Water News: Southeastern Colorado Water District Volume 1 Issue 10

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FIELD DAY TO DEMONSTRATE USING POLYMERS TO REDUCE SEEPAGE IN DIRT DITCHES "I'm losing cropland because my ditches are seeping." "About half of this alfalfa field is dying out because of the seepage and high water table." "I couldn't even get my combine through my field last year, the seepage, high water tables and salts are killing my yield." These are just some of the comments made by farmers throughout the Arkansas River area that are being hurt by the seepage and resulting perched or high water tables and salts. A number of factors including the abundance of snow -pack, controlled release of water from above average reservoir storage, reduced pumping of wells and over irrigation, are causing these problems. Jim Valliant, regional irrigation specialist for Colorado State University Cooperative Extension stated, "With a grant from the Bureau of Reclamation, we are looking at ways to reduce this seepage and polymers appear to offer a low cost, environmentally sound way. Work done at the demonstration site in 1998 resulted in the seepage loss being reduced from 0.65 gpm (gallons per minute) per foot of ditch to 0.35 gpm per foot of ditch by the application of PAM to the ditch water. In 1999, with heavy sediment in the water caused by flooding, seepage loss was still reduced from 0.41 to 0.02 gpm/ft and water levels in observation wells in the treated area of the lateral were substantially lower each year than the untreated area of the lateral." Using polymers to reduce seepage from dirt ditches will be demonstrated at the Eric Hanagan farm on Thursday, July 20, 1999 beginning at 9:30 a.m. and ending about 11:30 a. m. with a sack lunch. The demonstration site is located in the north west corner of Road BB and Road 24 about two miles south and two miles west of Swink, CO. "We will show how we are applying the PAM and how we are determining changes in seepage loss. We measured flows from 3,000 gpm to as high as 9,000 gpm in the Surburban Lateral of the Catlin Canal with seepage losses up to 600 gpm in 1998 and 440 gpm in 1999 during our four application periods each year." PAM, a linear- linked polymer, is being used as a flocculent causing the sediment to settle to the bottom portion of the ditch. Similar to very muddy water, the sediment partially seals the ditch. Two 5 -pound applications were made four times each year for a total of 40 pounds and, at $5 per pound, the total cost was $200 on 450 feet of ditch. "We will continue to look at polymers as a method of reducing seepage from our dirt ditches and I feel results will continue to show that these polymers can be a win -win way to make more effective use of our water," Valliant concluded. The field demonstration day will also feature Dr. Luis Garcia, CSU Bioresource Engineering, who will talk about his seepage and water table monitoring program and the results from two years of study. Dr. Garcia will have printed material to handout for his presentation during the lunch period. For additional information on the demonstration, contact Jim Valliant or Pat Clifford at the Otero County Extension Office at 411 North 10th in Rocky Ford or call (719) 254- 7608. Written by: Jim Valliant, CSU, Cooperative Extension DISTRICT HIRES A NEW STAFF MEMBER Margie Miller, a native of Pueblo, has joined the District staff as the new Compliance/ Administrative Clerk. Margie will work with irrigators on the a n n u a l Reclamation Reform Act (RRA) compliance paperwork, handle the District's clerical and mailing duties, and maintain the District's new Web site. Margie recently relocated from Denver where she worked for seven doctors at the University of Colorado Hospital - Bone Marrow Transplant Program. She has great computer skills and a real eagerness to serve the constituents of the District. Give Margie a call and welcome her to the District (719) 948 -2400. 4