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construction of Elephant Butte Reservoir, and it was thought to have a perfect water supply as the result of the construction of the reservoir except during very infrequent periods of drought. 3J In 1918, interest was generated in further water development in the Middle Valley in New Mexico. By this time, a significant part of the irrigated area in the Middle Valley had become badly seeped and a serious decline in irrigated agriculture had occurred. This was attributed to increased depletions in Colorado - the reasoning was that the increased depletions reduced river flow, increased river aggradation, and caused the water table to be higher. In addition, periodic floods were causing damage. Consequently, the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District was organized in 1925 to develop a plan for reclamation of this portion of the river basin. The plan involved the construction of drains, the consolidation of diversion points, and the construction of EI Vado Reservoir on the Rio Chama.'J In 1923, in an effort to resolve the controversies, the Colorado and New Mexico legislatures enacted statutes under which the governors of the two states appointed commissioners to study the water supply on the Rio Grande and to draft a compact to apportion the water supply. Jenkins (1982, pp. 10-21) discusses how this led to the Temporary Rio Grande Compact of 1929. The President appointed a representative for the United States, but the Secretary of Interior advised that no action should be taken until Texas was represented in the commission. Texas did not appoint a commissioner until 1926. In the meantime, in 1925, the Secretary of Interior lifted the embargo in the San Luis Valley by approving a diversion for the proposed Vega-Sylvestre Reservoir.5J The Bureau of Reclamation complained and the Secretary responded by rescinding the embargo completely. This angered the New Mexico commissioner who resigned, reasoning that the action had changed the status of negotiations to the extent that it would be impossible to secure an agreement that would restore and protect New Mexico rights. New Mexico later reconsidered its position and, in January 1927, appointed 3J Colorado made this same point with respect to the Middle Valley after EI Vado Reservoir was completed in 1935. . 4J The plan was developed by the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District with money raised through the sale of bonds to the Federal Reconstruction Finance Corporation (Jenkins, 1982, p. 25). This added another to the list of entities with interests in the Rio Grande problems. 5J Vega-Sylveslre Reservoir was being considered for development. Later it was considered as an altemative to Wagon Wheel Gap Reservoir. It would have been located on the Rio Grande 17 miles upstream from Wagon Wheel Gap and would have had a capacity of over 200,000 acre-feet (NRC, 1938, p.113). 3-7 r. u\. t.....,. ,..,. i",U