Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1905-06-17

Reno, Nevada, June l7.-With the
opening Of the Truckee.C Carson canal
below Reno today, the first OF the irri.
CATION systems constructed by the gov.
eminent under the reclamation act, a
new era has opened up for Nevada and
the entire west.
The main canal runs from Derby.
nfteen miles east Of Reno. on the
Truckee river. to a point ten miles
above Leyeville on the Carson river,
a distance of thirty.one miles.
A peculiar feature OF the first few
miles o fthe canal Is that earth en-
bankments are left in their natural
condition. while the rock work is al.
most invariably cemented. This Is on
account of the fact that government
engineer Taylor fears percolation more
than erosion, silt will FIJI the inter.
stices Of sand and loan but would be
carried through creviced rock. Where
the walls and bottom Of the ditch are
cemented. and this condition prevails
Tor miles, the bottom narrows to ten
feet on account of the fact that there
will be little friction and retardal Of
the waters. It Is estimated that the
flow. will pass as easily through this
medium as where The walls are twenty
feet apart az the bottom and are com
posed Of earth.
One OF the chief difficulties that the
government engineers will have 10 con.
tend with is the wind, which carries
in front of it and its trail a whirl of
sand. On a stormy day the desert
sand drifts constantly into the ditch
so rapidly that il threatens the use
tul1sss Of the canal if not cleaned out
every few weeks.
The only remedy that has been
found for this evil Is a series of fences
to hold back the powdered silica,
three tunnels are on the line of the
dltch IN addition TO a tunnel spill
way. These are lined with cement and
We're difficult of construction on ar
CONT OF squeezing ground.
A large amount of thorough and
searching photographic work was
done in Nevada both before and after
the passage of the reclamation act.
This work consisted in measurement
OF the discharge of the principal
streams of the state together with
that OF their various tributaries to
determine the character and extent
of the supply Of water upon which
10 base estimates for the work that
is now being carried on.
Drain or waste bitches form an i'm
portant part of the irrigation system,
Inc cost OF these, together with a
concrete diversion dam on the Carson
river and other structures, will ap-
proximate half a million dollars.
The initial irrigation system will be
used o'distribute water over about
flfty thousand acres of land. During
The next two years the system will be
extended to cover one hundred and
fifty thousand acrs more. This will
increase the total distributing system
10 a length Of twelve hundred miles.
Arrangements are now being made
TO construct a regulating dam at the
mouth Of Lake Tahoe. AS a larger
area of land is brought under irriga-
tion and the demand for water in
creases, five or six other dams on the
Truckee river and it's tributaries will
be constructed and four reservoirs will
be built on the Carson river. One of
the reservoirs will be eighteen miles
in length and will have a surface area
of eleven thousand acres.
The entire irrigation system as
projected will not be completed for
nine or ten years and will cost about
mint million dollars. After the initial
work is finished and the first section
Of land s placed under irrigation, the
balance of the project will be carried
out with the proceeds of the sale of
government land adjacent to the dit
ches and the sale of water to the set