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21 <br />Evaporation from free water surfaces occurs <br />from lakes, storage reservoirs, streams, and canals. <br />The average annual gross and net lake evaporation <br />across the basin is shown in Figure 11. Net evapora- <br />tion is gross evaporation less precipitation. The rate <br />of evaporation is dependent largely on wind velocity, <br />temperature, and relative humidity. Many reservoirs <br />and ponds in the basin are comparatively shallow <br />and the resulting large surface area combined with <br />the high evaporation rates common to the Great <br />Plains causes a considerable use of water. <br />Figure 11 <br />AVERAGE ANNUAL GROSS AND NET LAKE EVAPORATION <br />GROSS NET <br />44 42 40 <br />46 <br />48 <br />50 — 2 <br />52 � <br />Evaporation in Inches "52., <br />Soils and Vegetation <br />Soils vary considerably from one end of the <br />basin to the other. This combined with precipitation <br />and other climate variables causes considerable <br />variation in vegetation. <br />26 26 24 22 20 18 16 <br />30 28 \ \ <br />30 V�J <br />32 <br />SOILS <br />In general, the Platte River Basin has four soil <br />regions as shown in Figure 12. Silty soils are <br />dominant in the south central and eastern parts of <br />the basin. These soils contain considerable <br />Figure 12 <br />SOIL REGIONS <br />SANDY <br />SILTY <br />,v <br />LOAMY <br />■ <br />MIXED <br />_ I <br />