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The story of Reclamation is deeply entwined with the development of the American West in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. One third of the West s population and about 10,000,000 acres of the West s irrigation land, and about one third of the irrigated land, use water from Reclamation projects. Reclamation-generated hydropower played an important role in the electrification of western rural areas and development of industries, especially during and after World War II.

Throughout its history, Reclamation has been an innovator in the engineering and science of dam and canal design and construction, hydraulic modeling, hydroelectricity production and delivery, water delivery, conservation, and multipurposes use of water.

Reclamation s rich history is filled with colorful personalities and the unique character of the West. Operation of Reclamation impoundments provide flood control and drought relief benefits. The U.S. State Department regularly uses Reclamation s technical expertise in international activities and in training foreign engineers and technicians. Additionally, agencies from around the U.S. regularly find Reclamation s experience useful in developing water conservation, supplemental supply, and water augmentation programs.

Reclamation has been moving away from new construction activities and into water management on its existing facilities. The Congress and Executive Branches are also developing new initiatives assigned to Reclamation. For instance, Reclamation now has partnerships on several rural water projects designed to deliver culinary water to rural areas that do not have good drinking water. Reclamations budget in Fiscal Year 2013 designated some 5 percent for the WaterSMART program so that Reclamation can work with states, tribes, local governments, and non-governmental organizations to develop sustainable water supplies by improving water conservation and fostering appropriate decisions about water use. Over 10 percent of the Fiscal Year 2013 proposed budget is designated for various environmental and river restoration initiatives.

As Reclamation enters into more partnerships with beneficiaries of project water and electricity and shifts increasingly away from construction development toward water management, personnel staffing levels are expected to shrink as well."