Irrigation In Yuma Essay

     First, a dam can¡¦t be built with the river still flowing; diversion tunnels were created that were four-thousand feet long (Wassner 98) and fifty-six feet in diameter (Gorum). These alone took two years to build and had to be done during the winter due to the force of the rapids of the Colorado during warm weather. After the river was diverted, it left behind stinking muck. This consisted of two million cubic yards of mud and silt. The residue was hauled off exposing the bedrock of which could support the dam (Wassner 98). There was no construction company around that could raise enough money for the performance bond, so six companies combined to form Six Companies Inc. (¡§1936: Hoover¡¨). In order to support the demand of the materials for the construction of the dam, steel and aggregate plants were also created (¡§Dam one of¡¨). The railway set up before construction, as well as dump trucks were used to haul these materials and other materials to the dam site (Hernan 22).

Along this journey created by nature, the river interacts with man’s influence to encapsulate the full geographic experience of this region. The succession of dams along the river’s path is a major contribution to how man has decided to mesh with the river. The dams have created reservoirs for water supplies, harnessed energy to provide electric power to the southwestern region, and controlled flooding. Flood control was the main concern at the time between the years 1905 and 1907 when large floods broke through the irrigation gates and destroyed crops in California. The flooding was so large it actually created a 450 square mile sea, named the Salton Sea. As a result of this major disaster, ideas were formulated to

The Grand Coulee Dam, located in Eastern Washington, was one of controversy, risk, and a point of no return. While the water captured made the desert area blossom in agriculture and it powered some large cities, it created a sense of accomplishment, that humans can control Mother Nature. While many people were very excited for this new construction – which gives power and resources - at the time, some thought it should not be allowed, they are not proud of containing the Columbia River. In this analysis, I am going to focus on the economic and social effects that the Grand Coulee Dam created in its build.

The controversy over water rights has been a long battle that the Navajo Nation has endured for decades. This controversy which is complicated by numerous issues has only been increasing in recent years. For example the Navajo Hopi Little Colorado Water Settlement that has been in litigation for 33 years. Of particular note Navajo people and their elected officials are struggling to balance expectations with reality including legally mandated coordination with state and federal governments. As a result there has been notable conflict in resources associated with water management. These fundamental issues have been exasperated by a host of concerns: (1) deceased water availability due to drought or water development; (2) long

California has always had a warm climate, yet its supply of water has rarely been affected. In 2014 California’s water shortage issue truly began. Due to low amounts of snow in the winter in recent years, California has tried to equal out these shortages by drilling water from underground aquifers. Yet, underground aquifers recharge much slower than surface water sources. California has already made significant drawbacks to attempt to limit the amount of water they use, so these aquifers can recharge. But still resources continue going down and the Central Valley Aquifer’s water level is rapidly declining. Luckily, on April 7, 2017 the drought stage of emergency in California was ended. Yet the issue isn’t truly resolved. Glen MacDonald

When the Yuma Project began more people from different places migrated here. The invention of water canals became together providing water year long and when other places were dry people found the way to come here and live. Most of these people would work on the fields growing crops. The Yuma Project was important in many ways. One important factor is construction on the city. Over time there was not much places where people can enjoy the day or stay at a home. The results had people staying at these homes to work and make a living. When many canals were built there would be occurring floods. A flood hit in 1916 in the city of Yuma causing reconstruction on the city. When it was all payed for the buildings were built better. When the canals break free construction workers would use leaves to fix there problem. Canals were one of the other important sources in Yuma. The Laguna Dam was built resulting flowing water and irrigation issues were not more of an

Now that thousands of people had claimed their 160 acres, the government had to sustain the land's fertility so it would remain cultivatable for years to come. It would also reduce any chances of the settlers moving again and coming in conflict with the Natives. The government encouraged the development of the area by constantly aiding the frontiers with the Timber Culture Act and the Newland Reclamation Acts. The Timber Culture Act was produced to help the farmers successfully grow crops on their land for long periods of time by keeping the soil fertile and preventing erosion. The Timber Culture Act gave away free land to people who would plant forty acres of trees on it. They believed planting more trees would increase humidity and increase rainfall, which was beneficial for farmers. The Newland Reclamation Act of 1902 funded irrigation projects for the dry land of the west. Congress passed many laws to protect the west from harm.

There are many different ways irrigation has changed Yuma and the rest of Southern Arizona very drastically. Irrigation has existed in Southern Arizona and Yuma County since the 1800’s. Irrigation has been practiced in the Algodones Grant with a view to determine if gravity canals would be effective for irrigation. 50,000 to 60,000 acres are extremely fertile and are very capable of producing crops when there is a sufficient amount of water given for irrigation to take place. “Water is too valuable to use on farms” was a myth in the 1900’s about irrigation but there is 80% of the Colorado River water the is used in agriculture. Agriculture business in Yuma county has changed

The Yuma Project was important because it dealt with all the uprising conflicts that occurred.Irrigation greatly changed southern Arizona, also known as Yuma. It started out small, but as more people moved there it grew largely. There were a series of different irrigation systems, but the commonly used one was canals. Some of the canals that were built long ago still stand today, and Yuma is the most linked place. Yuma today is the largest agricultural place, but will not be for long if they keep having the problems they do. They also need to have money so they can fix what they need to and be able to pay workers to help.

Describe in detail how irrigation changed Yuma/Southern arizona ? There was many ways how irrigation changed

Irrigation has been a major part for Yuma,Arizona. Many things had occurred for getting a better irrigation in the Yuma County as well as in other parts; many things had happened like successfully and tragedies things. The major component that led to the irrigation was the Reclamation Act, which then later became known as the U.S Bureau of Reclamation. This then led to the Yuma Project. The Yuma Project was a project that was a benefit because it help to bring down the water to Arizona.

     As previously mentioned, the Boulder Dam was one of the most famous, and certainly most expensive (with the whole project costing about $385 million) public works program. To provide jobs and much needed money to unemployed Americans, the Bureau of Reclamation, under President Hoover, authorized the Boulder Canyon Project on the Colorado River in 1928. The entire project included a hydroelectric power plant and a reservoir to control floods of the Colorado River and supply power to the Pacific Southwest. The dam reservoir is Lake Mead, which can store approximately 28 million acre-feet of water, making it one of the world’s largest artificially created bodies of water. Besides providing many jobs, the project responsible for the officially named Hoover Dam (as of 1947), added about 3 million acres of national parks and monuments and expanded

As we all know, water is essential for mankind's survival. However, people seem to believe that our water supply is endless since there is more water than land on this Earth. Water regenerates and is redistributed through evaporation, making it seem endlessly renewable. So why worry?

Prior to settlement of the western United States, the Colorado River roamed free. Starting from cool mountain streams, the river eventually became a thunderous, silty force of nature as it entered the canyons along its path. The river nourished wetlands and other riparian habitats from the headwaters in the Rocky Mountains to the delta at the Sea of Cortez in Northwest Mexico. Settlers along the river harnessed these waters mainly for agriculture via irrigation canals, but flooding from spring runoff wreaked havoc on agricultural land, prevented development in the floodplain and full utilization of the water, a waste in the eyes of western farmers. In order to meet current and future water demands in the west, the Federal Government

This paper discovers the water budget for Berkeley, California in comparison to Terre Haute, Indiana. The two cities precipitation differs throughout the twelve month calendar year where many of the heavy precipitation months are totally opposite. Berkeley California’s winters, where the majority of rain occurs and Terre Haute, Indiana where the rainfall is observed as consistently disseminated throughout the year evenly. This paper will also magnify geographic position, climate and elevation in contrast of the two cities that reflects the water budget outlined in Project 1: Water Balance defined in