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

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4 UPDATING THE HOOVER DAM DOCUMENTS River (3) Article II(b) defines the "Colorado River 'of as "all America to which the water o the Colorado River System and all other territory wihin the United States System shall be beneficially applied." (4) Article II(c) defines the term "States of the Upper Division" as "the States of Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming." (5) Article II(d) defines the term "States of the Lower Division" as "the States of Arizona, California, and Nevada." (6) Article II(e) defines "Lee Ferry" as "a point in the mainstream of the Colorado River one mile below the mouth of the Paria River." (7) Articles II(f) and (g) define the terms "Upper Basin" and "Lower Basin," thus dividing the Colorado River Basin into these two basins. (8) Article II(h) defines "domestic use" as including "the use of water for household, stock, municipal, mining, milling. industrial, and other like purposes, but shall exclude the generation of electrical power." (9) Article III(a) apportions from the Colorado River System, in perpetuity, the exclusive beneficial con- sumptive use of 7.5 maf /yr to each of the two Basins for beneficial c Lower Basin was given the (10) Article III(b) provides that, in addition to the III(a) app right to increase its beneficial consumptive use by 1 maf /yr. (11) Article III (c) provides that if' (as has proved to be the case) the United States shall recognize the right of Mexico to the use of any waters of the Colorado River System, such waters shall first be supplied from the waters which are surplus over and above the aggregate of the quantities specified i Mexi Mexican deficiency a nd (b). It also provided that if such surplus shall prove insufficient for this purpose, l is to be borne equally by the Upper and Lower Basins, and whenever necessary the States of the Upper Division shall deliver at Lee Ferry water to supply one -half the deficiency so recognized in addition to that provided in paragraph (d) . (12) Article III(d) provides that the Upper Division States "will not cause the flow of the river at Lee Ferry to be depleted below an aggregate of 75,000,000 acre -feet for any period of 10 consecutive years..." (13) Article I11(e) provides that the Upper Division States shall not withhold water, and the Lower Divi- sion States shall not require the delivery of water, which cannot reasonably be applied to domestic and agricultural use. (14) Article IV(a) provides that since subservient to the uses of such waters forvdom domestic, agri�ultu�al River water for navigation shall be d power purposes. (15) Article IV(b) provides that the impoundment and use of waters for the generation of electrical power shall subservient to the use and thin c ons u m p tion he Compac shall be construed ag as affect affecting the obligations of the (16) ) Article VII provides that t g n United States to Indian Tribes. (17) Article VIII provides that present perfected rights to the beneficial use of waters of the Colorado River System are unimpaired by this compact. (18) Article XI provides that the compact shall become binding and obligatory when it shall have been approved by the legislatures of each of the signatory States and by the Congress of the United States. Although the river had produced an average flow for the two decades preceding 1922 that would have ac- commodated 16 maf /yr in beneficial consumptive use annually from the waters of the Colorado River Sys- tem for the two Basins, the Upper Basin (by virtue of Article III(d) of the Compact) assumed the burden of drier cycles occurring thereafter. Hence, the Lower Basin has received a guaranteed 10 -year (not annual) minimum flown s ma not Ferry Upper aggregate flow be ow became att he Lee Ferry the sense Ferrycompact that its depleti y point. B.4 Compact Approval The Compact was signed by each of the seven Basin States. Six of the seven States ratified the Compact in 1923 but Arr sev did not St to approval val an ratified the Compact I whi h2 f become effectiv modified ctiv upon approval quirernent for seven Pp