The Dry Quarter

The Governors of California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, Colorado and Wyoming govern almost one-tenth of all North America, more than one-quarter of the continental U. S. As to rainfall, theirs is the dryest quarter. They were an important group of political potentates when they all came together last week at Denver.

After shaking hands all round, they resorted to Denver's State Office Building, assumed their poker faces and resumed their long, long discussion of a problem vital to all, a problem in water, the main stream of water in all the 792,509 sq. mi. governed by them, the Colorado River.

The Governors of Wyoming, Utah, New Mexico and their host, the Governor of Colorado, had little left to settle. Their states are in the upper basin of the Colorado River, "upper" meaning "up-stream," for the Colorado flows roughly southwest. Prior negotiations at Santa Fe, N. M., in 1922, had established the principle that, when the Colorado's torrent is entirely turned to human use, 50% of its volume will go to the upper basin states, 50% to the lower basin states. The four upper basin states then agreed on proportional allotments of their 50% among themselves. The lower basin states were to have done likewise. But they could not agree. Hence the seven Governors in Denver.

Nevada, having a very small frontage on the river, agreed to be content with 300,000 acre-feet or 2% of the Colorado's water per annum. But for five years Arizona and California have been deadlocked over how they shall share the remaining 48%.

Last week's proceedings began with statements of the latest demands by Arizona and California. Governor George Wylie Paul Hunt reiterated Arizona's intention to share the water equally with California after deducting Nevada's share and a volume equal to what Arizona streams contribute to the total. Governor Charles C. Young announced that California despaired of reasoning with Arizona and proposed that the dispute be referred to an arbitration board of nine experts, including two Federal engineers.

At this point Nevada stepped in, asking California to be more specific and announcing that, though content with a 2% water allotment, she would insist on a full third of the lower basin power rights. New Mexico spoke, too, telling California that no arbitration board was needed or desired. Arbitration was the purpose of the Denver meeting itself, to keep the whole project out of Federal juris- diction.

Vexed, Governor Young and his fellow Californians then proposed that Arizona keep her present vested water rights (233,800 acre-feet) and tributaries (some 2,159,000 acre-feet); that the remainder of the water be equally divided after deducting Nevada's 2%; but that either state be free to use any water not used by the other within 20 years. Asked if he liked this proposition, Governor Hunt of Arizona exploded: "Hell, no! What we want is a square deal!"

The other five Governors echoed his sentiments. The Californians knew very well that sparsely settled Arizona could not expect to develop all her water rights within 20 years. Populous California, on the other hand, needs water in her rich subdivision, Los Angeles, and elsewhere, and is ready to spend huge sums at once to get that water. The conferees pointed fingers at California's delegates and accused them of unfair bargaining. California protested that the 20-year clause was meant simply to protect one and all from the possibility of demands and projects by Mexico for Colorado water, which crosses a corner of that country to reach the Gulf of California. But U. S. Senator John Benjamin Kendrick of Wyoming forced California's hand by eliciting this admission from a California spokesman: "If Arizona is willing to grant California a larger allocation, California will grant her more time for development."

Governor William H. Adams of Colorado, R. C. Dillon of New Mexico, George H. Dern of Utah and Frank C. Emerson of Wyoming interviewed the Arizona and California groups separately, then prepared a compromise. But again the two neighbor states disagreed, California refusing to accept the arbitrators' figures on Arizona's present vested rights.

There will remain the vexed questions of power rights and the site of a dam to be settled after the division of the water.