The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-01-16
FOR IRRIGATION.
.o,,.T EYTERPRIsB PROPOSED BY
Az" capt. CHITTENDES.
..,.rrment TO he Asked TO Canstruc
ShsS..rou, Reservoirs That Will lrriEnt,
....,,.cn states and Territories-Grea
-. works Now Under way.

DENVER, jan IL : ''""po '"o ~
.,tion scheme yet suggested Is that descriocd
N the last report Oh '"p- mr." VI
nooy authority OF Congress to mako an In.
% UNI, ~ the Western irrigation and res
Veoue question. lie spent many months In
nc and Colorado, and the result OK h.5
W. nnncored In tho report submitted to the
h NJ War a few weeks ago. He ex-
p - avc systems, three In Wyoming and
ap" y" coIorado. He gives these deails:
wv"
Laramie Site near .ne .owno harAnh,e, Wy" TOT
storing the waters OF tho Laramie ana Litie Lara
yhs Rivers 3" po,, y ,nnrix ,ror ,,a $50.
r,os, 10000 acre feet; estimated cost for storing
..,srs from the two Laramies, taie,4ol.l<i cost per
ar, foot. 5000; water now neededi cost OF bring
,s North Platte into basin. possioIy as much a.
A, 600, 900; supply would ADJ S2s,oOo acre Feet to
,,or.se Of reservoirs and reduce the cost per acre
foot TO s3.i3.
sreetwatcrS ite-Capacity, 100000 acre feet; cost,
s07s4s4.sO; cost per acre foot, 50 cents; storage not
yet urgently needed prohaole annual Storage, when
the stream Is fully utilized, Will be 10000 acre
feet. cost per acre foot on this basis. se.76.
a.t .i,e near III. source Of the stre.m. ca.
~, A 900 mere feet; cost s9l.O4s; cost per aero
~, a,.5O. Piny site. capacity lI.o4o acre feet,
,o, 40 ,s46; cost per acre foot, s8.37. Lake Des.
me, site. capacity 67.o7s acre feet; cost slis.s6o;
cost per acre foot. sl.e7.
In c"so Nv snouu
undertake tne "orh VI RESERVOIR CONSTRUCTORS
In the "eS'' no says Ii sss'en "ouiu
be ecommehucu ior nrst eohsiue,a,loh IN wy,
omine' Inc VIZ. 10 NV" ais.n.', lou aiu
construction snou'u proeeeu II oiro",h Ut.
der: Plhy site hre'' wiouu reak seoonu' ana
Lake peshn'' ias.' ane "orh shouio eo'er
three years n" Il lit appropriation e"o"'u
be Sloo'ooo.
VI inc '"o s'e' "u'ih l" ooioF"uo' 'ne
report SAYS
Tho South p,ott, in Colorado. oapac,tv Al AGO acre
,.., cos, sb4o. 900: cost per acre foot. e13.o7. This
,me should receive first consideration OF the two ex.
AHMED in Colorado. The water Is urgently needed.
construction SHOULD take TIRES years, and the first
appropriation should be 5000, 900.
The Lowland site. for storing waters from the Big
Thompson and Cache La Poudre rivers, capacity
t5,74l acre feet; cost Se8s,1oe.3i; cost per acre
foot, eo.7Si storage now needed complications with
existing water rights rehder tho project ior Govern
men' conS'ruc''on ohe uouo'iui AaVisaon's'
This covers the sites recommends by Capt,
Chittenden, and nasmuch us an appeal will
be made to Congress- Sy the representatives
from the two States TO proceed on the lines
laid down in the report. "A further reference to
tho findings of the Captaip will he useful.
"Wbile IL ia. perbaps. pbysically practicable
70 build reservoirs of sufficient aggregate ca.
pacity on the watershed of any stream. even 80
large A stream as the Mississippi. as to ex.
ercise some influence in diminishing the height
of foods" he saws. the great cost of such
works as compared with the results to be ex.
pected from them will ALWAYS prohibit their
construction, unless 1t Is called for by other
and more direct causes. A general system of
reservoirs in the arid regions sufficient to con.
tain the flow of the streams over what is posi-.
bic to draw from them directly in irrigation
would, 1t is believed, cause some reduction in
the flood height of the Missouri River during
the Juno rise. The amount of this reduction
would. of course. depend upon the distance
OF the section of river considered from the
point Of storage, and would diminish rapidly
with an increase of this distance.
Reservoir construction in the arid regions
of the West Is an Indispensable condition to
the highest development of the section. 1t
can be carried out only through public agencies.
Private enterprise can never accomplish the
work successfully. AS between State and ma
ton. it falls more properly under the domain
Of the latter. Reservoir construction by the
BCIcElI bONtEHIDcuI HCcu HOu III dly way III
volve Government control of irrigation works.
These should be left in the hands of the States
and of private individuals under State laws.
The Government should acquire full title and
jurisdiction to any site which 1t might improve,
and full right to the water necessary to fill the
reservoir. II should build, own, maintain. and
operate the works itself. 1t should hold the
stored waters absolutely FREQ to public use
under the local regulations, subject only TO the
right to close the reservoir whenever flood pro-
lection or other emergency should require.
"Thc total extent Of q reservoir system in the
Grid regions which shall render available tho
entire flow Of the streams will not exceed
l.l6l.6 billion cubic feet. If the construction
Of such a system were to consume. a century in
ime it would represent an annual storage Of
about 11.6 billion cubic feet. or 266. 800 acre
feet. AT S5.37 per acre foot this would cost
Sl,i32, 7l6 per annum. This amount. distrib-
uted among the seventeen States and Territories
OF the arid section, gives an average annual OK.
%penditurc in each of $s4,277. The annual
value OF the stored water would return the orig.
inal cost and maintenance In an average per-
Tod OF three years"
The demand for Government irrigation works
will be hacked by the Senators and Congress-