Water managers prepare for long irrigation season
By Larry Meyer - Argus Observer
Wednesday, April 4, 2007 12:22 PM PDT
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| Water begins to lap up around the trees and edges of Bully Creek park last week as the storage in Bully Creek Reservoir slowly increases. Irrigation canals in the Vale Oregon Irrigation District could be receiving water this week. |
NYSSA - Area irrigation canals on each side of the border are starting to fill up while others are scheduled to receive water later, but most farmers will get their full water allotment and maybe a little extra this year.
The Lower Payette Canal started filling Saturday, Peggy Murphy Payette River Irrigation Office, secretary said.
The Noble Ditch and Farmers Co-op Canal began filling Monday, she said. The two main reservoirs on the Payette River were 76 percent and 79 percent full.
Cascade Reservoir held 510,943 acre feet of water with a capacity of 646,460 acre feet and Deadwood Reservoir held 111,779 acre feet, lacking about 50,000 acre feet of being full.
The Owyhee Irrigation District also began filling its main canal Monday, but the water was quickly shut off as an expansion joint on the Owyhee Siphon leaked. Jay Chamberlin, Owyhee Irrigation District manager, said repair crews hoped to have the joint repacked and the water back on by noon Tuesday.
“We did not want to gamble,” he said.
However, water continued to flow into the canals of the South Board of Control in the Ridge View area, south of Adrian and in the Homedale and Marsing areas.
At the Vale Irrigation District, manager Scott Ward said orders had just started coming.
The Vale Irrigation District waits until there are orders for at least 50 acre feet before turning water into the canals.
“It appears like we’ll start about the (April) 10th,” he said, but added that is not definite.
“We’re not going to be close to filling (all three reservoirs)” Ward said.
However, the growers will receive their full allotment of water through the season, he said.
“I hope so,” was Chamberlin’s answer when asked if the reservoir would fill.
“It’s going to be close,” he said.
Although the water may not reach the highest point of the Owyhee Reservoir spillway ring, it is technically considered full when enough water has passed through the reservoir to equal to its capacity.
“We’re going to have a good water supply,” Chamberlin said, but added he suspected the water flows through the summer will be low.
“There is some high snow. But, for the most part it’s gone,” he said.
Growers will receive their full allotment, with some excess, he said.
With the dry weather, he expects the demand for water by farmers to come quickly, Chamberlin said.
Added to that is an expected boost in the amount of corn which will be grown, he said, which will demand a lot of water.
“There is going to be a lot of corn grown. We’re gearing up for a long, hard irrigation season,” he said.
However, the water situation could change with one good rain storm, he said.
Although he does not have any numbers yet, Oregon State University extension agent for Malheur County Lynn Jensen confirmed there is a lot of interest in corn because of its high price. He said, however, that he does not think there will be much change in the acreage of other crops such as onions, potatoes and sugar beets.
There has been some replanting of crops because of the high winds a few weeks ago, Jensen said, particularly with a few onion fields.
“Other than that it’s been a pretty good spring,” Jensen said.
As of Tuesday storage levels in Malheur County reservoirs ranged from 68 percent full at Warm Springs, to 86 percent at Bully Creek Reservoir. Owyhee Reservoir was at 81 percent, with approximately 579,000 acre feet of usable storage and Beulah Reservoir, 81 percent of capacity, at 48,436 acre feet of water.
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