OCR Text |
Show 210 requisite for the delivery of water from Lake Mead, and that to the Secretary has constitutionally been delegated power to allocate the unappropriated water impounded in Lake Mead, I must reject Nevada's prayer for water in excess of 300,000 acre-feet, unless and until the Secretary sees fit to amend the Nevada contract to allow an increase in the amount of water delivered to her. It should be noted that the Nevada contract, unlike the Arizona contract, does not require additional subcontracts between each water user and the Secretary of the Interior. On the contrary, the State of Nevada is free to determine who shall use the water, subject only to the Secretary's approval of the points of diversion. I hold the Nevada contract to be valid, with the exception of a provision in Article 5 (a) which is discussed hereafter at pages 237-247. 4. Contracts For Reclamation Projects, Adjoining Lands and Miscellaneous Special Uses. The United States has entered into water delivery contracts with various users in Arizona and California pursuant to the Reclamation Act of 1902, 32 Stat. 388, and acts amendatory thereof, 43 U. S. C. §§ 371 et seq. (1958), which obligate the United States to deliver water from the mainstream to lands on federal reclamation projects. The United States has also contracted with users in the Yuma, Arizona, area to deliver water to lands bordering federal reclamation projects pursuant to the Warren Act, 36 Stat. 925 (1911), 43 U. S. C. §§ 523-525 (1958), and to various special users pursuant to the Miscellaneous Special Use Act of February 25, 1920, 41 Stat. 451, 43 U. S. C. § 521 (1958). There are four federal reclamation projects located within the Lower Basin to which the Secretary is obligated to deliver water from the mainstream. These projects are described in detail at pages 50-58, 60-61, supra. |
Source |
Original Report: State of Arizona, complainant v. State of California, Palo Verde Irrigation District, Imperial Irrigation District, Coachella Valley County Water District, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, City of Los Angeles, California, City of San Diego, California, and County of San Diego, California |