Cadillac Desert: The American West and Its Disappearing Water

by Marc Reisner

Ideology is the first casualty of water development. Senator Alan Cranston of California, who is well out on the left of the Democratic Party, spearheaded the successful effort to sextuple the maximum acreage one could legally own in order to receive subsidized Reclamation water. Having accomplished that, Cranston, heavily financed by big California water users, launched his presidential campaign, railing against “special interests.” Senator Ernest Gruening of Alaska, who built a reputation as one of the most ardent conservationists in Congress, also campaigned mightily for Rampart Dam, which, if built, would have destroyed more wildlife habitat than any single project ever built in North America. In 1980, Steve Symms of Idaho, a right-wing small businessman, ran against and defeated Senator Frank Church, one of the Senate’s most respected liberals; the one thing they ever agreed on was that the Bureau of Reclamation ought to build Teton Dam.