Robert B. Griffith Project

Celebrating the opening of the Robert B. Griffith Project in 1971 are Bureau of Reclamation Director Edward Lundberg, U.S. Senator Alan Bible and BOR Commissioner Ellis Armstrong.

The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation transferred ownership of the Robert B. Griffith Water Project to the Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA) on July 3, 2001.

When the valley's water system was built in 1971, the state lacked the funds to build the entire system. The federal Bureau of Reclamation helped fund the water delivery portion of the massive project.

This project was called the Southern Nevada Water Project and was later renamed the Robert B. Griffith Water Project in 1982.

Nevada, acting through the Colorado River Commission, built and paid for the Alfred Merritt Smith Water Treatment Facility, which treated the wholesale water supply. The Griffith Project and treatment facility comprised the Southern Nevada Water System.

The transfer of the Robert B. Griffith Project from the federal government to SNWA allows the Water Authority more control over the facilities it operates. Under the terms of the original financing agreement, the Water Authority was required to obtain bureau approval to maintain, modify or improve its facilities. As Southern Nevada's water system expanded to meet community needs, this arrangement became increasingly cumbersome.

At the same time, the bureau continued to bear the liability for design, construction and operation of the facilities. The transfer relieved the bureau of the oversight burden and released the federal government from the liability associated with ownership.

Legislation passed by Senator Harry Reid and former Senator Richard Bryan helped initiate the transfer.