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i ~\ 1'7 Water Conservation Users of Colorado River water in Southern Cali- fornia, as well 35 all water users throughout the arid southwestern United States, always have been keenly aware of the need for consen"ation. salvage and effi- cient use of water. The~' have had to be. Southern California agencies which supply Colo- rado River water to consumers do not view lightlv their shares of the responsibilit~. to achieve efficie~t m~nagemem: of the river :lI\d prevent waste. They schedule their orders carefully, and revise them as quickly as possible in response to changes in the weather or in other factors, They fully endorse and support the program of the Bureau of Reclamation to straighten and shonen the ri\'er channel, reduce back- waters :lnd riverbo[[om vegetrtrion, and to improve facilities and methods of conrrol. The agencies joined the Department of the Interior ~md simibr Arizona agencies in the 1967 dedication of Senator \Vash Res- ervoir, an off-channel facility on rhe California side of the river ano\'e Imperi::J1 Dam, built [Q receive the unavoidable excess deliveries which would otherwise be wasted, <lnd return them to the river in times of deficient deliveries. Officials of the California irrigation districts on Colorado River continually encourage rhe growers, al- ready among the world's most efficient, [Q further improve their efficiency of water application and use. District rules and pricing policies are calculated to minimize over-orders and undue waste of water. T )'pical of the concern of management and direc- tors for the husbanding of the water resource is the aggressive canal lining program of Imperial Irrigation District. Where lining of a main canal is infeasible the district has installed wells and pumps on the downhill side to recover seeped water and pump it back into the canal. In the Coach ell a Valle)' COUnt)' Water Dis- trier the entire distribution system consists of under- ground pipes, which minimize \>,'aste. The district is constructing a terminal reservoir to capture and re- distribute excess deliveries, Both the Imperial and Coachella districts have adopted automation for the operation of canals and control structures, to tighten delivery schedules and lessen waSte, Southern Californians pioneered in the early 1900's in capturing storm runoff and conveying it to spread- ing areas for rechatge of the groundwater basins, Rec- lamation and reuse of sewage water for such purposes as groundwater recharge, industrial processes and irri- gation of non-food crops have long been practiced in the coastal area. Much remains to be done in this field and more is planned, although there are economic limits as well as difficult engineering and esthetic problems, Practically all public water supplies for do- mestic use in Southern G1lifornia are fully metered, and the prices are generally high enough to discourage e\tTa\'agance. Early Struggles The story of C"lifornia's developments on and rights in the Colorado covers m:lny decades of progressive planning ftnd construction. It is one of foresight, initia- tive. courage :lnd tenacity, rife with physical and po- litical problems, The river is naturally capricious, its flow fluctuating widely, ftom flood to drought to flood again. The maximum recorded annual flo\\' is 4.37 times the mini- mum. Colorado Ri\"er has \1,.'3shed out diversion struc- ~ ( --t ~- r~~'1 ~ 1 ~~ 1:11111 I'1II 1:111 }i :1\1917 ft.'4 . tures or left them high and dry, by turns, In its narural st:lte the lower ri\'er shifted banks at slight provoca- tion, and still would if men weren't etcrnally watchful. Colorado Ri\"er carries more silt per volume of \vater than any other major U.S. stream, :lnd silt is a real problem to operators of pumping "nd generating plants, diversion structures, conveyance and distribu- tion systems, and even to the farmer on the land. Left alone it would clog the river channel in places, to the 10