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<br /> <br />of Table 1 gives these values for the subbasins in question. It <br />was found that the long-term crop irrigation requirement in the <br />four P&rts of the main stem South Platte Bas~n was as follows I <br />1.41 acre-feet per acre for Subbasin AI 1.42 acre-feet per acre <br />for Subbasin B; 1.30 acre-feet per acre for Subbasin 0; and 1.35 <br />acre-fe",t per acre for Prospect Valley. The crop irrigation <br />requirement in acre-feet per acre goes only part way in giving us <br />the answer for water requirements in the basin; the total :require- <br />ment cannot be determined without knowing the land acreage under <br />irrigation. <br /> <br />Land Use <br /> <br />In the three-year period from 1954 to 1956 land classifiers <br />of the Bureau of Reclamation classified the lands in the basin <br />from the Narrows dam site to the State line. When these studies, <br />were expanded to include effect of upstream development, it was <br />necessary to know the acreage of irrigated land in the basin <br />between Denver and the Narrows dam site. A study to determine <br />this acreage was completed in 1961. The "study was of a reconnais- <br />sance nature, and separated irrigated lands into three categories; <br />those served entirely from the river, those served entirely by <br />pump, and those served by a combination of the two. The results <br />of these studies are listed in Table 1 under Ristoric Rydrologic <br />Conditions 1952-l957, on line 1. The entire area is brqken down <br />into three reaches; the first extending from Denver to Weld <br />County; the second from Weld Oounty to Narrows, and the third <br />from Narrows to the State line. The acreage presently irrigated <br />in the main stem South Platte Valley by diversions from the river <br />or pumping under ditches diverting from the river was found to be <br />362,000 acres. <br /> <br />Ground Water <br /> <br />The use of ground water in the South Platte River Basin is <br />becoming an increasingly important part of the crop irrigation <br />supply. In the years 1954 to 1956 when surface supplies were low, <br />ground water contributed from 33 to 38 percent of the total water <br />supply; furthermore, these computations did not take into account <br />the surface water losses experienced in the canals. Use of ground <br />water reduces the surface water irrigation requirement. Thus, <br />g:roun~ water must be considered in determining irrigation <br />requirements. <br /> <br />A study was made to determine the amount of water pumped <br />to lands under each ditch or ditch system in the main stem South <br />Platte River l3s.sin from Denver to the State line during the 1952 <br />to 1957 study period. In this study use Was made of such factors <br /> <br />17 <br /> <br />