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Show 246 sumption contained in the Project Act, or that they would operate so as to prevent Arizona and Nevada users from eventually consuming the full amount of water that was barred to California. The Arizona and the amended Nevada contracts were executed within six weeks of each other, and Article 10 of the Arizona contract specifically provides that the entire contract, and Article 7 in particular, "is without prejudice to, any of the respective contentions of said states [which term includes Nevada] and water users as to (1) the intent, effect, meaning, and interpretation of said compact and said act ... (5) what limitations on use, rights of use and relative priorities exist as to the waters of the Colorado River system. . . ." And in a memorandum issued by Secretary of the Interior Ickes on February 10, 1944, the day following the execution of the Arizona contract, he stated that "Article 10 was purposely designed to prevent Arizona, or any other state, from contending that the proposed contract, or any provision of the proposed contract, resolves any issue on the amounts of waters . . . available to the respective states under the compact and the act. It expressly reserves for future judicial determination any issue involving the intent, effect, meaning and interpretation of the compact and act."94 Whatever the reason for the incorporation of Articles 7(d) and 5(a) into the contracts, it is apparent that, in light of the interpretation here proposed for Section 4(a), those provisions defeat the basic purpose of the delivery contracts in that they, and they alone, prevent the contracts from establishing a rational and easily administered scheme for the apportionment of all the available mainstream water among the three interested states. In this posture, failure to give effect to the provisions charging Arizona and Nevada for depletions above Lake "Special Master's Exhibit No. 4, The Hoover Dam Documents, p. A568. |
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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 |