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<br />HXS'l'OI:Y OF Pi:O(;]~I.;rnNGS J\Y Cm:.ORADO Ihnw. STATES Ll~A1HNG TO 11"TEIl.HTATE
<br />COMl'ACT LI:!:GIf;LATION-OOLOltAOO nlVJ~B.
<br />
<br />SAT.T Udm CONFEnENCl'~.
<br />
<br />J~l1lnar:v H~-2J, 1910, f\ conferC:-llce hctween the rCI)l'e~(,lll11tives of t.he f:leven
<br />ColonuJo River Stntes, t.o wit, Ari7.ona, Oalifornia, Colol'fHlo, Nevaua, New
<br />Mexico, Utll.h, :lwl Wyoming, Wll~ ('filled b~' the gOYf~l'nor oJ Utllh for the purpo~e
<br />of di'<;~l1s!5illg qllesLiolls l'elating t.o tile utili7.ution M the water supplies of thp.
<br />Colorado llivcr and its It'ibut,nrics, and especially in conllection witll n law
<br />Lhen Pl'opoSNI hy S~Cl'e(-al'y Lane l'elaLing to sol(lier!';' rllHl sailors' settlement.
<br />HOll. W. J. Spry, ex-govet'Jwl' of Utah, present COIlHni!'-:sioner of the General
<br />Lnnd Ofllcc, pl'C'sided OVl'l' the meeting and wnf:l made })ermlllient clHlirman of n
<br />continuing orgn.ni:t..utioll.
<br />Thc otller Colorado Hiver B~sln Statl~s above noted wero represented. The
<br />llleeting of tile HeVen Sllltes resolved itseH inlo a permanent oJ'gani:r.uLion to oe
<br />knowlI a!5 "'1'1)(' Leagl.le of the Southwest."
<br />--As It result, of lIle se~':liOI1S t1w following resolutions, inLel' alin, werc adopted:
<br />,/' "'rile histnt",Y of irriguLion throughout, lJle world hus shown thul the greatest
<br />duty of \\'ater i:; !lnd \)y first using it u})on the upper l'€:UchC's of t.he ~tl"f~am and
<br />contilluing the Ilse progres~ively downward, In other W01'(18, 'The water
<br />should first I)e ~:lpLnred and lIsed while it is young.' for' it can thf'u oe rccap.
<br />tureu as iL J'ClllI'JJS from lhe performance of its duLie:-; find thus be used over
<br />and over again.
<br />"Attention 1.<:; CurthCl' directed Lo the ffiet that many of t.hcf:lc iJ'rigation
<br />pro.ieds, of U 111llg"niLlJ(lc to be developed oI11~' by the FClleml Government, can
<br />be l)l'Upcrly c!tITled on without interfering with smnller developments which
<br />should he tlllrkl'Lal{en hy i\l{lividual and corporate initiative, and we thcl.eiol'e
<br />urge. upon the Interior and A,!:!;t'icllltural Departments the adopLion of a liberrll
<br />and symprll:llCl.ic policy in the gmnttng of rights of way fO(" reservoirs find
<br />ditclles upon the public domain, where the sallle are e8selltial Lo the develop-
<br />ment of 81.1('11 }JrivaLe projects.
<br />.. We further lll'ge {"ht' Hhernl ndminif;Ll'at.ion of nil lanel In\\'f'> o( the Unitt"ll
<br />Stales looking- 1.0 \:he CI1<l of placing the lnncls of the Unite(l SLfltes in the actual
<br />posscssiolJ anll tWCl1llaiioll of it:::;. cit!7,cne in ol'(lel' that the ritijl;E'llS 1l111Y have
<br />a bOlllC amI that I.he lauds nmy f!:0 upon the tax rolls or the various States in
<br />which thflY lIlllY be locflt~d in o1'(lcr that they may bear tIleir just proportion
<br />of the expmH;e of StaLe adlllinistmUon.
<br />"Alon,!:!; the lillCfl ReL forth in thegc reFlolntions, we pledge onl'sE'lv.~~ to a hearty
<br />~lJoP(TatioJl wit,lI the reJlI'es~ntflttves of the li'cflernl Government: in order tbut
<br />Lhe IIC'sit'Cfl l?IHl I\lUY oc atLnincrl at the earliest possible moment coni'istcnt with
<br />:l wiFlc ndminisll':I.tion of thl'l nfrairs of the Nntion and 0:1' the States.
<br />"In LIle CfllT.villg out of nlIl'cclnmntion projects In which the Federal Govern-
<br />ment tlmy bccollle intr-rf'sted, its nct.lvities should r.vcr he in conformity with
<br />the lnwf:l of th0. Stnte 1n which the project under development is located. In
<br />the arid Stutes of Lhe West the irrigation projects underLakE'n lJy 01' wlLh the
<br />alrt o~ Lbe Fcfl~ral Government should in every inst.ance he based upon a fnIl
<br />COInI)liance w1th Lhe lows of the State wherein the projects nJ"e located 80 fur
<br />as tbe appropriation of waLcr nnd other matters of purely State control arc
<br />concernecl."
<br />S\lbsequcnl: l\lf'~tings of the Jen~lIe wel'P- hel(1 at Los Angeles whl'lre re:-3olu"
<br />tiou:., vf a similar charflcter were adopted.
<br />
<br />DENVER CONFERENCE.
<br />
<br />A suhscqucnl' meeting of Lhe league was held at Denver AllgUl3t 25-27, 1920,
<br />at which the (le.'::lil'nbilit.y or encouraging the constrlldion of large rescl'voir~ in
<br />tile Cnnyoll of the Colorndo River for pUl'pO~S of flood control, lJower, and ini.
<br />gatlon was dis('u~secl, and at which the Directol' of the Reclamation Service
<br />nSS\l1'c(1 the ('rpl'f'sen(atives of the seven States that Lhe construction of sll('h
<br />l"cSCl'voirs Heell in 110 manner interfere with the futul'e development of th~
<br />upper reaches of the strenllls within the State~ of origin of the wateJ's to 1)('
<br />impounderl by tile reservoil's situate in the lower States.
<br />Tlle followin~ t'csolnt.tons were unanimously ndoptr.d:
<br />. " /Jc i.t ,.e8ol,-J;-cll, Thllt the resolution, ndoptetl at tl1e conference of the lengue,
<br />Jleld at Snlt .Lllk0 Cit.y, January 18~21, 1019, Dnd the p1'oceedings of the ttlinl
<br />convention or (lIe League of the Southwest, heW at Los Angeles, April 2-3,
<br />1920, be, and Lite snme n.l'C, hereby rn.t1fied, approved, and reaOlrmecl.
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