RECLAMATION OF ARID LANDS — -NEWELL. 183 



where it is diverted by means of the Granite Reef Dam into two 

 canals, one on each side of the river. These canals carry water by 

 gravity to about 170,000 acres of land in the vicinity of Phoenix and 

 Mesa. The Granite Eeef Dam is a rubble concrete weir 38 feet high 

 and 1,100 feet long. The irrigation system includes about 499 miles 

 of canal. 



A power canal above Roosevelt Dam about 18^ miles long, having 

 a capacity of 225 second-feet, has been constructed and used to de- 

 velop 4,500 horsepower which has been used by all the accessory 

 plants incidental to the work of construction. On this line are tun- 

 nels aggregating a total length of 9,780 feet. A power house and a 

 transformer house have been constructed immediately below the dam, 

 and the power developed is transmitted electrically about 80 miles 

 down the valley, where it will be used to pump water from under- 

 gTound sources to extend the irrigable area to about 50,000 acres of 

 high lands in the Gila Indian Reservation and in Salt River Valley, 

 and for drainage purposes. A large amount of power will be avail- 

 able for other purposes. A cement mill erected and operated by the 

 Government furnished the cement used in the construction work, the 

 dam alone requiring about 280,000 barrels. 



The lands under this project surround Phoenix, the capital of the 

 State. The general elevation is 1,000 to 1,300 feet above sea level; 

 temperature, maximum 120° ; minimum, 20° ; mean, 70° ; rainfall, 

 3 to 10 inches. The watershed area is 6,260 square miles, with an 

 additional 6,000 square miles on Verde River. The average annual 

 rainfall on watershed is from 10 to 20 inches, and the estimated 

 annual run-off of watershed is 804,000 acre-feet at Roosevelt Dam and 

 586,000 acre-feet from the Verde. The duty of water is 4 acre-feet 

 per annum. 



The valley soil is an alluvial deposit of great fertility and adapted 

 to the cultivation of a wide variety of crops, including those of the 

 temperate and semitropical zones. The j)ublic lands in the project 

 have all been filed on, but there are many large holdings of private 

 lands which must be subdivided and sold to actual settlers, as no 

 water right can be sold for more than 160 acres under the reclamation 

 act. 



The Roosevelt Dam is now completed, and the remainder of the 

 ]3roject will probably be completed by the end of the year 1912. 

 Water is being furnished to about 131,000 acres of land and this area 

 will be increased by several thousand acres during each succeeding 

 season. During 1910 the beet-sugar industry has been proven a suc- 

 cess in this valley, netting the growers handsome returns even under 

 adverse conditions. Forage and grain crops, fruits, and vegetables 

 of all kinds produce well and command high prices in the local 

 markets. 



