Hooker Dam
Encyclopedia
Hooker Dam was a proposed dam on the Gila River
in New Mexico
, planned as a major component of the Central Arizona Project. Located near the mouth of the river's canyon upstream from the confluence of the Gila with Mogollon Creek and below Turkey Creek, the dam was to be part of the CAP's Gila River Division, authorized under the 1968 Colorado River Basin Project Act. The project was planned to provide 18000 acre.ft/year of water to western New Mexico.
Hooker Dam was to be located in Gila National Forest
near the boundary of the Gila Wilderness
. The proposed reservoir would have extended into the Gila Wilderness. Opposition to the dam came from The Wilderness Society
and the Sierra Club
, as well as from Arizona, which did not wish for New Mexico to retain the waters of the Gila. The enabling legislation included the phrase "Hooker Dam or a suitable alternative" to pacify conservationists who objected to the project. Acting on a report from the Carter Administration, Congress deleted funding for Hooker Dam in 1978, but left the project authorization in place. A 1982 Bureau of Reclamation study indicated that Hooker Dam satisfied no existing need in New Mexico, with a significant environmental impact. As a result the dam was removed from the CAP by Reclamation. Ground water was expected to satisfy local requirements through 2010, and the dam would impact critical habitat for two species of threatened fish, the spike dace and the loach minnow
.
A 2004 agreement between Arizona and New Mexico, the Arizona Water Settlements Act of 2004, limited New Mexico's consumption of Gila River water to 14000 acre.ft/year, with stipulations on minimum pass-through flows, all subject to a reserve of 30000 acre.ft in Arizona's San Carlos Lake
. New Mexico is to present a plan to develop its rights by 2014; none of the options presently being considered involve a major dam. Water would be diverted from the Gila through perforated pipes in an infiltration gallery, or simply pumped from the river.
Gila River
The Gila River is a tributary of the Colorado River, 650 miles long, in the southwestern states of New Mexico and Arizona.-Description:...
in New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, planned as a major component of the Central Arizona Project. Located near the mouth of the river's canyon upstream from the confluence of the Gila with Mogollon Creek and below Turkey Creek, the dam was to be part of the CAP's Gila River Division, authorized under the 1968 Colorado River Basin Project Act. The project was planned to provide 18000 acre.ft/year of water to western New Mexico.
Hooker Dam was to be located in Gila National Forest
Gila National Forest
The Gila National Forest is a protected national forest in New Mexico in the southwestern United States established in 1905. It covers approximately 3.3 million acres of public land, making it the sixth largest National Forest in the continental United States...
near the boundary of the Gila Wilderness
Gila Wilderness
Gila Wilderness was designated the world's first wilderness area on June 3, 1924. Along with Aldo Leopold Wilderness and Blue Range Wilderness, the wilderness is part of New Mexico's Gila National Forest. The wilderness is approximately from north to south and east to west...
. The proposed reservoir would have extended into the Gila Wilderness. Opposition to the dam came from The Wilderness Society
The Wilderness Society (United States)
The Wilderness Society is an American organization that is dedicated to protecting America's wilderness. It was formed in 1935 and currently has over 300,000 members and supporters.-Founding:The society was incorporated on January 21, 1935...
and the Sierra Club
Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is the oldest, largest, and most influential grassroots environmental organization in the United States. It was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by the conservationist and preservationist John Muir, who became its first president...
, as well as from Arizona, which did not wish for New Mexico to retain the waters of the Gila. The enabling legislation included the phrase "Hooker Dam or a suitable alternative" to pacify conservationists who objected to the project. Acting on a report from the Carter Administration, Congress deleted funding for Hooker Dam in 1978, but left the project authorization in place. A 1982 Bureau of Reclamation study indicated that Hooker Dam satisfied no existing need in New Mexico, with a significant environmental impact. As a result the dam was removed from the CAP by Reclamation. Ground water was expected to satisfy local requirements through 2010, and the dam would impact critical habitat for two species of threatened fish, the spike dace and the loach minnow
Loach Minnow
The loach minnow is a species of freshwater fish. It is a member of the carp family of order Cypriniformes...
.
A 2004 agreement between Arizona and New Mexico, the Arizona Water Settlements Act of 2004, limited New Mexico's consumption of Gila River water to 14000 acre.ft/year, with stipulations on minimum pass-through flows, all subject to a reserve of 30000 acre.ft in Arizona's San Carlos Lake
San Carlos Lake
San Carlos Lake was formed by the construction of the Coolidge Dam and is rimmed by of shoreline. The lake is located within the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation, and is thus subject to tribal regulations....
. New Mexico is to present a plan to develop its rights by 2014; none of the options presently being considered involve a major dam. Water would be diverted from the Gila through perforated pipes in an infiltration gallery, or simply pumped from the river.