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<br />001876 <br /> <br />advised me no later than an hour ago that the present uses of water <br />in the lower basin are something over 6 million acre-feet. It would <br />depend, I should think, a great deal on what further developments are <br />impending in the lower basin before they reach a use of 7~ million <br />acre-feet of water. I do not believe it is material to this legisla- <br />tion. <br /> <br />SENATOR KUCHEL. I would think, and you are far more of an expert <br />on this than I am, I would think, however, that it would be of extreme <br />importance to the lower basin to have some indication from the de- <br />partment as to what its judgment would be in those instances. <br /> <br />You are dealing with an area that is increasing in population with <br />terrific rapidity and I think that it is quite conceivable that that <br />kind of contingency could arise. I would hope that we might have <br />the benefit of the Department's thinking on that. <br /> <br />MR. BENNETT. Mr. Larson testified yesterday that there were several <br />ways of filling Glen Canyon Dam. One of them was to rely on the <br />extremely high-flow years. I should think offhand that we, as reason- <br />able men, would say that it would be a long time before California <br />and Arizona uses reached 13 or 14 million acre-feet of water a year <br />which might be available for storage in high-flow years. <br /> <br />They certainly will never do it with reasonable assurance of a <br />safe supply of water. <br /> <br />Now, that being the case, we know that there are extremely high-flow <br />years, we know that there are extremely low-flow years. Now, under <br />those circumstances, if you will go back and review the testimony of <br />Mr. Larson yesterday, I think you will realize that there is a great <br />degree of flexibility in the possible handling of the operating <br />problems connected with filling Glen Canyon Reservoir. <br /> <br />SENATOR KUCHEL. I think there is a great deal of truth in what <br />you say. Again, for the record, if the Department were able, I would <br />like to have some comment made on the interpretation of that problem <br />and how it would answer from a legal standpoint because it would have <br />the responsibility of administering this program. <br /> <br />MR. BENNETT. I think one answer to that, Senator, is that we are <br />confident that this committee and the Congress will write provisions <br />in this legislation which will adequately protect the interest of the <br />lower-basin States. The form of such provisions will depend largely <br />on the type of reasonable protection which the lower division wants. <br /> <br />If it is their purpose to secure amendments which will assure an <br /> <br />13 <br />