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d') states of America to deliver from the Rio Grande to the United states of ]Ilexico, sixty thousand acre-feet of water annually and forever, whereby in order to fulfill that promise the united states of America, in effect, drew upon the states of Colorado, Ne\1 Nexico and TeJms a draft worth to them many millions of dollars, and thereby there was cast upon them an obligation which should be borne by the Nation; .1 i,,-"') .,-/ '"..' , .~~J (d) That for the economic development and conserva- tion of the waters of the Rio Grande Basin and for the fullest realization of the purposes recited in the preamble to this compact, it is of primary importance that the area in Colorado knm1n as the Closed Basin be drained, and the water thus recovered be added to the flow of the river, and that a reservoir be constructed in Colorado upon the river, at or near the site generally described as the State Line Reservoir site. The installation of the drain will materially augment the flow of the river, and the construction of the reservoir will so regulate the flow as to remove forever the principal causes of the difficulties between the states signatory hereto; (e) That in alleviation of the heavy burden so placed upon them, it is the earnest conviction of these states that, without cost to them, the United States should con- struct the Closed Basin Drain and the state Line Reservoir described in (d)." In the minutes of the Rio Grande Compact Commission we find reference to the fact that somewhere around the year 1935 a federal appropriation of $900,000 was made available to commence construction of the Closed Basin Drain. Apparently there were some fears that the type of drain proposed at that time would create unacceptable salinity conditions, and construction was not started. In a report to this Board under the title of "San Luis Valley Project", dated Narch, 1939, prepared by R. J. Tipton, consulting engineer, the construction of the Closed Basin Drain was again recommended. This report was included in a report to the Congress by the Department of the Interior entitled "Reser- voirs on the San Luis Valley project, Colorado", and subsequently published as House Document No. 693, 76th Congress, 3rd Session. The Congress subsequently authorized the construction of the San Luis Valley project by the Interior Department Appropriation Act Hemo -5- August 25, 1967