comes from groundwater pumping. 



A recently-completed study shows that as popula- 

 tion density increases (with the construction of town- 

 houses and apartments), per-acre water use 

 increases. 



The bottom line is that when the project area is 

 fully urbanized by 2034 A.D., some groundwater 

 pumping will be necessary to offset the annual deficit 

 in reservoir water. However, the deficit can be 

 reduced through an active water conservation pro- 

 gram (which we are sponsoring) and through develop- 

 ment of additional water resources. 



I understand that this pattern of development — 

 farm to city — is occurring in other reclamation 

 projects in the West. 



Decreased federal investments in reclamation 

 projects will not merely impact a handful of farmers — 

 rather it will touch on all citizens of the West — and 

 to some extent to all citizens in the nation 



Additional water supplies will have to be developed 

 to meet the growth that will continue to occur. If that 

 has to be done with state or private capital, so be it. 

 The difference will be reflected in the cost of water — 

 and the cost of products developed with that water. 

 Some farmers will not be able to compete with pro- 

 duce grown in established projects with lower-cost 

 water, so I can see this water being used for munici- 

 pal and industrial consumption, especially in the mining 

 and energy industries. 



And this brings me to my third point — increased 

 competition among water users for existing and future 

 supplies of water. 



Already there are indications of this, where cities, 

 mining, and energy companies sprout up alongside 

 irrigated agriculture. The typical outcome is for mining 

 or energy companies to retire farmland and transfer 

 the water rights to the new development. This is not 

 so harmful because usually these kinds of companies 

 have enough capital to buy the land and acquire the 

 water. 



It's entirely different when a city is involved because 

 municipalities have to sell bonds, raise taxes, or do 

 both to achieve the same thing. Politics — in the 

 worst sense of the word — comes into play, and 

 many a speech is made about "farmers" versus 

 "urbanites." Ignored is the fact that the farmers 

 developed the water in the first place. 



In conclusion, I think two steps need to be pursued 

 by everyone concerned with the future of the West. 



First, there has to be an ultimate determination of 

 surface water rights. What is private, state, and 



federal? 



Second, the people of all the Western states have 

 to continue working together to determine which recla- 

 mation projects should be built and then to build them 

 — With or without federal loans. 



These are not easy tasks, especially in the glare of 

 national attention that is bound to occur. But they 

 must be done, and we can succeed. .v 



56 



