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I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I 3.4 eorporate Financial Status and Assets The MeRe's only source of income is through assessments of its shareholders. The eompany has no taxing authority. The MeRe income and expense statements for the years 1989 and 1990 are provided in Appendix A. The assets of the Company include the Minnesota Dam and Reservoir, 9/16 ownership of the Beaver Reservoir, and a cabin on Forest Service land above the Minnesota Dam. 4.0 PROJECT LANDS 4.1 Service Area The project service area is shown on Figure 4.1. The geographical service area encompasses approximately 2,300 acres of irrigatable land. The area served by the existing and proposed reservoir will be identical. 4.2 Land Use Land use within the service area is almost exclusively agricultural in nature. Project lands produce a variety of crops and serve a variety of agricultural uses including grazing/pasture land, hay, alfalfa, fruit orchards, etc. Due to low average annual precipitation, the seasonal distribution of precipitation, and short growing season, the lands in the service area are unsuited to dryland farming practices; therefore irrigation is necessary for growing most crops. 4.3 Land elassification Survey The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA, 1981) has published a soil survey of the Paonia area, which encompasses the area serviced by the Minnesota Dam. This survey provides an extensive listing of soil units within the project region, with descriptions of the soil classifications and indicative properties, as well as land use and management practices (agriculture, engineering, recreation, and wildlife habitat). Figure 4.2 delineates the service area in relation to observed soil series within the study region. A description of the predominant soil series is provided in Appendix B. 5.0 PROJECT WATER RESOUReES 5.1 Water Use Water rights exercised by MeRe are for agricultural purposes exclusively. MeRe provides no water to municipal or industrial users. 3