WSPC06448

• File Number: 8408
• Description: River Basin General Correspondence
• State: WY
• Date: 10/24/1940
• Author: H.P.Nagel III
• Title: Memo Re: Report of Field Trip made along North Platte River in Wyoming and Nebraska from Guernsey to North Platte, June 20-July 10, 1940
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Report/Study

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nOl182

Ootober 24. 1940

MEMORANDUM :

To: A. C. Stiefel

From:

H" P. Nagel III

~

Re:, Report: of Field trip made along North Platte River in Wyoming
and Nebraska from Guernsey to North Platte. June 20 to July
10. 1940 by E. H. Dyer and H" P. Nagel III.

PURPOSE :

The field imrestigation made by the Colorado Water Conservation
Board along the Uort:h. Platte River was made to seoure data to be used by
the State of Colorado in the law suit now in the Supreme Court of the
United States between the States of Nebraska. Wyoming and Colorado. In
general the field parties were instruoted to determine the extant of
irrigation and irrigation faoUfties along tha main river and its tribu-
taries ino1uding whatever pumping operations were observed; to oheok
ditches wherever feasible as to oapacity and amount of diversion. land
irrigated. and administration of water by the State authorIties; to
secure from irrigation oompany officers and 1000.1 men information regard-
ing the history ani development of irrigation enterprises. along with any
other information whioh might be pert:inent to the oase.

PROCEDURE:
Prior to leaving Denver on June 18. 19l1O we oontaotad the Bureau
of Reolamation and seoured information regarding the status of the North
Platte Project and it was deoided that we would not fie~d oheok the lands
irrigated by the government projeot. However. in the course of our trip
we intervieWed Mr. C. F. Gleason of the Bureau of Reolamation looated at
Guarnsey Dam. Mr. Storm. Engineer for the Pathi'inde'r Irrigation District.
and Mr. Rousoh. Superintendent of the Goshen Irrigation Distriot. who gave
us additional information about: interpreting the governmant reports ~nd the
manner in wliloh they are assembled. In addition an aotual field oheok of
the lands under the Northport Projeot was made.

oiir general prooedure was to bbtain aU the information possible
regarding irrigated lands from various agencies E;uoh as the County Assessors.
County Commissioners. federal farm' agenoies. p'rivate and publio irrigation
distriots. and. then to aotually field cheok the irrigated land by oruising
the areas and. oheoking with aerial photographs. The proourement of data
on the tributaries was. of oourse. lJX)re c;liffioult than it was on the main
river. !lot only beoause most of these regions were more inaooessible. making
aotual field oheoking harder. but: also beoause our aerial piotures did not
oover all of these areas.

FIELD WORK t
We disoovered in our first interV1.ew on June 18 with Mr. BishoP.
Wyoming State Engineer. that the aoouraoy of all sxisting reoords of
irrigated aoreages in the State of Wyoming should be questioned} that the
County .Assessor IS reoords show only approximately one-half. of the total
irrigated lands and. that the results of the Water Resouroes Survey are not
aooeptable. at least to 'l;lD several agenoies of the State of Wyoming.