CWAG Calendar

Friday, February 7, 2025
NEW! 12:15 p.m. - 1:15 p.m.  WRRC Special Event – Damming the Gila: The Gila River Indian Community and the San Carlos Irrigation Project, 1900-1942.  Author David DeJong, PhD, Director, Pima-Maricopa Irrigation Project, will give a WRRC Water Webinar presentation about his 2024 book, Damming the Gila, the third in a five-volume series that focuses on the Gila River Indian Community’s water history. The book examines the failure of the San Carlos Irrigation Project (SCIP) and Gila Decree to restore an agricultural economy on-reservation, even though the SCIP was first and foremost to “benefit ... the Pima Indians of the Gila River Indian Reservation.” While the Akimel O’otham had been extraordinary growers prior to upstream diversions, they were completely marginalized from the discussions related to the SCIP and the decree. Pinal County and Arizona politicians largely ignored the voice of the Akimel O’otham, with the result that there was never any buy-in for the project by the Community, since they believed it had deprived them of their prior rights. Additionally, the reality that the Akimel O’otham lacked the financial resources to put their water to use left Tribal growers unable to utilize what water existed. In the end, politics, continued upstream diversions, and groundwater pumping deprived the Community of the benefits promised them. More info & Zoom registration link are HERE: LOCATION: Water Resources Research Center, 350 North Campbell Avenue, Tucson.