The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1904-06-08
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 8, 1904
UNDER DRAINAGE AND
FLOODING ARID LANDS
Governmental Experiments In This
Valley and Other Portions of
West to Reclaim Them.

Iient Vi agriculture Ill washington tchs
of an interesting and important expert
ment that is being made with the view
of demonstrating that arid alkali lands
in the west may be reclaimed for pur
poses of agriculture. The following ex
tracts from the bulletin give an idea of
what it is hoped may be accomplished.
"The rise of alkali has been one of
the most threatening and least under
stood of the problems confronting the
irrigation farmer. There are areas in
the west where land has been rendered
unfit for crops after having been Guilt
once sold for $500 an acre is now prac-
tically worthless. How to prevent the
rise of alkali in areas not yet damaged
and how to reclaim those which have
been injured is question the answer to
which is eagerly sought.
"When the land is first irrigated the
water dissolves the salts and carries
them downward. With continued irriga-
ton, however subsoil becomes filled
with water and unless there be an ade-
quate underground water movement the
water table of the locality rises. When
it rises within three to six feet of the
surface, the depth depending mainly on
the texture of the soil, the capillary
power of the soil grains and the organ
ic matter in the soil draw the water to
the surface, much as oil rises in wick.
Here it is evaporated and the salt con-
tent is left behind
"This process soon results in an ac-
emulation of alkali in the surface soil
and vegetation is injured or destroyed.
Many attempts have been made to free
land from alkali by the application of
gypsum, stable manure and other sub
stances, or by washing out the salts by
flooding the land and quickly draining
the water off the surface. None of these
have proved of any permanent benefit
to the land.
"After careful investigation the bu-
reau became convinced that the only way
permanently to reclaim alkali land is by
under drainage and flooding. This con-
viction was strengthened when the bu-
reau's expert in alkal land reclamation
made trip to Egypt and Algeria during
the summer of 1902 and investigated the
work being done there by English and
French engineers. In the lower Nile val
ley they are retaining land so salt that
it contains $50 tons of salt per acre to a
depth of three feet.
"The reclamation of alkali land by
undertakings and flooding is purely a
mechanical process. The drains cary off
the underground water as fast as it rises
aud thus break the connection between
the water table and the soil surface.
The flooding dissolves the salt in the
layer of soil above the drains and carries
it down and out through the drains.
"In order to demonstrate the efficiency
of this method of reclamation the bureau
of soils is under draining and flooding
tracts of land near Salt Lake City,
Utah; Fresno, CAL. North Yakima
Wash, and Tempe, Ariz. The expert
ments on these tracts nave been so sue
cessful that the bureau regards it as
proved beyond question that thorough
under drainage and flooding will reclaim
the worst of alkali lands. The cost of
reclamation ranges from $40 to $50 per
acre.
ut is difficult to realize the vast i'm
portanec of this work to the arid regions
of the west. OF the 100000 acres of
land in the west for which there is suffi-
cient water for irrigation, over 5000 600
acres contain an excess of alkali salts.
Tine value of this land, if freed from
alkali, would be over 5000, 100000. 1t is
estimated that land values in the imme-
date vicinity of Salt Lake City alone
will be increased over $4,000, 900 as a re-
suit of the bureaus successful demon
stration of alkali land reclamation at
that place"