BOARD01706

• Board Meeting Date: 8/2/1961
• Description: Table of Contents, Agenda and Minutes
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Meeting

L4~L

I

There is a conflict and an abrupt conflict
between the utility companies' figures and the
Bureau's figures. I don't want to go into back
history too much but I do want to mention just
one little item here about the Bureau's great
interest in power. I fear that they have developed
too much of an interest in power and not enough
interest in the construction of irrigation proj-
ects. The one I mention Ted McCandless is quite
familiar with. The Bureau wanted to build a great
power plant at Echo Park and a great reservoir;
a second power plant at Split Mountain just a
few miles below the dam of Echo Park. They pro-
posed to divert much of the water in the White
River over into the Yampa River and send all of
that water down to Echo Park for the making of
power. Echo Park had very little advantages for
direct irrigation. It was a power plant pure and
simple. A magnificent power plant. Now here's
where the conflict came in on that. I wanted to
see that water used in Rio Blanco County and in
Routt County and in Moffat County. I wanted to
see a reservoir built up near the town of Yampa
some place. I wanted to see the Juniper Dam
built and the water used out of those reservoirs
to irrigate the land in Colorado. I wanted to
see irrigation projects on the lihite River. I
didn't want to see that water pass clear down
beyond the boundaries of the State of Colorado
simply to develop a lot of power. To me irriga-
tion came ahead of power. It did at that time;
it does at the present time. And I just don't
like to see the Bureau getting so excited about
power.

I

I want to say just one word about preference
users and then I'll be through. The preference
users have been, and are, a pressure group. I
don't blame them for that. That's part of their
business. That's what they are organized for.
A political pressure group. Through their
pressure in Washington, and they do have a lot
of power there, they have been able to get rates
established at Glen Canyon of 4 mills and .57 of
a mill for the power, and 1 mill and .43 of a
mill for the transportation of the power to this
backbone system. Now it is my believe, and I