Page 11

During the current fiscal year, personnel of the Bureaus of Reclamation and Mines will utilize the laboratory results to design full-scale field tests of the treatment method. Canal-lining materials (soil samples) from seepage problem areas in Nebraska and New Mexico now are being tested in the laboratory, preparatory to selecting one or more field test sites. Nevada Mineral Industry Water Requirements In fiscal year 1964 the Bureau plans to study the water-use practices of the mineral industry in Nevada similar to the study performed in Arizona (ref. 9). Because the mineral industry (particularly copper) is such an important element in the economy of Nevada, the availability and utilization of water must be quantified. Water cost figures will be especially useful in interpreting costs of conservation practices such as recirculation. Similar studies in other water-starved States of the West, with emphasis on the effect of water shortage on mineral industries, should be an important Bureau effort in the future. Other The Bureau will continue to investigate, through cooperative agreements with California and Nevada, mineral occurrences of potential importance to the States' economies. Future exploration will help determine the availability and usability of the nonmetallic minerals such as clay, limestone, and barite, so necessary to the expanding population of the Lower Colorado River Basin. Oil field reservoir data will be analyzed in an attempt to increase the accuracy of petroleum production forecasts to better determine the availability of fuel for the area. Bureau research on pipeline transportation of coal (powdered coal, in a water-slurry), proceeding now in the East, may be of interest in future fuel transportation considerations in the basin. 11Epson Perfection 4870 Photo, 400 dpi, 8 bit, 14,206,976 byte