| OCR Text |
Show ually by proper development of the underground basin to meet our expanding needs and by making water available from other sources to those areas now totally dependent on flowing wells, the basins may be fully developed without undue hardship to any group of water users. A special problem for the state is the protection of water users who suffer hardship because of increasing development and use of water. Many of the regulations leading to most efficient development of the water resources favor the large user, and may work hardship on the small user having limited financial resources. Thus, the effects of grfeat drawdown by large wells may be immaterial for other large wells, but disastrous for shallow domestic wells. When stream supplies are depleted favorably situated stream users can drill wells for supplementary supplies, but others not having access to good aquifers cannot. In the course of increasing the total use of water in a specific area, it is likely that some well owners will receive less water than they did prior to the increase. 5. Should underground water areas be established for development and administrative purposes? The discussion of the preceding four problems brought to the committee the realization that the increasing development and use of water under the present system of water allocation is leading to a dilemma having many horns, of which the following might be noted: ( 1) water rights are now developed by individual initiative, which is in accord with the American tradition of individual freedom, but results in haphazard development that is not conducive to the optimum development of water resources; ( 2) increasing development and use of water are inevitably accompanied by increasing cost of water to all users, and the apportionment of costs among users with varying rights as to priority and type of use is a complex, if not impossible, problem; ( 3) the interrelation of ground water to other water resources ensures that regulation of ground water alone, or separately from other water resources, is likely to be ineffective. - 21- |
