Mountain Home maverick. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1906-1911, 1906-09-13
Some Facts and Figures
Relative to Irrigation
of Value to all In
tereSted.

s
ito was the subject of an address
delivered at the Irrigation congress
last week by Samuel Fortier, irri-
cation engineer in charge of the
Pacific district irrigation and
drainage investigations. 1t was
one of the most able and irstruc-
tive addresses of the session and
caused a great deal of comment. 1t
was in part as follows.
The irrigated portions of the
United States now use about five
million miners inches of water
annually. The cost of this for each
miners inch varies all the way
from so cents to $50 and would
average in the neighborhood of SIS
per miners inch. This represents
yearly expenditure of $25, 900, 900
for water to irrigate land.
Assuming that the area irrigat-
ed is 10000, 900 acres and that
the average cost of applying water
each irrigation season is $3.50
per acre, the yearly expenditure
for this purpose on all the land
irrigated would aggregate an adj
ditional SIS, 900, 600.
Thus it appears that the farmers
of the irrigated districts of Ameri-
ca are expanding annually about
$50, 900, 900 for water and for the
labor and equipment necessary in
applying it to cultivated crops. The
sole purpose of spending SO vast
sum each year is to produce food
stuffs for the subsistence of man
and the domestic animals under
his care. 1t is, however, no exag-
geration to state that in the accom-
plishment of this purpose fully 20
per cent of the money and labor
spent in securing and applying
water is wasted
I'VE believe this fact has been
fully demonstrated, that for every
100 miners inches diverted from
natural streams and storage reser-
voirs less than 80 miners inches
are utilized by cultivated plants
in beneficial way. This means
that out of an expenditure of $50,
600, 600 a year less than SIS, 900,
900 is put to beneficial use. How
to save part of the $35, 900, 900
worth of water which is now vast
ed is one of the problems connected
with this subject of irrigation. If
you were to ask me if it were pos
sible to save all of the water that
is now wasted and all of the
money now used in furnishing
and applying it, would anwser,
No. 1t is, however, possible and
entirely within the province of fea-
sibility and profitable investment
to save large part of this waste.
Many reasons might be advanced
in favor of a more economical use
OF irrigating water. To begin with,
there is the question of cost. If il
be fact that nearly three-fourths
OF the water taken from streams
for irrigation purposes is wasted,
then a SAVING of even one-third of
this loss would represent an inn
mense gain.
II is likewise true that water is
every year becoming more difficult
to secure and of higher value. The
rapid growth of western cities
has multiplied the demand for
water for municipal purposes,
the development of water privileges
for electric transmission lines has
utilized the streams for mechan ical
purposes and the extension of the
irrigated area has made increased
drafts on all sources of water
supply.
Another reason for insisting
upon higher duty of water in
irrigation at the presen time is
that customs soon crystalline into
law. Men who appropriate and use
water in a slip-shod manner for a
number of years will lay claim, not
only to that portion which they use,
but to that larger portion which
they waste.
Furthermore, the prosperity and
material greatness of western
America is founded upon the water
supply, and every gallon that is
wasted detracts that much from
the possibilities of this region. The
state of Montana may serve to il.
ldstrate what l mean. Montana
occupies the crest of the continent
and, compared with other aric
states, is well watered. Its tots
area of SO, 600, 600 acres contain:
some of the finest agricultural land.
on this continent. These arabic
lands would probably exceed IS,
600, 600 acres in extent, anC
-,o,0ht rea~h On 0Q0 mn o~ras