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Show 49 the inspection and approval of plans for all proposed dams over ten feet in height. During the first two years of operation, the State Engineer's Office approved seven dams, which allowed for the privately- financed construction of six reservoirs, one of which incorporated two dams in its design. During his brief tenure, Willard Young had directed the office to begin work on a booklet of instructions for water measurement, including tables that could be used by local water masters to determine volume in ditches or canals without having to resort to complicated computations. The booklet was completed by State Engineer R. C. Gemmell in 1898, and was distributed throughout the state in the first biennial report. Evident in this undertaking was the idea that practical farmers were capable of distributing water effectively as well as the hope that they could gather data that would supplement the United States Geological Survey's reports in the growing files of the State Engineer's Office. From 1899 to 1900, the State Engineer's Office was involved in determining the duty of water on Big Cottonwood Creek, a work that was requested by water users. 25 The eight canals which drew water from the stream were listed in the biennial report along with the amount of water used and the acres served by each. The office also began collecting and storing information obtained from streamflow measurements taken by Salt Lake City's engineer, A. F. Doremus. This data were added to the records being collected by the United States Geological Survey. ( The legislature had still not appropriated funds for the State Engineer's Office to do streamflow measurements itself. In fact, the operating budget had been cut during this time period to a mere $ 300 per year. 26) In the 1899- 1900 biennial report, the State Engineer proposed to the governor and legislature that the water law of the state be amended so that all water rights would have to be recorded in the Office of the State Engineer. He also proposed that the legislature adopt a new system of water law based on the Wyoming system as a model. The State Engineer felt that most of the state's current problems with water right litigation ( much of it on the Weber River System) could be solved through the use of such a system. 27 A. F. Doremus assumed the duties of State Engineer in 1901. During the first two years of his tenure, the office approved plans for seven dams, again privately financed. The recording of water measurements was continued. During this time, more technically difficult water projects were attempted. In 1902 an unprecedented drought caused the water flow in the Jordan River to decrease sharply and eventually stop altogether. The water users met this challenge by installing The measurements on the Big Cottonwood Creek were not for the purpose of determining water rights. Rather they were for determining the duty of water. Duty approximated the amount of land that could be serviced by a given unit of water. During this same period similar work was performed on the Logan and Provo rivers. State of Utah, " Third Biennial Report of the State Engineer to the Governor of the State of Utah for the Years 1901 and 1902," Public Documents, pp 23- 44. 26The operating budget was only $ 300 in both 1899 and 1900. State of Utah, " Second Biennial Report of the State Engineer to the Governor of the State of Utah for the Years 1899 and 1900," Public Documents. See appropriations of the legislature. State of Utah, Laws of the State of Utah Passed at the Third Regular Session of the Legislature of the State of Utah, held at Salt Lake City, the State Capital, in January, February, and March, 1899 ( Skelton Publishing Company, 1899), Chapter 87, p 153. " State of Utah, " Second Biennial Report of the State Engineer to the Governor of the State of Utah for die Years 1899 and 1900," Public Documents, pp 52- 55; and State of Utah, " Third Biennial Report of die State Engineer to die Governor of die State of Utah for die Years 1901 and 1902," Public Documents, pp 21- 23. |
