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Show 60 WAR FOR THE COLORADO RIVER Tudor, a thorough man, not only made an exhaustive literary study of Dinosaur, but he went out to it and boated down its magnificent rushing rivers, through the gigantic canyons. Of his investigation he reported:73 The opposition to the two dams in question arises from persons and organizations interested in the national parks and their desire to preserve the Dinosaur National Monu- ment in its present natural state. The Echo Park Dam, in particular, will create a large reservoir within this monu- ment and will alter its appearance and the existing con- ditions. It is a matter of personal opinion as to the extent of the harm that may be created by this reservoir. My own feeling is that the alteration will be substantial, and if conflicting interests did not exist, I would prefer to see the monument remain in its natural state. However, I do feel that if the dam is built, the beauty of the park will by no means be destroyed and it will remain an area of great attraction to many people. It should be noted that neither of these proposed reser- voirs will inundate any portion of the quarry where the dinosaur skeletons have been found. I have examined the proposals for various alternate reservoirs. To be effective these alternates must provide approximately the same storage of water and must waste as little water as possible. The latter is extremely important for the available water for consumptive uses in the upper Colorado River Basin is far less than will be needed for the full economy of the region. I have been furnished with information on the New Moab, Dewey, and Desolation dam sites, and have con- sidered the possibility of increasing the height of the pro- posed Glen Canyon Dam. I am particularly impressed with the showing that any of these alternate dam and re- servoir sites would result in a net loss of water from eva- poration, from approximately 100,000 to 200,000 acre- feet per year. Even the lower figure is enough to provide all the domestic, commercial and industrial water for a city the size of Denver. In an area where water is so precious |
