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<br />Agricultural Economy <br /> <br />studies were adjusted based on expected annual water shortages <br />for the various ditches, No adjustments were made in the <br />computed payment capacity of ditches having water supplies <br />equal to or greater than 95 percent of the full requirement. <br />For ditches having water supplies less than 95 percent of the <br />full requirement, the computed payment capacity was reduced 5, <br />percent for each percentage point the expected water supply is <br />between 95 and 75 percent. When the annual water shortage exceeds <br />25 percent, no payment capacity is deemed to be available. This <br />method of adjustment was used in lieu of establishing separate <br />input-output standards representative of various water supply <br />levels and developing farm budgets to measure the effect on net <br />farm income and payment capabilities, This technique provides <br />the basis for reducing payment capacity in the full water supply <br />budgets to reflect years of water shortage, <br /> <br />',. <br /> <br />PRESENT AGRICULTURAL ECONOMY <br /> <br />,';';; <br /> <br />The project is within a semiarid region which must rely upon <br />irrigation for the product:Lon, of nearly all agricultural crops. The <br />only crops of economic significance grown without irrigation are <br />native grasses which are used mainly for grazing herds of beef <br />cattle. The principal irrigated crops are alfalfa, small grains, <br />grain sorghums, and sugar beets, These crops, except for wheat and <br />sugar beets, are largely fed to livestock. <br /> <br />",;. <br /> <br />,-': <br /> <br />In 1959, it was determined through farm interviews that <br />livestock farming is the type most widely practiced in the area. <br />The predominate livestock enterprise is the production of feeder <br />calves. <br /> <br />.'.."c"' <br /> <br />The unregulated stream flows do not provide an adequate water <br />supply and low crop yields as well as complete failures have been <br />common in the project area. For this reason farm incomes have been <br />generally low, especially from family-sized farms on which the income <br />is derived almost entirely from cultivated crops. <br /> <br />, "<( <br /> <br />Because of the low farm incomes, nearly all of the farm operators <br />have been required to obtain off-farm employment to supplement the <br />family living. The acreage irrigated within the service area histori- <br />cally has not been fixed on a year to year basis. The common practice <br />has been for farmers to expand irrigation when water supplies are <br />above normal and reduce their acreage when water supplies are limited. <br /> <br />37 <br />