The Fight to Unlock Eastern Washington’s Water
Walla Walla leaders push for state irrigation reform to access millions in federal reclamation funding.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
If the state of Washington desires a portion of the $15,000,000 set apart by the national government for the reclamation of desert lands, a new code of irrigation laws will have to be made for this state. As all the money to be expended by the government in the aid of irrigation work for this state must necessarily be spent in Eastern Washington, and in order that this state may get its proportion of the money, the Spokane Chamber of Commerce has adopted a resolution requesting Governor Henry McBride to appoint a commission to revise and amend the irrigation laws. Chief Engineer F. H. Newell of the United States Reclamation Service has noted that current state laws are inadequate to secure the federal appropriation. The Walla Walla Commercial Club is now considering similar resolutions to urge legislative action.
“If the state of Washington desires a portion of the $15,000,000 set apart by the national government for the reclamation of desert lands, a new code of irrigation laws will have to be made.”
The struggle for water rights and the infrastructure to move water across the arid landscape of Eastern Washington remains a defining tension for the region. Modern irrigation management continues to be a delicate balance between federal reclamation mandates and local agricultural survival.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.