Chapter 1: Summary of "The Law of the River"

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20 UPDATING THE HOOVER DAM DOCUMENTS Fort Mohave Reservation Chemehuevi Reservation Colorado River Reservation Fort Yuma Reservation Cocopah Reservation 100 acres in California 1,000 acres in Arizona 150 acres in Nevada 500 acres in California 2,000 acres in California 13,000 acres in Arizona 500 acres in California 33 acres in Arizona (4) The Reservations are entitled, with the priority dates recited in Article II of the March 9, 1964, Decree, to additional annual diversions for: Fort Mohave Reservation Chemehuevi Reservation Colorado River Reservation Fort Yuma Reservation Cocopah Reservation 20,026 acre -feet in California 6,460 acre -feet in Arizona 969 acre -feet in Nevada 3,880 acre -feet in California 30,854 acre -feet in California 89,940 acre -feet in Arizona 31,352 acre -feet in California 8,668 acre -feet in Arizona 7,294 acre -feet in Arizona The Motion alleged jurisdiction under Articles II(D) (5) and IX of the Decree. The United States Memorandum'in Support stated that its Motion did not seek to reexamine the prior allocations; that the court need not redetermine the boundaries or review administrative action fixing them; that the Court decree additional water, at a rate per acre previously fixed, for the acres confirmed to each Reservation; that the only issue is whether the acreage is "practicably irrigable "; and that a similar process be used for the "omitted" lands. Thus, the issues for this subsequent phase of Present Perfected Rights are taking shape. L. Filling Criteria { As construction progressed on the Upper Basin storage units authorized by the Colorado River Storage Project Act of April 11, 1956, 70 Stat. 105, including Glen Canyon Dam, Secretary of the Interior Udall, in consultation with various interest Cea t poss'ble River diBuption the many activities, including power Powell could accumulate storage production at Hoover Dam, then dependent upon the flow of the river not being restricted in the Upper Basin. Starting in October 1957, meetings of Basin States representatives were held with Interior officials at which hydrological data was considered. These were later refined by of minimum power head at Glen i Canyon o Reser conflicting Upper and Lower Basin views were the obtaining with any defi- voir (elevation 3490 or 6.1 mat) at the earliest practicable incident to dealing the Upper Basin ciency that might occur in the firm energy generation at Hoover Storge Project reservoirs. oposed a set of principles and operating criteria (later termed "Fill On January 16, 1960, Reclamation pr - ing Criteria "). These, it should be noted, were based upon reasona any of the States or r of l the United without attempting to define the outer limits of either rights or obligations States. These principles were issued February 12, 1960, and were revised following receipt of comments and suggested modifications in a series of meetings extending from March 1960 to May 1961. ved Reclamation's redraft of the general principles which ap- On April 2, 1962, Secretary Udall appro peared in the Federal Register of July 19, - 1962; - 27 F:R. 6851