[4] Opposition to the dam came from The Wilderness Society and the Sierra Club, as well as from Arizona, which did not wish for New Mexico to retain the waters of the Gila.
[1] The enabling legislation included the phrase "Hooker Dam or a suitable alternative" to pacify conservationists who objected to the project.
[5] Acting on a report from the Carter Administration, Congress deleted funding for Hooker Dam in 1978, but left the project authorization in place.
A 1982 United States Bureau of Reclamation study indicated that Hooker Dam satisfied no existing need in New Mexico, with a significant environmental impact.
[6] Ground water was expected to satisfy local requirements through 2010, and the dam would impact critical habitat for two species of threatened fish, the spike dace and the loach minnow.