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<br />FOREWORD
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<br />BecauSe Southern California is a semi-arid deHert region. it was
<br />necessary for the people of the area to go to the Colorado
<br />River for the only available adequate water ,upply to meet
<br />Ule needs of human requirements occasioned by the amazing in-
<br />crease in population and development of industry during the past
<br />forty years. To supply these human requirements for water it was
<br />Drstnecessary to organize The Metropolitan Water District of
<br />Southern California, a governmental division of the State of Cali-
<br />fornia, to take on the task and responsibilities of planning, building,
<br />operating and financing the largest and longest domestic water sup-
<br />ply line in the United States,
<br />When the District was organized in 1928, it consisted of eleven
<br />incorporated cities in three Southern California counties and had 28
<br />member, on the Board of Directors, with a population of less than
<br />2,000,000, and area of 608 square miles, and an assessed valuation of
<br />"bout $2 billion, On June 30, 1961 the District with 43 members on
<br />the Board of Directors, included within its border, 9:, incorporated
<br />cities, of which 13 are corporate member agencies, 11 municipal
<br />water districts and one county water authority. located in t-iix
<br />Southern California counties and having a population of about
<br />7,600,000, an area of 3976,5 square miles and an assesser! valuation
<br />of nearly $14 billion,
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<br />The main aqueduct line with a designed capacity of 1,605 cllbic
<br />feet per se.cond to deliver 1,212,000 acre-feet annually extends
<br />242 miles from the intake at Lake Hava," on the Colorado River to
<br />the terminal reservoir, Lake !\Iathews, near Riverside, California
<br />It includes five pumping plants that lift the water a total of 1,617
<br />feet across the desert and mountain ranges, 92 miles of tunnels of
<br />16 feet diameter, 55 miles of 16-feet diameter concrete conduits, 6:)
<br />miles of concrete-lined canals, and 144 siphons aggregating 29 miles
<br />in length,
<br />When the first development of the Colorado River Aqueduct was
<br />completed in 1941, certain features were constructed to partial
<br />capacity, the rest of the work being deferred until later when the
<br />use of Colorado River water had increased, Forty-seven siphons
<br />were constructed initially with only one barrel, capacity of 805 cubic
<br />feet per second, the second barrel being deferred, Only three pumps,
<br />with a total capacity of 600 cubic feet per second. of an ultimate of
<br />nine pumping units at each of the five pumping plants were installed
<br />criginally, Only one of a total of three pump delivery lines at each
<br />plant was constructed in the first de\'elopment. One 230 KV trans-
<br />mission line was built between Hoover Dam and the pumping
<br />plants,
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