Warren sheaf. [volume] (Warren, Marshall County, Minn.) 1880-current, 1910-03-31
SURFACE WATERS OF
THE NORTHWEST
Report by the Geological Survey.

A report on the flow of rivers Of the
northwest that empty into the Pacific
ocean has just been published by the
United States geological survey as
Water Supply Paper 252 These streams
are in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and
northwestern Montana.
The work in Oregon has been done in
lature began cooperation in 1905 by
appropriating $500 for this purpose
and has appropriated this sum from
year to year ever since. The state en-
gineer, John II. Lewis, has represented
the state in this work. A large part Of
it, especially that in the Yakima river
basin in Washington and in the Snake
river basin in IDAHO, is paid for by the
United States reclamation service. AS
sistance has been rendered by the Uni
ted States weather bureau and the
United States engineer corps.
Value of Stream Gagings.
The measurement Of river flow to de-
termine the amount of surface water
available for navigation, waterpower,
domestic water, supply and irrigation
has been FOR many~years a part Of the
work of the geological survey. The
great irrigation projects of the arid
west had their inception in the survey
over twenty years ago, by the initiative
and an the ]pertinacitty Of Director John
swamp lands, if undertaken, will en-
list the aid of the government IS
topogra pliers and hydrogra pliers.
The report just published gives rec
ords Of flow at 1877 gaging stations on
SO rivers and creeks; also records Of
the stage of water on four lakes. The
streams measured differ greatly in
-size5:+ ranegih e >fr9mrsg}all creeks on the
|. Flathead Indian RESERVATION in Mon
tana to large rivers, including the Co.
lumbia. These streams drain areas of
widely different character. as may be
seen by comparing the barren desert of
central Oregon with the heavily for
ested slopes of the Cascade and coast
ranges, where the annual rainfall in
some places exceeds 100 inches.
Irrigation in the Region.
In the region considered in this re-
port the United States reclamation SER
vice has seven projects under construc-
ton. covering. an irrigable area of 49,
o~acres; and has eight projects under
consi deEatie n.ssseP rivate capital is de-
yeloping at least twelve projects I'M
der tn authority of the Carey act, the
largest, the Twin: Falls project, cover
ing an area of nearly. half million
acres. About 100000 acres Of land
are under irrigation in the northwest
and this area will be more than doubled
when the projects now under way are
completed. The success Of all these
projects depends primarily on the ade-
quacy Of their water supply.
The water power available in this
region is very. great: The streams
draining into the north Pacific ocean
will furnish at low water over 12,-
100000 horsepower-one- third of the
total for the United States.
Most of the records Of stream gag
ing given in. this report cover only
1907 and 1908, but records on Clark
Fork at Newport, Wash, just below
Lake Pend Oreille, cover six years;
those on Willamette river at Albany,
Ore, cover eighteen years; those on
Columbia river at the Dalles, Ore,
cover thirty years.
The Columbia is the largest river
whose discharge has been computed by
the geological survey and the record at
the Dalles is the longest yet reported.
In view Of the Importance of long rec
ords in general study of run off and
stream flow, this record will be- of
great alue to- the engineers Of the