Updating the Hoover Dam documents, 1978 / Milton N. Nathanson.

page XII-36

XII-36 UPDATING THE HOOVER DAM DOCUMENTS Figure 19. Undeveloped river reach, Topock Gorge Area, Lower Colorado River main stem. essential to the environmental quality of the valley. The important Imperial and Havasu National Wildlife Refuges are located here. Channelization of the river and phreatophyte control to conserve and salvage water have, in the past, conflicted with fish and wildlife management objectives. Reaches of the river have been identified as having potential for designation under the National Wild and Scenic River Act. Irrigation is important with over 300,000 acres being irrigated along the river in Arizona and California. Water is diverted here also in irrigated lands in the Imperial and Coachella Valleys of California. The Colorado River, Yuma, Chemehuevi, and Mojave Indian Reservations are developing facilities to utilize their remaining shares of Colorado River water through expansion of irrigation, recreation, and urban development. Illegal land occupancy and diversion of flows for irrigation also are a problem. The river is an important source of hydroelectric power for the Southwest with major power installations at Hoover, Parker, and Davis Dams. Numerous excellent sites exist for potential pumped-storage 46