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')' . collected in connection with construction, testing, and operation of the preceding stage_ Stage development is also intended to establish, prior to construction of each stage, that the preceding stage is being developed in accordance with the authorizing legislation. To accomplish the goals of the project, wells are drilled into the unconfined aquifer, and water is pumped through laterals to a conveyance channel which delivers water to the Rio Grande. Well fields, which include 170 wells, were designed to be developed in four stages. Pumping will yield about 100,600 acre-feet of water annually from the shallow unconfined aquifer which extends to a maximum depth of 135 feet in the project area. The wells, spaced from 0.23 to 1.5 miles apart, penetrate the aquifer from 85 to 125 feet and will yield from 75 to 1,500 gallons per minute. Each well is equipped with an electrically driven submersible pump enclosed in a concrete vault which contains the electrical control panels, piping, and valves. The wells will feed buried pipeline laterals which transport the water to the conveyance channel. These laterals, totaling about 113 miles in length, will carry from 270 to 9,000 gallons of water per minute depending on the number of wells served and their yield. Each lateral discharges into the conveyance channel which transports the water to the Rio Grande southeast of the town of A1amosa. The conveyance channel is about 42 miles long, from eight (8) to twenty- two (22) feet wide at the bottom, 4.7 to 5.7 feet deep, and will carry water from twenty (20) to 160 cubic feet per second. The entire system of wells, laterals, conveyance channel, structures, and a series of observation wells around the project boundary will be monitored and controlled by a programmable master supervisory control system when the project is completed. The system will be linked by remote terminal units at each well through an ultra high frequency radio system to a central computer which will monitor and operate the system. The observation wells around the perimeter of the project are monitored to determine ground water levels so that the project can be operated within the limits set forth in the authorizing act. "''''''''j (' .J C. M (C C) THE BUREAU OF REClAMATION . The Bureau of Reclamation was authorized by the Reclamation Act of 1902 as an agency within the Department of the Interior, headed by a Commissioner appointed by the President. Passage of the Act followed many legislative efforts in the 1800' s to settle the West. All of the earlier acts failed, largely because the needs of settlers, once they arrived, were not considered. Much of the success of the Reclamation Act of 1902 is due to recognition of the economic conditions of its beneficiaries. Initially, the tjureau or ~eclamation was designed to reclaim the arid lands of the Western United States by conserving and supplying irrigation water to make them productive. During the last three quarters of a century, Congress has expanded the Bureau's mission to include multiple- purpose water development. Today, Reclamation meets the needs of millions of people for water. Since 1902, Reclamation has constructed 336 storage dams, 7,020 miles of canals, 134 pumping plants, and 50 hydroelectric plants. Over 145,000 farms receive Reclamation water which irrigates nearly 10 million acres and produces enough food for 33 million people. The projects also provide recreation for over 70 million visitors each year; water for homes and factories to meet the needs of 16 million people; hydroelectric power equivalent to 70 million barrels of oil. Through contracts with project beneficiaries, repayment is made to the Federal Treasury of 85 percent of all re- imbursable construction, operation, and maintenance costs. Interest is paid to the Treasury on the costs allocated to power and municipal and industrial water service. These costs and interest are not a liability of the American taxpayer. They are a result of the investment made in our country's water development. Reclamation is a sound investment in America's future.