resources throughout the
west. the bureau is launching its
1916 program with total funds Of
Si40. .000. 600 Moritz stated.
About S27. $50. 600 will be avail
able during 1896 for work on pro-
jects in Region III. including the
multimillion dollar Davis Dam pro-
iect on the Colorado river. "a miles
west OF Kingman. Arizona: the All
American Canal system in south
eastern California and the ella
river In southwestern Arizona
where extensive irrigation develop
ments are under way. Region III
includes Southern California. all OF
Arizona. several counties in south
ern Nevada. southern Utah. and
western New Mexico.
Detailed Investigations will be
conducted on some 20 potential ir-
rigation and multiple-purpose pro-
jects in the region with S6l5.0 900 OF
the total funds available for this
purpose. Further study will be
made OF the potential Bridge Can
yon project in northwestern Ari-
zona. one of the key projects in
plans for the development Of the
Colorado River Basin and for di-
yerting water from the river TO
central Arizona. A general report
on plan for development of the
water resources of the Colorado
River Basin is substantially COM
pleted and along with reports on
the Virgin, Little Colorado, and
the Muddy Rivers, will be ready
sometime during the year.
The Davis Dam project is the
largest undertaking by the bureau
in this region and on the Colo
RADIO River since the construction
OF Boulder Dam. 81 miles upstream.
Work on the project is again un-
der way after being delayed by the
war. The holders OF the original
contract - the Utah Construction
Company submitted the low bid OF
S2l. .462. sos last December on the
new contract which is expected to
be awarded soon. The original con-
tract was formally terminated in
I943. The bid includes contract
costs only, exclusive of materials.
equipment and supplies furnished
by the government.
This earth-and-rock-fill structure
will be built at an estimated cost
of SIC. &C.,, 900 which includes con-
struction of the dam, spillway,
power plant, and other appurtenant
works; and a power transmission
system TO be interconnected with
the Boulder Dam and Parker Dam
system, to transmit power TO load
centers in the southwest. The dam
will impound 1,940. .000-acre-feet OF
water, will have a generating ca
pacity of 225 900 kilowatts and gen
crate as much as S00,000,000 kilo-
watt hours per annum.
The principal purposes of Davis
Dam will be: % to service the
treaty between the United States
and the Republic of Mexico which
provides for the division of the
waters of the Colorado. Tia Juana,
and the Rio Grande between the
two countries and obligates the
Bureau to build the project in the
next five years; (2) TO regulate the
release of water from Boulder Dam
according TO downstream needs
(3) to generate electrical energy tC
alleviate the power shortage in the
southwest.