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<br />1-308
<br />
<br />'\X-'est h~ to m.nage \rotafer to some de-
<br />
<br />.e;~nchers learned t'ilrly to [urn
<br />~reeks 0010 theIr hay land. Home-
<br />sTt'aders not on .l. creek learned to dam
<br />arun-offcouleelOcrearea-rezavoy.u
<br />we Jid in SaskmheVo';ln In 191'). Kan-
<br />sa.s and Oklahomol fumers sef wind.
<br />mills 10 pumpmg up the under~round
<br />warer. To"'..ns brou.i1,hr their Wirer, by
<br />duenoe SIphon. from streams upon the
<br />,...arershed. Irtl,li:Jrion. developed first
<br />by the SOuthwestern IndIans :.md the
<br />Nt''''' MexICO Spilnlsh. and fe-Invenred
<br />by Ihe Mormons "".IS exp;mded in the
<br />lBiOs and 1880s by such cooperative
<br />communities as Greeley, Colorado.
<br />and by small. to-medium corporate
<br />ventures.
<br />Early 9.'3Ter engineers and irriplOrs
<br />bIt off what they and the local commu-
<br />nity could chew. They huneued lhe
<br />streams thai they could manage. By
<br />and large. by 1890 mdlvidlal. corpo-
<br />rate', and coo~rauve irngJ.tors had
<br />gone about as far as they could go with
<br />""'arer engineenn,':; their moJest works
<br />""'ere for local use and under locaJ con-
<br />trol. h might have been bener if rhe
<br />\X'est had stopped there. Instead, all
<br />Anrough the 1890s the unsuisfied
<br />Wxx,srers called for federaJ aid to let the
<br />\X'est realize its destin)', and In 1902
<br />they ,':0( the Newbnds An. This ptr--
<br />mOld rhe feds [0 underl.ke ""'ater
<br />projecu (remember that water was
<br />state-owned, or at least sute-regu-
<br />lated) and created the Bureau of Reela-
<br />mauon,
<br />Reclamation projects were [0 be
<br />paid for by fees charged Irri,':atjon dis-
<br />tncu. the penod for paymg off the in.
<br />terest-free indebredness being first set
<br />at ten )'ears. Later that ",,-a.s upped to
<br />twent)', later still to fort)'. Eventually
<br />much of the burden of repayment was
<br />shifted from the sale of ""'ater to the sale
<br />of hydro-power, and a lor of the burden
<br />eliminated enmel)' by the pr:Ktice of
<br />river. basin accounnng. wnh wme-offs
<br />for flood conrrol, lob creation, and
<br />other public goods. Once it won lured
<br />in. the federal government-which
<br />meam tupayers throuj{hout the coun.
<br />try, includin..-: taxpayers in S{,ltes that
<br />resemed wesrern reclamation because
<br />the)' saw rhemselves onked to pa)' for
<br />somerhlng rh.lt would compete un.
<br />. falrlr with their o""'n larmers-.lb-
<br />sorbed or "" rote oiE more and more of
<br />the costs, .l((epfln,~ the f.lCt rh.lt reel.l-
<br />m.lllon ""'as a conllnuln,lo: subsldr to
<br />Westetn ,l,lI:rlCulr\Jte. E\'en toJ.l)', when
<br />
<br />IS
<br />
<br />muniClpa] and mdusmal demands for
<br />warer ha\'e ,2rearly mcreoned. 80 ro 90
<br />percent of the waret used in the \X'est IS
<br />used, often ",,-a.stefully, on fields, to pro-
<br />duce crops ,ll:eneraJ]y In surplus e1se-
<br />",,'here.
<br />Behind the PUptl.lUC, maniiesr-dt's-
<br />unan"n purpose of pushln.l( .....estern
<br />settlement throu,':h feder.u water man.
<br />,l,lI:emem ....-as a.nOlher mouve: the ha.rd
<br />determma.tlon to dominate nature that
<br />hmonan Lynn \X'hite, m.l ....'ell.known
<br />essay, identified as pan of our Jude-o-
<br />ChnS!lan hema,v:e. Nobody expressed
<br />tha.t impulse more bluntly than .l Mor-
<br />mon hierarch, John ~idtsoe: '"1be des-
<br />tinY of man is to possess rhe .....ho]e
<br />earth; rhe destiny of the eanh is to be
<br />sublect ro ma.n. There (an be no full
<br />conquest of Ihe eanh, a.nd no real sa.tis-
<br />bctlon TO hum.lnlty. if large portions of
<br />the eilrth remJ.1n beyond his highesr
<br />comrol.-Th,j.[ doc!rlne is rela.ted to Ihe
<br />spirit th.lr berv.'een 1930 ilnd [he pres.
<br />em has w dammed, diverted. used a.nd
<br />re-used the Colorado RJVer that iu sa-
<br />line .....aren now never reach the Gulf of
<br />Californiil but die in rhe sand miles
<br />from the sea; Ihat has set IheColumbia,
<br />" far mlghller river, TO tamely rurnlng
<br />turbines; that has reduced the MIS.
<br />wuri, rhe greatest Wier on rhe comi.
<br />nem, to il srringof ponds; tha.r has reck-
<br />
<br />]ess]}' pumped down the under,li:rounJ
<br />\lo'ater cable of e\'ery western valley ilnJ
<br />thre;uens to dry up even so prolific J
<br />source as the OlZallala Aquifer; th.u has
<br />made Ihe S"lt R.Jver VaI]ey of AflZOnJ.
<br />...nd rhe Impena.l. Coa(nelJA, and }l:ror
<br />Central V.uleys of Cahiornla Ioto ;;.J.t-
<br />dens of fabulous but deo:prlve fl(h-
<br />ness; Ihat has promOled a new rush ru
<br />rhe ~!esr tared, like the beaver and
<br />grass and go]J rushes, ro recede afrer
<br />dOIn.': greal en\'lronmenral damage.
<br />The Garden oi the World has bet'n a
<br />,Io:.]mcflnK dream. and many find its iul,
<br />fillmenl exhilararlng. I do not. I ha\e
<br />alreAdy said Ihat 1 rhmk of the m.lJn
<br />stem dams thar made It posslb]e as Ofl,!:'
<br />inal SIO, but there is neltht't a. serpent
<br />nor a ,lruilt). first couple In the story_ In
<br />Adam's faJl we sinned all, Our vet}. "Ir-
<br />tuteS as a. pIOneering people. the very
<br />genius of our Industflal civlliurion,
<br />drove us ro act as .....e did. God anJ
<br />~hnifesl Destiny spoke with one VOlle
<br />urglO8 us ro -conquerR at ~.....in- Ihe
<br />\X'est; a.nd there ....-as no voice of com.
<br />parable a.urhoClt)' to remind us of J\iJry
<br />Austin's qUiet but proiound ttuth, thJt
<br />the manner of rhe country m.akes {he
<br />US3,ll:e of life there, and that the land
<br />will not be lived In excepl in HS o....n
<br />fashion.
<br />
<br />An End ro Ecsras\'
<br />I
<br />BY DONALD WORSTER
<br />
<br />Born OUI of II III"fl,ltJ u'rltr" 0/ (on/ha",,, jtm.J1Jds .;Inj J rho1TJufl,h m/J(oncrpt/on 0/
<br />uh.3t should 11'1,1 ,h611J.J nOl H dont In rhr IlInJ IhJt (.Jnnol H -hud 1n txu!'t In 11,
<br />/1&I:-n /ash'-on, R Iht U.s. Hllrtau if Rtclawwtl6n b,,/It III fim mOl/or- km on Iht Sill:
<br />RUff 6/ A",z6n., in 1911, Ihrn f)ft,. Ihr no:llh,.rr f,trltr-Jf/ons lam on 16 (OfIJfr-lI<l
<br />uwtffWflr-e, in IIx U'tsl ubolt 10flll (6J1 In "'on') r.WtrJrJ j 11 billion bill u h6st (6J: In
<br />o'f1ro""'rntal i"'p.Ja aPld dal'l'lwgt fl) Ihr sO<I.Jl sr""a"r-t 6/tht "tgI01J (a""OI tit" br
<br /><J<{,.,.lIul, rJf""4trJ. COOptr-lltl"g I,lnd O/lr1l (011fP,lmlt! 14 ht"r and 14 hrn If (OJJIJ. fi ~
<br />n-rn o/.:kr U.S. A,.",) COr-pI of En8mur-j IlJJrJ IfJ 014 n 11~""1)1I1 tflor-tJ 10 fhi bUH"..j of
<br />.pIIJh,n(. ",,-r,., arollnJ. N" rll"lh I'I'IO""S .J"J ,nK'Pltf'TJ. it ual.J "/o",ollj t/mt. a
<br />rrj7lftlM of u h4f U.Jt MJI In 1m n4tlO,,'s ,<<hn%,"I(.J/ J",am, thi JlIII/ of hOld
<br />f'f)wwnu, And "ou:, tn" IhtagtncitJ Inlol.tJ ul11 JJmlt uhm prrssrJ. that tll'l'lr iJ
<br />d6"t. D6n41J U'O"Sftr- I'("'IIO"(S so",r J/!<<,,14IrO"J Qtx;lIt borh fht .-.II1Jt1 Il,JJ rJN
<br />COnJtlilltnmtjlhlJrm",,,,abl,/.uf.
<br />
<br />Back in rhe halcyon da.ys of 1951,
<br />when the UOIred Stares was en.
<br />terin;;:: its golden years oi .....eaJth
<br />and power. a.nd proclaJming th,u thiS
<br />.....as lhe American Century, there
<br />st't'med no limit to whar we could do
<br />With nature. ~'ere wme c1imares roo
<br />hot~ We could alr.condlllon rhem.
<br />~'ere wme tOO cold? We could rha..,
<br />them out or raJst' toma.tDeS under ,!Zlons_
<br />
<br />~'ere some tOO dry? \\'ecould, lhrou.~h
<br />hydraulic en,':lOeetln,!l;, make them
<br />OVl:r IOro a vema.ble Eden of deh,!Zhrs.
<br />In rhal yea, a Trmr m,l,ll:UlOe reporwr
<br />tra.\'eled to the arid ~'est ro wflre at....ut
<br />~the endless fronllerR hem,': w'on (tlt're
<br />b)' rhe en":JnC'ers of rhe Burea.u of Rrc.
<br />lam-allon_ The)' promned ro develop
<br />enou",h water ro redeem 50 mdbon
<br />acres from atldl!Y, enou;;::h a(rt'~ to
<br />
<br />\'('llDER:-';ES5
<br />
<br />F....ll 19".
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