American Falls press. [volume] (American Falls, Idaho) 1907-1937, 1911-06-08
DRAINAGE IS NEEDED
Apparent in Every Section Where
Irrigation Is Practiced.
"ater-logeing of Lands Is Not Con-
nned to Any Particular Part
Makes Its Appearance Even on
the Bench Lands.

III
gated lands has become apparent
not only In every section of gu
own arid west, but in every coun
Try where irrigation is practiced. In,
ola and Egypt and Spain have their
problems and their characteristics are
much the same as our own. A con.
servatlve estimate shows that nearly
a million acres of valuable land in
the west are in need of drainage. The
water-logglng of the irrigated lands is
not confined to any particular section.
IL makes its appearance in the river
bottoms and In low lying swales and
expressions, as would be expected, but
1t does not stop there. The gentle
slopes, the hillsides, yes, even the
bench lands are attacked.
l once saw a tule swami on a
hillside that had a slope of 20 de-
grees and one of the wettest PROPOSE
lions l ever encountered was on the
very brow of a high gravel bench,
300 feet higher than it's drainage basin,
writes B. A. Hart, in the Denver Field
and Farm. Nor Is waterlogging confined
TO any particular soil type-clay, silt,
san and gravelly lands are all suscep-
tlble to its ravages. Many men have
declared that their lands will never
need drainage, because they have a
gravel sub-soil. l have found, however.
that a gravel sub-soil is often a source
OF drainage. Everyone realizes the
heed of drainage on humid lands, but
Few understand the necessity or even
the possibility of draining irrigated
lands. AS a matter of fact, its neces-
sity is even more imperative than in
humid sections for the reason that wa
t~er-logging in the west is always &C.
companied by a concentration Of aka
II salts on and near the surface. Ger
tain OF these salts are necessary to
plant growths but certain others are
exceedingly injurious. Water-logging
Is the natural result of over-irrigation
and Is made natural by the absence of
natural drainage outlets. The soil
filling of a valley consists of decom-
posed rock and is often very deep. The
rainfall of the arid regions is very
light and the evaporation factor high,
so that little water %percolates down
ward through the soil and as a conse-
quence the ground water reservoir is
usually well below the surface pre-
vious to the irrigation of a valley.
1t has been demonstrated that a
rainfall of Is inches properly distrib-
uted will produce crops. The plant, of
course, receives only a part of this
amount. Much is lost by evaporation
and some by percolation. When irri-
is practiced, however, from two
to twenty times this amount of water
Is supplied. The plant undoubtedly
more than before, more is lost
by evaporation, but by far the larger
part of the excess percolates down
through the soil and eventually
its way to the ground water res
the level of which is thus raised
year by year until finally water-logging
the attendant alkali troubles re-
suit. The boys usually appear in the
owest part of the valley first, while
he alkali shows up on slight eleva-
ions.
Having once begun, the spread of
he seepage is rapid and the infection
makes it's way up the slopes until
eventually " the highest parts are
The appearance of the boys
s viewed with alarm and their spread
With CONSERVATION by the farmers who
re steadily driven back, abandoning
heir farms and taking up higher lands
ron which in turn they are often in
anger of abandonment. But, not
outstanding the intensity of the alarm,
t never occurs to these same farm
RS to reduce the supply of water that
5 doing the damage-in fact, they
ften use more water in the vain hope
f washing the alkali away. 1t cannot
e tr%uthfully said, however, that these
lan-made swarnps could have been
reverted altogether by a sane use of
Tater, but the evil day would have
cen postponed to a considerable ex-
snt. Nor will regulation OF the sup
ly prove a complete cure for the diff
Guilty.
n0ctRN CRlFAAIEc ar aao-,,