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.') . n A /:.,J.,U<.;: Engineer to Mr. Dean F. Johanson, Chairman of the Lower Colorado Region Staff: In summary, Ihe Colorado River Board's posi- tion on the river water supply to be used in the Framework Studies is: A. The study should use values for the river water supply that are acceptable to all con- cerned and are factually correct. B. A range of values appears to be feasible, pro- vided that Ihe study report includes a discus- sion of the significance of the values selected. C. The Board recommends that one range be the 1922-67 (or 1965) period, and would accept either the 1906-65 or 1914-65 period, as the other range. D. The study should present a range of assump- tions regarding the division of the river water supply between the upper and lower basins. Water Resources Council National Assessment The Water Resources Planning Act of 1965 requires the vVater Resources Council to pre- pare bienially an assessment of the nation's water and related land resources and their use and man- agement problems. The Water Resources Coun- cil presented its first report in October 1968, entitled "The Nation's \Vater Resources." The report brought together in one volume water resource-related data for the entire nation. How- ever, because of the limited time available for its preparation, the report was based on certain existing data and there was only a limited analy- sis as to the accuracy and adequacy of the data. Although the report does state that the de- pendable water supply of the Lower Colorado 20 Region is inadequate to meet the needs of the existing economy, the tables and graphs of water supplies and demands do not adequately reflect the shortages. The Board disagrees with the tables and graphs that show, for the year 2020, a surplus of 0.9 million acre-feet per year in the Upper Colorado Region and a shortage of only 0.2 million acre-feet per year in the Lower Colo- rado Region. The Board's estimates, and esti- mates of other state and federal agencies for the Colorado River Basin, indicate shortages much earlier in time and greater in magnitude. Due to these and other limitations, the Na- tional Assessment does not properly describe future shortages in water-short regions such as the Colorado River Basin. As a result, the public may be led to erroneous conclusions as to urgency of the need for water in the Southwest. Review and Analysis of Reports The Board staff continuously reviews and analyzes reports on water resources develop- ments by federal and state agencies for the pur- pose of providing factual evaluations to the Board to aid it in its deliberations. Reports reviewed by the staff during 1968 included reports on alternative methods of aug- menting the water supply of the Colorado River (such as weather modification, desalting, water salvage, water reuse and economic reallocation), water resources planning activities in other west- ern states, and proposals and schemes advanced by individuals or organizations for inter-basin transfers of water.