9653

• UCREFRP Catalog Number: 9653
• Author: Gilbert, S.
• Title: Powell's River, The Colorado - The Most Sought-after, Fought-over River in the History of North America.
• USFW Year: 1972.
• USFW - Doc Type: \
• Copyright Material: NO

in 1911 and named after President Roosevelt, who signed the Reclamation

Act.

The Law of the River

The next big controversy to hit the waters of the Colorado was the pro-
posed construction of Hoover Dam and the All-American Canal to Los Angeles

and the Imperial Valley. Again Arizona was in the thick of the turmoil in

its attempts to prevent California from gaining exclusive control over the

water and power from the federally constructed dam. By this time, other

states in the Colorado Basin were beginning to catch onto the idea that
they bad better grab for a drop of the Colorado now if they were ever

going to use it.

Although the seven basin states could not agree on the specific
v
'tIater allocations, they did create the Colorado Ri. ver Compact of 1922,
'---

deemed "The Law of the River". The compact divided the Colorado Basin
into two parts; the Upper and Lower Basins. (See map in frol'lt of paper).

The IDwer Basin was guaranteed a minimun flow of 7.5 million acre-feet of
water at Leels Ferry, while the Upper Basin was free to develop the

water in excess of that amount. Provision for a mi Tri mun flow to Mexico
was also included in the compact. (1,5)

With this agreement for a guaranteed flow, the construction of Hoover
Dam was allowed to progress. But Arizona was still not satisfied.

Although the compact had made the allocations between the Upper and
Lower Basins,it had made no specific allotment by state, and Arizona
thought it was being cheated out of its fair share in the future beneri ts

of the reclamation dam. The state even went so far as to patrol the dam

site with a small battleship to prevent construction.

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