C150235 Feasibility Study

• Contract/PO #: C150235
• Contractor Name: Platte Valley Irrigation Company
• Contract Type: Loan
• County: Weld
• Loan Projects - Doc Type: Feasibility Study

Colorado. A location map,provided by Applegate Group,showing the Company's facilities is also
included in Appendix A.
Crops grown in the service area include corn, beets, grain including oats, wheat and barley, alfalfa
hay, and potatoes. An approximate division of crops and planted acreage is as follows. This
information was is referenced to ENGINEERING REPORT, DITCHWIDE HISTORIC USE
ANALYSIS OF EVANS NO. 2 DITCH,by Brown and Cauldwell, June 2006.
Crop Type No. of Acres
Corn 5,340
Alfalfa Hay 4,600
Grain 750
Beets 300
Potatoes 150
Other 3,692
14,832 acres
Average crop yields per acre in this area are: 4 tons of alfalfa hay; 18 tons of beets; 150 bushels of
corn, 65 bushels of winter wheat, 50 bushels of spring wheat, 18 tons of silage, 1600 pounds of dry
beans, and 78 bushels of barley.
Since the Evans No. 2 Ditch is approximately 15 miles in length,there are many soils and soil types
found along the system. The GENERALIZED SOIL MAP from Soil Survey of Weld County,
Colorado,United States Department of Agriculture,indicates the soils in the services area are of two
major units; the Julesburg-Bresser Unit and the Olney-Kim-Otero Unit.
The Julesburg-Bresser Unit covers most of the irrigated area and these soils are deep,level to nearly
level,well drained sandy loams formed in alluvium. They typically have 1%to 3%slopes;the depth
of the solum is 24 to 38 inches; coarse fragments make up 10%of the solum; the soil permeability
is rapid; the available water capacity is moderate; and, the depth to free carbonates is more than 50
inches.
The Olney-Kim-Otero soils are deep,nearly level to moderately sloping,well drained sandy loams
and loams formed in mixed alluvium and eolian deposits. They typically have 0%to 9%slopes;the
depth of the solum is from less than 10 inches to as much as 30 inches; the depth to shale and/or
sandstone in these units is often less than 20 inches; the soil permeability is moderate to rapid; the
available water capacity is moderate to high; and,the depth to free carbonates is from the surface to
24 inches.
The precipitation in the Platteville area averages 12.0 inches,the average afternoon relative humidity
is about 40 percent in summer, the average summer temperature is 87 degrees, and the average
snowfall is 40 inches. The length of the growing season in the Platteville area is approximately 140
days with the average for the last killing frost in the spring being May 10 and the first killing frost
in the fall being September 30.
Platte Valley Irrigation-Feasibility Study Page 2