Idaho Springs siftings., 1902-07-05
WORK FOR BEAVERS
PLAN TO UTILIZE THEIR DAMS.

PLAN TO UTILIZE THEIR DAMS.
Colorado Game and Fish Commissioner
Believes that Beaver Dams Can be
Made Valuable as Irrigation Reser-
voirs-Estfrnates that One Beaver
Will Do as Much Work as Man.
Among the many waiting to see f. II.
Newell, the chief of the geological sur
vey, who is expected here this week to
look over the Colorado field with
view to the establishment of national
irrigation works, is Charles w. Harris,
Colorado game and fish commissioner,
says the Denver Republican of July
10th. Mr.. Harris has plan which he
believes will spread the benefits of
government aid over the entire Rocky
mountain region.
"If the government will spend about
$1,000,OOO a year in the propagation
and distribution of beavers, there will
be plenty of water in every stream
that comes down through the mountain
valleys to the plains,' said Mr.. Harris
last night.
1.-The beaver is an indefatigable dam
builder With trees and stones and
mud he throws a barrier across
stream, which will resist the floods of
spring, and all through the summer
holds suspended several thousand gal
Ions of water This water is slowly
seeping out through the bottom of the
stream. under the dam, keeping the
flow constant all through the summer.
All summer, too, the beaver is at work,
making the dam thicker and higher
and stronger. Now, If you have 1000
10, I'll f,. erNp
dams, the amount of water which viii
be stored altogether will be enormous
And in the dry season, all this water
goes down the stream. A small triekle
may be coming down at the head of
chain of beaver dams, or there may be
no water at all. but below the chain of
ponds you will find a strong flow OF
water.
Years ago there were millions of
beaver in the mountains of Colorado,
and no one ever complained of a short
age of water then, but the value of
their pelts doomed them to destruction.
There is a sufficient number of the an
finals left to form the basis of a COM
prehensive scheme for replenishing the
supply. Let the government start
beaver farms. and let it provide also
for the protection of the beaver dams
and the colonies along the streams, and
IT need not be long before there are
beavers at work in every valley. Many
of the mountain valleys, which were
once succession of grassy meadows,
made by the beavers, are now dry
gorges, and the fertile soil, which
backed in behind the dam has all been
washed away again. To establish a
new colony in the new surroundings
would require that the beavers be fed
until they had framed their own envir-
onment, so to speak, and had the roots
of rushes to fall back upon for a winter
diet. But if the beavers were propa-
gated on beaver farm, they could
easily be trained to subsist on alfalfa
or potatoes. Human aid might also be
extended. to a degree, in the building
of their dams. to assure their strength.
This done, the beaver would attend to
the rest.
Il estimate that each beaver will do
as much work in a year as a man
could do in building dams and storing
water Now it would not cost more
than $3.50 a head to raise the beaver
Their working life is about ten years.
So for $3.50 the government can dupli-
cate for ten years the work of a man.
They can show no such result from
any other plan that has been suggest
ed. that | have heard Of"
Mr.. Harris is having a large number
OF photographs taken of the beaver
colonies. which still remain in the
state, showing how the water supply
is conserved. and he is collecting also
the testimony of the men living along
the streams which We're once always
flowing, but which have formed the
habit of drying up since the beavers
were exterminated. He believes he can
make a convincing showing, and that
his plan, which on the face of it may
look chimerical, will in the end appeal
strongly to the minds of the govern
ment experts.