Colorado River

[Music] of all the rivers in the world the Colorado is one of the most beautiful and most useful much of the southwestern United States depends on the Colorado River for Water and Electric Power the river's source is high in the Rocky Mountains fed by the Clear Mountain Springs and melting Snows of Northern Colorado this River drains nearly a qu of a million square miles of land including parts of seven states for hundreds of miles along its middle course the Colorado Flows In narrow Canyons which It is worn in the surface of the Earth here man has set aside one of the most beautiful parts of the river's course as Grand Canyon National Park a little farther down the river the giant Boulder Dam creates Lake me an artificial Lake 115 M long the largest Reservoir ever made by man at the start of its long journey to the Pacific the Colorado is a clear Cold Stream that runs swiftly between its Rocky Banks but as it flows along it picks up sand and silt the river loses its clear blue color and becomes muddy in this region the rocky Banks support so little vegetation that only Hardy wild Burrows can survive and without vegetation there is nothing to stop erosion of the soil every rainstorm sweeps even more mud and sand into the river to be carried Downstream this load of sand and mud helps the river to carve its Channel deeper and deeper into the Earth because each sharp edged grain of sand becomes a tiny chisel driven by the river current at the Grand Canyon this is what the river has done after countless centuries the Colorado has gouged out this tremendous Gorge a mile deep 4 to 20 M wide and over 200 miles long from a plane High over the canyon we can see the river leing its way into the flat Plateau land of Arizona over 1,00 square miles of This Magnificent Canyon area has been set aside by the government of the United States as the Grand Canyon National Park the Colorado runs swiftly through the park the racing River and Rocky bottom form many dangerous Rapids suspension bridges built across the Canyon from one steep wall to the other car carry the packed trains of sightseers narrow trails along the canyon walls give the tourists a close view of the rushing muddy stream below the Grand Canyon the Colorado flows into Lake me the reservoir created by Boulder Dam the level of the river has been raised to form this tremendous Lake between the canyon walls over 115 M long the lake covers nearly 230 Square mil Lake me is a popular Recreation Area with excellent facilities for pleasure boating and swimming the lake is also a Fisherman's Paradise yielding black bass and other varieties all the year round but the most important function of Lake Meade is to store great quantities of Water by building Boulder Dam man has controlled and made available for use the Colorado's raging current before the dam was built the river alternated between a small stream in Winter and vast floods in summer now the Lower River below the dam is completely controlled as the dam keeps the flow constant and nearly uniform Boulder Dam itself is tremendous made of 6 and 1 12 million tons of concrete and steel the highest dam ever built by man the top of the dam is Broad enough for a four lane height Highway above the dam spillways carry the water down to the Lower River while huge intake Towers feed clear silt free water into the PowerHouse below the dam the boulder installation develops more electricity than any other plant in the world over a million horsepower is generated here for distribution throughout the Southwest to More Than 3 million power users below Boulder Dam the Colorado runs South for 155 M until it reaches Parker Dam source of the water supply for Los Angeles water taken from the river is carried by an aqueduct 250 M across the desert to Los Angeles both Arizona and California are benefited by Parker Dam Parker power plants send electricity into Arizona and for California Parker Dam stores a much needed Supply of good domestic water a large pumping station starts many millions of gallons of water a day on the journey across the desert to Los Angeles along much of the way the water is pumped in giant pipes which run up and down hill through the mountains in the nearly flat desert areas the water flows in open canals finally it reaches the reservoirs of the Los Angeles water system from Parker Dam the Colorado flows South to Imperial Dam the source of irrigation water for the desert farming country of Southern California through the All-American Canal goes river water to irrigate the rich Imperial and Coachella valleys while on the Arizona side the hila Canal carries water to other farmlands Imperial Dam creates no large Reservoir it is designed to divert water from the river River into the irrigation canals one side of the dam is a SLO that lets water go through and on down the river the other side of the dam has roller Gates that control the flow of water into desilting basins these desilting basins are necessary because the river water has picked up a heavy load of sand and silt in its Journey Down from Parker Dam the water is kept in the desilting tanks until the sand and silt has settled to the bottom then good clear water flows into the channel which is the start of the All-American Canal this canal runs approximately 100 miles through the desert carrying water to irrigate the fields of Southern California's dry interior the canal gets its name from the fact that it lies wholly in the United States instead of Dipping into Mexico as older canals in the same area have done when the canal reaches Imperial Valley Water is carried to the fields by feeder ditches many fields are completely flooded to prepare them for crops that require a great deal of moisture a system of little dyes directs the flow of Priceless Colorado River water to change a Barren desert into rich and productive Farmland Alfalfa is one of the chief crops raised in Imperial Valley and tremendous yields result from the ideal growing conditions of hot sun and plentiful water melons are another crop that thrives in Imperial Valley these Catal opes are shipped in refrigerator cars to markets all over the United States yet only Cactus and lizards could survive here without the Colorado water large areas of the valley are used in growing flax this is a very valuable crop as its seeds produce oil and its fibers may be used in Texs there are also many acres of sugar beets growing under irrigation without the help of water brought by the irrigation canal none of these crops would grow and the valley would be an aid desert besides carrying water to Imperial Valley the All-American Canal also feeds another entire irrigation system by way of the Yuma canal this canal carries water to the Yuma irrigation project The Yuma project is an irrigation development which supports many large plantings of citrus fruits at the East End of Imperial Dam are the head works for the hila Canal just as for the All-American Canal on the California side of the river water diverted into the hila Canal system must have the silt removed in large settling basins then the clear water is carried by the canal for irrigation in the hila Valley of Arizona below Imperial Dam the Colorado is a sluggish muddy river that flows through desert and irrigated lands in Mexico for 80 miles until it finally empties into the Gulf of California so man has turned the Colorado to his own use the Colorado benefits our Southwest and indirectly the whole United States Boulder Dam prevents the river's destructive floods and provides vast quantities of electric power Parker Dam stores river water to Supply Los Angeles and its neighboring cities Imperial Dam diverts water from the Colorado to irrigate farmlands the size Beauty and usefulness of the Colorado make it one of the Great Rivers of America [Music]