The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1911-03-03
EXPERT REPORT ON
DRAINAGE PROBLEM
Continued from First page,

plication of irrigation water has soft
ened it to a considerable extent. and
examinations made in the sloughs
showed that it had practically dis
solved, under influence of the seepage
and could be readily penetrated by
means of soil augur Certainly it
would offer no serious obstruction to
the operations of any power excava-
tor, and as for its influence on the
percolation of the ground water, no
particularly evil results are antici-
pated.
Investigations show that the land
in question has been injured by an ex-
cess of both water and alkaline salts.
The tract is supplied with several ir-
rigation canals, the water rights of
which are different, but in all the duty
of water is small. The construction
of these canals proceeded by stages
and they were enlarged at intervals
In the case of the Phyllis canal only
about ten per cent of the land COW
cred was irrigated in 1901. In many
instances, too, individuals would ac-
Quire a water rights for a certain
number of acres, but apply that guam
tity of water to only portion of the
farm. Furthermore, it has been
shown that there is a continual leak
age from the canals themselves. AS
a result of all these conditions the
lands have been over-irrigated, and
notwithstanding the excellent drain
age have become DOGGY or injured by
an accumulation Of alkaline SAILS, re
'sulting from a too close proximity of
the ground water level. In many in
stances farms have been rendered IN
productive shortly after they we're
first irrigated, and in one or two cases
before they were ever used for agri-
cultural purposes.
There is tendency on the part Of
some of the residents of tn. IL .ality
to blame the present condition on the
newer canals and reservoirs. The fact
that the general spread of the trouble
began shortly after the installation of
however The infection would have
appeared almost as soon if these had
been absent. To realize this, one
only needs to remember that as late as
1901, the depth to ground water
ranged from IS to 100 feet, while now
it is only few feet in any portion of
the tract The fact of the whole
matter is that the supply of water
was SO greatly in excess of the natural
drainage that the ground water reser-
voir has been gradually and rapidly
filled up.
While alkali is pretty generally dis
tributed it is source of concern, not
SO much because of the percentage of
total salts in the soil, but because of
fhe proportion of black alkali present.
Indeed, black alkali is to be found
throughout the tract, and in some por-
tions there are we'll defined accumu-
lations of the deadly salt. These de-
posts are confined to the neighbor-
hood of the sloughs The sulphate
and chloride predominant on the
bench lands, while the carbonate,
(black alkalD is almost unknown
The seepage from the bench lands
makes its appearance at the foot OF
the bluffs and here too the sulphates
and chlorides predominant as might
well be expected. The possibility ex-
lists, therefore, that as time goes on
md this seepage continues. thu
less harmful salts will also become a
menace.
There is a current notion that there
is not much alkali present in the areas
showing surface accumulations as
there was few years ago. While il
is possible that small amount of the
salts may have been leached out and
carried away by the surface drainage
the chances are that the decrease If
the quantity of salts is only apparent
and that analysis would show an in.
creased proportion in the surface foo
of soil Just how easily the eye may
misjudge may be seen from consid
Grafton of the physical phenomenon
by virtue of which the alkaline salts
become a source of danger. 1t is ;