Opinion ID: 1250356
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: location of the farm and dam

Text: Hughes owns a farm, which includes 79 acres of cropland abutting the North Platte River. The north bank of the river, which flows from west to east, is the southern boundary of the Hughes farm. A bridge for Highway 226, which runs in a north-south direction, bisects the Hughes farm and crosses the river. At the southeast corner of the Hughes tract and approximately 1,400 feet east of the highway bridge, Enterprise constructed its dam to divert water to the area within the irrigation district. The cement base of Enterprise's diversion dam ran from bank to bank of the river, a distance of 260 feet. Steel piers, 8 feet apart, were placed in the concrete base and supported wooden planks placed lengthwise against the piers on the upstream side for diversion of the river. The dam, from riverbed to top, was approximately 30 inches high. Toward the dam's north end, at its juncture with the river's north bank, was a headgate which, when opened, permitted water to be diverted into a canal for transportation to the irrigated acres served by Enterprise. The river had a history of seasonal high water. Excess snowmelt and rainfall, impounded and then released from several upstream reservoirs, contributed to spring and summer flooding of Hughes' farm. In one form or another, Enterprise's diversion dam has existed in the river since the turn of the century. However, regarding overflow in 1983 and 1984, there is no evidence of any antecedent causal relationship between such previous flooding and any structure in the river near the Hughes farm.