Report on the lands of the arid region of the United States, with a more detailed account of the lands of Utah

by John Wesley Powell; Willis Drummond; Clarence E. Dutton; Grove Karl Gilbert; A. H. Thompson

THE GREEN RIVER.

Brown’s Park.—Brown’s Park is a valley through which the Green River meanders. Three or four small streams head in the mountains to the north and a like number in the mountains to the south and find their way into the river in the midst of the park. But a small portion of the park lies within Utah and the small streams will be used for irrigation in the portion which falls in Colorado. The flood plain lands of the Green are extensive, and here many natural meadow lands are found, interspersed with fine groves of cottonwood. Some of the bench lands are well adapted to irrigation, but a portion of them and the foot hills back of them are naked, valueless bad-lands.

When the general industries of the country shall warrant the great expenditure necessary, the Green will be taken out to irrigate the bench lands on either side. About 10 square miles of these bench lands will fall within Utah.

Below Split Mountain Cañon.—Lying along the Green, and between the foot of Split Mountain Cañon and the mouth of the Uinta, are 50 square miles of arable land. Some portions of this may be subject to inundations at times of extraordinary floods, but the greater part is above high water mark. Green River here carries sufficient water to irrigate many times this amount of land, and while the cost for the construction of suitable dams and canals would be greater than on smaller streams, neither this nor the engineering skill required would be beyond the resources of any ordinary settlement.

Gunnison Valley.—In Gunnison Valley, below the foot of Gray Cañon, are 25 square miles of arable land. The cost of constructing the necessary irrigation works at this point would be greater than above the mouth of the Uinta, but still not beyond the ability of a colony. Green River flowed in Gunnison Valley in September, 1877, 4,400 cubic feet of water per second, enough to irrigate at the standard adopted 860 square miles. There seems to be no arable land to which it is possible to take this great surplus, and probably for many years to come it will be suffered to flow “unvexed to the sea”.

The area colored on the map is much greater than above indicated. The selections of irrigable lands will be made on either side of the river, in patches, within the colored district.