Salt (river, Arizona)

Salt (river, Arizona), river, east central Arizona. It is formed by the White and Black rivers and flows west for 320 km (200 mi) to join the Gila River west of Phoenix. The Verde River is its principal tributary. The several dams on the river form the Salt River Irrigation Project and impound reservoirs, which include Theodore Roosevelt, Apache, Canyon, and Saguaro lakes. The Salt River valley is one of the major irrigated agricultural areas of the southwestern U.S., in which cotton, alfalfa, citrus fruits, and melons are produced. Irrigation canals were built in the valley hundreds of years ago by the Hohokam people.