LINCOLN - For the first time in four years, Red Willow Reservoir in
southwest Nebraska will be drawn down for irrigation this summer, but some
farmers say too much water will be wasted and it will be too costly to use.
"This could break some farmers," said Paul Schaffert, who farms near
Indianola. "They're going to have to pay $30 an acre for the water, whether
they want it or not. It's being forced down their throats."
The condition of the earthen canal will contribute to excessive seepage
during the irrigation period, Schaffert said. He also said the water should
be kept in the reservoir for the boost its recreation value gives the local
economy.
Roy Patterson, who manages the Frenchman-Cambridge Irrigation District based
in Cambridge, said the board decided to release enough water to give farmers
along the Bartley Canal 8 inches of water per acre in an attempt to save the
financially struggling district.
"This is an irrigation district," he said. "We've got to have funds to keep
this irrigation going."
Starting about early July, water from the reservoir, 11 miles north of
McCook, will flow down Red Willow Creek to the Republican River near
Indianola. There it will be diverted into a 19-mile canal that will carry it
on the south side of the river nearly to Holbrook. More than 6,400 acres can
be irrigated by the water.
Whether or not they use the water, farmers will be charged fees equal to $30
an acre. The release from the reservoir, also known as Hugh Butler Lake,
will generate $192,330, Patterson said.
The district loses more than $200,000 a year when low reservoirs prevent
water deliveries, Patterson said. The district also pays the U.S. Bureau of
Reclamation an annual fee for maintaining dams and the cost of constructing
the canal system a half-century ago.
Dan Wallen, who farms near McCook and is a former Nebraska Game and Parks
commissioner, criticized the district for trading water for dollars.
"Rather than reduce spending, (the irrigation district) just wants to
increase revenue. I think the sole reason is they need money to pay the
help. They won't reduce staff," he said.
Patterson said staff has been reduced by four employees, leaving eight in
the field to maintain 150 miles of canals and 122 miles of buried pipe.
Patterson said the district needs at least 10 field workers when all of the
district's canals are carrying water.
The district will have to release 22 inches out of the lake for farmers to
receive 8 inches, Schaffert said.
"The water efficiency from one year to the next is normally about 60
percent. They lose 40 percent of the water to evaporation and soakage," he
said. "That canal has not had water in it since 2002. I'll bet the
efficiency gets down to 20 (percent) or 25 percent. It's not going to be
realistic."
Patterson agreed that seepage losses could be greater this year because of
dry conditions. The district typically releases water early to soak canal
beds in preparation for actual irrigation flows.
The seepage losses, he said, benefit many farmers because the water soaks
into the aquifer and is available for pumping by those with irrigation
wells.
Red Willow's elevation level in 2002 dropped to around 2,561 feet above sea
level, the point where no water can be released for any purpose. The
reservoir has not been used for irrigation since 2002, but the inflows are
so light that the water level has risen only 10 feet.
Although the irrigation district has a right to use any water above the
2,561-foot mark, Schaffert said, it's time to change priorities and leave
water in the reservoir for recreation. Farmers can water crops more
efficiently with center-pivot irrigation systems that pump underground
water, rather than tap water delivered in canals, he said.
Patterson said flood control and irrigation are the primary reasons the
reservoirs in his district - Red Willow, Swanson and Medicine Creek - were
constructed.
"Then recreation is down the line," he said.
Baker said a number of area farmers, including Schaffert, have converted
from ditch irrigation to pivots and supplemental wells. Others have enrolled
their land in a federal water-conservation program that pays farmers to stop
irrigating and farming their land.
"Farmers have adapted . . . to not having any surface water," Baker said.
"All of a sudden, they get some surface water, and they absolutely can't use
it. They don't want to be financially liable for the water that will run
past their place."
Patterson said farmers within the irrigation district knew when they
enrolled their land in the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program that
they would be required to pay their share for any water released into their
canal.
A 13-inch water allotment placed on irrigators by the Middle Republican
Natural Resources District should not interfere with irrigators' decisions,
said Dan Smith, the district's general manager.
Irrigators in the district are limited to using 13 inches of irrigation
water on each acre of land, regardless if it comes from canals or
underground.
Irrigators on the Bartley Canal who decide, however, against using Red
Willow Reservoir water on their fields this year probably won't be required
to count the 8 inches of available water against their 13-inch limit this
summer, said Smith.
The district board will meet Tuesday in Curtis and is expected to change its
rules and regulations to require only those irrigators who use the Red
Willow Reservoir water to subtract it from their total allocation.