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<br />nc..-"., <br />.-::. j ~ ,) <br /> <br />General Description <br /> <br />GENERAL ECONOMY AND RESOURCES <br /> <br />The economy of the general area in which the Narrows Unit would <br />be located is now and has always been based primarily upon agri- <br />culture. In the early 1950's, the discovery of oil and gas introduced <br />an additional important basic industry to the area. Important too, <br />but of much lesser significance to the overall economy, is the mining <br />of sand and gravel. <br /> <br />In addition to the basic industries, the usual retail trades <br />and services are practiced in the area. Furthermore, there is <br />significant activity in the manufacturing and processing industries. <br />Raw materials for these industries are obtained largely from agri- <br />culture. <br /> <br />Various aspects of the agricultural economy have displayed <br />dissimilar trend patterns. Volume of production on a year-to-year <br />baais, for instance, has fluctuated quite drastically, but on a <br />long-term basis an upward trend in production has been experienced. <br />The trend in the number of workers employed in agriculture has. been <br />steadily downward and the number of farm operators has decreased. <br />Consequently, individual farm units are increasing in size. However, <br />it appears that the number of agricultural workers has already begun <br />to level off and will stabilize near the present number. Therefore, <br />taking into account both the long-term volume of production and the <br />number of workers invo1yed, it is not likely that agriculture will <br />lose its position as the leading basic economic activity of the area. <br /> <br />Based on present trends, the importance of the petroleum <br />industry to the future economy is expected to decline. The mining <br />of sand and gravel, the third type of basic production in the area, <br />has increased significantly over the past several years. Its impor- <br />tance with re spect to construction work is very great, but_ minor <br />with respect to the overall economy. Within the foreseeable future, <br />the relative importance of sand and gravel mining is expected to <br />remain unchanged. <br /> <br />TRANSPORTATION AND SERVICES <br /> <br />Transportation facilities and freight services are ample for <br />serving the area. The Union Pacific Railroad serves all of the <br />principal towns and the CB&Q Railroad serves Fort Morgan, Brush, <br />and Sterling. Interstate Highway 805 extends through the entire <br />length of the service area. Federal Highways 6 and 34 serve <br /> <br />9 <br />