The Great Divide

In this companion book to the documentary film The Great Divide, Grace (Dam Nation), a Boulder resident, investigates the precarious state of water in Colorado—who owns it and who is entitled to it—and the battles waged over its control. The “most coveted” water in the U.S. flows from the Centennial State to 18 other states and Mexico: “Tens of millions of people, billions of dollars of agricultural production, and trillions of dollars of economic activity all depend on rivers born in Colorado’s mountains.” The Continental Divide splits the state into unequal halves; “80 percent of the state’s water originates on the West Slope, but more than 80 percent of Colorado’s population resides on the East Slope.” Grace charts the substantial history of Coloradan water management, discussing pre-Columbian Ancestral Puebloans, gold miners who poured in after 1858, and post–Homestead Act (1862) pioneers who “found Colorado blessed with fertile soil and abundant sunshine but cursed with dryness.” He also details the construction of several dams in the West. Grace possesses deep insight and a strong sense of place; this presentation, coupled with Havey’s remarkable photos and occasional archival images, is exceptional. Color photos. [em](Aug.) [/em]