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John W. Keys, III <br />Commissioner, Bureau of Reclamation <br />Department of the Interior <br />Remarks presented to: <br />Law of the Colorado River <br />CLE International <br />Las Vegas, Nevada <br />May 19, 2005 <br />Commissioner's Perspective on the Colorado River: <br />Developing Operational Rules to Address Low Reservoir Conditions <br />Introduction <br />Good afternoon. I am John Keys, Reclamation's Commissioner, and it is a pleasure to be <br />here with you all today. <br />I must admit that I don't usually volunteer to enter a room filled with nearly 200 lawyers, <br />but when the invitation comes from Dennis Underwood, and the focus of the conference is the <br />Law - and future- of the Colorado River, even this old engineer couldn't say no. <br />While there are lots of issues and disputes and concerns on the Colorado River today, one <br />thing that I'm sure everyone can agree on is that Dennis Underwood is one of the great leaders in <br />the modern history of the Colorado River. I'm very proud to follow Dennis as Reclamation's <br />Commissioner. I'm honored to call Dennis a friend and a colleague, and I credit Dennis with <br />creating an atmosphere where people can find creative solutions rather than seeking out new <br />ways to do battle. <br />Dennis' approach to problem solving provides a central theme for my remarks today. <br />While this may not be the most receptive audience for my message, I want to state it <br />clearly and plainly: We face challenges in the Upper Basin. We face challenges in the Lower <br />Basin. We face challenges between the Upper and Lower Basins. And we continue to face <br />challenges on the Colorado between the U.S. and Mexico. <br />Notwithstanding these challenges, I don't believe that large -scale litigation - especially <br />litigation between the basins - is the way to address the challenges facing us on the Colorado <br />River. <br />Now I'm not trying to prevent any of you here in attendance from feeding your families. <br />But my experience in the Reclamation program since 1964, leads me to conclude that while the <br />recent drought has caused all of us in the Basin to consider issues that have been relatively <br />dormant for many years, I am optimistic that with the continued leadership shown by the leaders <br />in the Basin States, we can find - and implement - solutions. These solutions must be designed to <br />Prepared Remarks - Keynote Address <br />Low of the Colorado River <br />