Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1922-01-14
SAYS MUCH \.
D. LAND CAN
BE IRRIGATED
Asst. State. Engineer Says
100000 Acres Might Be
Put Under Water.

Bismarck. N. D.. Jan. 14.-North
Dakota has close to a million acres Of
land that can be irrigated, according
to George III. Mcmahon. assistant
state engineer. especially in charge Of
irrigation projects in the state Offices
here. Much Of the land inlthe cen
trail, northern n western parts of
the state has some possibilities of be-,
ing reached by water and at some
be reached by irrigation is limited by
the amount of water available. y
Interest in the irrigation projects in
North Dakota has been increased at
the present time by President Hard
ings recent address in which he ad-
vocated the reclamation of arid lands
as a Means of finding homes for SOL
to engage in agriculture. North Da7
kota has a number of irrigation
projects, the most successful one from
the standpoint of a large pumping
station being the one at Williston.
This was opened some years ago.
closed for a time and then reopened
during the war under a war time act
that compelled all the farms benefited
by the project to become a part of
the irrigation sycAnm. Most of the
North Dakota projects are for pump
ing, but a number are for the gravity
distributor OF water. +,
The 'Bismarck Project"
Local attention has been called to
an almost forgotten project. known in
the annals OF government engineering
as the Bismarck Project" through
the receipt of a letter from Congress-
maj George Young asking for the de
tails of the plan. IT, local project
was surveyed in 1904 and 1906 and
the government reports were made at
that time. The plan: supported then
was for a pumping station near the
point where the Observation-Disclosures
bridge now stands. The project pro-
tom lands or The Bismarck III of the
river. the higher bench known as he
Fort Lincoln and a still higher eleva-
ton known as the penitentiary bench.
The first bench. approximately TWEEN
1y-five fee above extreme low water
is subject to overflow and contains
about 1000 acres. The Forst Lincoln
Penitentiary bench about the same.
The report of the government engi-
neers shows that of the three benches.
about 5000 acres were considered
available for irrigation. The engi-
neers also charted the grade from the
pumping station to Long Lake. to de-
termine the feasibility OF using hat as
a 'lkOluAIlS CDC " 1oA A0AANc ~ 49,
south and east of the lake.
In connection with the Bismarck
project. Mr.. Mcmahon points out that
as far as the land is concerned it Ia
not q gamble. The floods that cover
the bottom lands every few years
when ice gorges force an overflow
generally result in two good crops
For the two easons. wheat yields
from thirty to forty bushels an acre,
potatoes $50 n oats as high as
ninety. The production Of hay is
doubled for the two ~.
.f, Cost Not Great. 4
In the 1904-O5 plans of the govern
ment for this project, the original cost
was placed at sgt dollars an acre and
the yearly operating cost at about
s2.25 per acre. What this means in
the increase in value Of farm crops
and land as compared to the cost has
been shown in almost every part OF
the country where irrigation a been
attempted according to MT. Mcmahon.
In The w!liston Droiect alone he has