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0030Qf) . THE DISTRICT. IN 1938. 194,700 AC~ES OR ALMOST ONE-THIRD Or THE HARVESTED IRRIGATEO LAND (, WITHIN THE DISTRICT WAS USED FOR SMALL GRAIN PRODUCTION. IN 1967, A LITTLE OVER ONE-TENTH OF THE TOTAL IRRIGATEO LAND OR 71.400 ACRES WAS uSED FOR THI$ PURPOSE. CORN ACREAGE ~OR GRAIN AND SILAGE INCREASED BY 400% OR FROM 57.000 ACRES IN 1938 TO MORE THAN 228,000 ACRES IN 1967. ALFALFA HAY ACREAGE INCREASED FROM 147.000 TO 1S0,OOO ACRES DURING THE SAME PERIOD. THERE WeRt SIGN/rICANT ACREAGE CHANGES, AS WELL, FOR OTHER IMPORTANT CROPS NOT DIRECTLY RELATED IN THE LIVESTOCK INDuSTRY. FOR EXAMPLE: SUGAR BEET ACREAGE DECREAseD FROM 107.600 TO 75.200; DRY StAN ACREAGE INCREAStD FROM 42,000 TO AlMOST 65.000; AND POTATO~S DECLINED FROM 311000 TO 22,000 ACRES. WITH THE SHIFT IN CROP ACREAGE, THERE WAS ALSO A MARKED INCREASE IN ylELOS rOR MOST . CROPS, THE: USE OF MORE FERTILIZERS, IMPROVED SEE.D, BETTER EQUIPMENTI Pl.US IMPROVED CUL,II- VATION AND IRRIGATION TEC~NIQUES WERE ALL rACTORS THAT HELPED THE FARMER INCREAS~ HIS i rFFICIENCY IN BOTH YIELD PER ACRE AND IN THE NuMSER O~ ACRES HE COULD MANAGE. AVERAGE YIELDS POR THE MAJOR CROPS GROWN IN THE DISTRICT INCREASED DURING THE THIRTY-YEAR PERIOD BY AS MUCH AS 212%. CORN FOR ENSILAGE, FOR EXAMPLE. INCREASED FROM AN AV(RAGE YIELD IN 1938 or 8,5 TONS ?ER ACRE TO AN AVERAGE OF 18 TONS IN 1967. CEREALS AND CORN FOR GRAIN INCREASED IN YIELDS BY AN AVERAGE OF 50~j ALFALrA HAY 40%; ANO IRRIGATED DRY BEANS By 80%. SUGAR BEET YIELDS HAD THE SMALLEST PERCENT INCREASE OF ALL MA~OR CROPS WITH A CHANGE FROM 13 TONS PER ACRE AVERAGE IN 1938 TO ,6 TONS IN 1967 -- A 23% INCR~A5E, THEse INCREASED YIELDS AND THE SHIFT IN IRRIGATED ACREAGES TO CROPS WIT~ HIGH(R WAT(R REQUIREMENTS COULD NOT HAVE TAKEN PLACE WITHOUT AN INCREASED AND MOR~ DEP~NDABLE WATER SUPPLY. DEVELOPMENT OF THAT WATER SUPPLY WAS, OF COURSE. THE REASON FOR THE CREA- TlON OF THIS DISTRICT AND FOR THE CONSTRUCTION O~ THE COLORAOO-~IG THOMPSON PROJECT. '. -3-