OCR Text |
Show water usually can provide employment for a greater number of people. The limited available supplies of water in the area suggest that great care should be exercised in the use of water. Supplies should be conserved to the maximum possible degree, pollution should be minimized, the most water salvaged and re- claimed whenever possible. Research is necessary to determine ways of increasing the water yields by reducing water losses whenever they occur whether on the land by vegetation or evaporation, or by misuse, or of conserving and reclaiming water. Regardless of potential salvage or importation of additional water, the Rio Grande Basin will always be an area of deficient water supply. Where op- portunity for new water exists, through salvage or importation, municipalities should reserve some of that water in anticipation of their future growth. Until required for municipal use, the reserved water could be used for irrigation with the understanding that such use is temporary. 2. Inundation or Acquisition of Land and Facilities of Established Enterprise The Problem Acquisition and inundation of lands and facilities of established enterprise for reservoir purposes and associated adjustments in the program for the Rio Grande Basin. The Situation Property acquisition and inundation in areas of federally authorized reservoir projects concern ag- ricultural lands, a townsite, mineral rights, Indian property, archaeological and historic sites, and pos- sibly a national park area. Agricultural lands.-The reservoirs which have been constructed or planned in this basin are lo- cated in canyon sections of river valleys where there is little or no agricultural land, so that the problems associated with inundation of agricultural lands have been of minor importance. Since much of the land is publicly owned, the acquisition of private holdings and resettlement of occupants is not a major problem. One phase related to private property is impor- tant in the Rio Grande Basin, where the sediment content of stream discharge is large. Reduction of stream velocities in the vicinity of upstream limits of reservoirs results in deposition of large quantities of sediment. The accumulation of sediment up- stream from Elephant Butte Reservoir has neces- sitated the abandonment of much land, including the area once occupied by the town of San Marcial. Townsites.-The construction of Falcon Dam by the International Boundary and Water Commission will inundate the town of Zapata, Tex., and its ad- joining irrigated area. The economy of the entire county of Zapata is dependent on and centers around this community and its irrigated lands. The extent of financial participation by the Federal Gov- ernment in reestablishing the community is a diffi- cult negotiation problem. A bill has been intro- duced in Congress that would require the Federal Government to move the town to a new location and provide schools, courthouse, streets, and other pub- lic facilities. As the Falcon Dam will be completed in 1953, this is an immediate problem. Mineral resources.-In the past, mineral re- sources which were inundated have been appraised for their condemnation value. Mineral resources are of increasing concern to the Nation as high- grade, easily worked deposits become exhausted and lower-grade materials must be used. New indus- tries also create demand for minerals previously considered of little value. Indian property.-In investigating the plan to control floods in the upper Rio Grande Basin, many potential reservoir sites were studied and several sites that merited consideration from an engineer- ing and economic standpoint were discarded be- cause of the effect the reservoir would have on existing Indian lands and long-established villages. Reservoirs at the San Felipe and White Rock sites would have inundated Indian farmland as well as the San Felipe and San Ildefonso Pueblos. These Indian tribes were emphatic in their stand against reestablishment of their pueblos in another area, not necessarily from an economic standpoint, but because of their historical and religious attach- ment to present locations. The San Ildefonso Indians obtain clay for their well-known black pot- tery from a sacred spring area which is so important to them that they would not consent to its inun- dation. The authorized Jemez Canyon Reservoir Project provides for a levee and interior drainage to prevent inundation of the Santa Ana Pueblo at the upper end of the reservoir. Archaeological and historic sites.-Many pre- historic Indian villages, including two in the Chamita Reservoir area, were scattered along the banks of the Rio Grande all through New Mexico and Texas. In addition, many historic sites and 319 |