BOARD01143

• Board Meeting Date: 12/11/1953
• Description: Minutes and Resolution
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Meeting

310

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Mr. Tipton: flAfter the closing of the Blue, there was some question
in the minds of the people on the Western Slope as to whether all of
the potentials in the Western Slope had been recognized, so there was
a restudy made. 'Mr. Jex and the Bureau came up vfith some new areas.
The Bureau insisted that projects be set up. It could supply project
funds if a project were set up, so the Cliff Divide project and those
studies have been pursued. The new lands had no relation to the
DeBeque reservoir. The new lands were merely those the Bureau found
that were suitable to irrigation."

Mr. Cory: "Would there be beneficial irrigation in Colorado directly
from DeBeque?"

Mr. Larson: "The potentials are above the DeBeque Canyon. If these
individual projects have storage sites on them, they will need no
river storage. I can't remember the terms of those 20 projects. How-
ever, they interfere with prior rights, so that they need storage."

Mr. Tipton: "There are dams under prior rights which exceed the water
supply. There are certain periods, of course, where they would in-
terfere with those prior uses. That could come into the picture and
the interference could be made up by releases from DeBeque."'

Mr. Merriell: "Several statements have been made which are not exactly
right. To irrigate this land in Colorado and Utah, the diversion would
have to be made very high, The statement that the land is not new is
only partially true. That land is the best in that country."

Mr. Bailey: "Are there any other questions? The matter of prime im-
portance before us today is ~he matter that Mr. Breitenstein has men-
tioned time after time and that is item 8, "Instructions to Colorado
Commissioner, Upper Colorado River Commission". There is a ineeting
of that Commission tomorrow and you are all familiar with the situation.
Yesterday (December 10, 1953) there was a meeting with the Colorado
Conference Committee, which discussed this matter to some extent. The
Governor appeared before that Co~~ttee stating he could not be present,
but he did impress upon the Committee the necessity for action and ex-
pressed the hope that action could be taken. Vie have a telegram from
Governor Thornton, dated December 11th, which reads as folldWs:"

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"Ivan C. Crawford, Director
Colorado Water Conservation Board
State Office Building
Denver, Colorado

I join the citizens of Colorado in expressirig apPl'€ciation
to the members of the Conference Committee for their sin-
cere and dilligent work which yesterday gave your Board an
opportunity to again consider the Colorado River Water
Storage Project. Many state problems seem of a temporary
'nature but your decisions today can be for the benefit of
future generations in Colorado, I am confident that you
and members of the Water Conservation Board 'are aware of
this responsibility of safeguarding our greatest natural
asset. I am also confident that you all have the know-