Letter Concerning Glen Canyon Dam

Letter: To Nava Miller, from Floyd Dominy, June 21, 1966 (thermofax), page 2Now, of course, Glen Canyon Dam was not built to improve upon the accessibility to the public or for the wonderful fishing and clear water recreation. It was built because it was absolutely essential if the upper basin states of Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, and New Mexico were to have the physical capability of putting their compacted share of water from the Colorado River to work and to build a stronger, more virile economy in those upper basin states. I have represented the people of the United States as a career employee since very soon following graduation from the University of Wyoming in 1932. I have had many challenging assignments and have enjoyed greatly my opportunity to contribute to the general welfare. I can tell you with pride that both my friends and those who oppose me give me credit for a man of action who does everything humanly possible to get all the facts at hand before arriving at a position. In the Glen Canyon fight I spent three days by horse to visit Rainbow Bridge to see for myself whether the Sierra Club's contentions were right. You will be interested to know that the then Director of the National Park Service, responsible for Rainbow Bridge National Monument, had never visited that remote area. This visit convinced me that the barrier dams and diversion tunnel that the Sierra Club was insisting be built would do far more scenic violence to the Rainbow Bridge National Monument and the spectacular setting in which it is placed than would a few feet of sparkling blue water confined within the inner eroded arroyo beneath the bridge would ever do. My pictures and my report to Congress convinced Congressional committees of the soundness of my view, and I am pleased that there are no barries dams and scare of construction that would have inevitably accompanied their creation had the Sierra Club prevailed. And, now, instead of 15,000 people seeing this great natural bridge in 50 years, there will be that many during each month of the summer tourist season. And, now, the Sierra Club says we're going to flood the Grand Canyon. I regret that these dedicated and honorable men find their case so weal: that they must resort to deliberate misrepresentation in an effort to stop a project that is vital to the continued economic development of the Southwest. Marble Canyon Dam will not kill the living river." All of the water that is released from Glen Canyon Dam will flow on through Marble Canyon Dam and reservoir. The only difference is that the water will be sparkling blue and cold and full of trout as contrasted to the muddy, fishless, natural Colorado River. In the dry months of the dry years when the 2Epson Perfection 4870 Photo, 400 dpi, 8 bit, 2,436,204 byte