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Show tional Forest quarter-million-acre wilderness area as well as several other national forests. The forest lands and trout-stocked streams and lakes of the upper basin provide abundant game and fishing. Both private homes and commercial resorts are situ- ated near the more accessible streams and lakes. Grand Canyon, Zion Canyon, and the Petrified Forest are only a few of the national parks and forests of the lower basin which have attracted mil- lions of tourists for many years. More recently, Hoover Dam has become a major attraction, com- peting with the natural splendors of the basin. Potentialities for expansion of the recreation indus- try are almost unlimited. Major Problems The Problem of Adapting Development to Existing Agreements for Distribution of Colorado Waters An outstanding problem in the basin is that of adapting water resources development to conform with pre-existing agreements upon distribution of the Colorado's waters. At present, three agree- ments deal with water distribution: the Colorado River Compact, ratified by the basin States and approved by Congress, which apportions the water of the Colorado River system between the upper and lower basins; a compact administered by the Upper Colorado River Commission 7 to divide up- per basin waters among the States of that part of the basin; and a treaty with Mexico, which governs the delivery of a specified amount of Colorado River water to Mexico. The problem is further complicated by a lack of agreement between the lower basin States as to the amount of water to be apportioned among them. Nor is there complete accord among the States regarding the interpretation of the compact and its associated documents. A comprehensive development plan for distribu- tion of the Colorado's waters must seek to use the water resources as fully and economically as pos- T The Upper Colorado River Commission was estab- lished by the Upper Colorado River Basin Compact of 1948. Act of April 6, 1949, 63 Stat. 31. One commis- sioner each represents the States of Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming. One commissioner also represents the United States. sible for irrigation, power production, domestic and industrial use, and other purposes. However, maximum economic development may not prove possible if the preexisting allocations are adhered to because greater returns may accrue from using water in one State rather than in another. Moreover, some States might wish to use some of the unused share of the other States, but be unwill- ing to make the necessary investment for fear that water might be available only for a short period. The same situation may arise with regard to the products of water development, like hydroelectric power. The adjustment of the resources manage- ment plan to the existing water allocation agree- ments might be supplemented by modifying the allocations where clear-cut economic or other national interest tended to take precedence over the purely local interests of individual States. Rehabilitation of Watersheds The problem of water and wind erosion has always been serious in the Colorado Basin. Even in its natural state the basin had achieved only a precarious balance. The Colorado always has car- ried a moderately heavy load of sediment. More- over, the slightest disturbance of the land surface commonly causes a rapid acceleration of the rate of erosion. Less than a century of human use of the area has caused the deterioration of large sec- tions of the watershed and a subsequent increase in rates of erosion. Many additional watershed lands are approaching the critical stage and others are threatened. Development of the region is inextricably linked with development of the Colorado River waters. Control of the Colorado is influenced by sediment. Eventually the sediment problem must be dealt with or the enormous structures to harness and con- trol the river will have their value impaired. Sedimentation Both engineering and watershed treatment pro- grams for sediment control will be necessary. The control of erosion on the watersheds demands early attention, because insofar as erosion can be con- trolled at the source, engineering works will be less expensive and reservoir storage losses will be lessened. Reservoir space losses are steady and continuing. 361 |
