Laserfiche WebLink
<br />N <br />W <br />..~ <br />--.1 <br /> <br />Irrigation contributes some 37 percent of the total salt load to the river <br />in the Upper Basin. <br /> <br />There are approximately 1 million acres of irrigation agricultural land in <br />17 identified salt sources units in the Upper Basin. It is estimated that <br />a portion of at least seven Ot these units will be justified or feasible as <br />salinity control projects. This would involve about 400,000 acres of <br />treatment. <br /> <br />USDA Title I Activities <br /> <br />The Department, through SCS, initiated an intensive onfarm irrigation improve- <br />ment program in 1974 to reduce the quantity of irrigation return flows from <br />the 65,OOO-acre well ton-Mohawk Irrigation and Drainage District. Reduction <br />of irrigation return flows will allow for the reduced design capacity of the <br />desalinization plant at Yuma, Arizona. SCS's involvement is in accordance <br />with a Memorandum 'of Agreement (MOA) between SCS and the USBR and a Memorandum <br />of Understanding (MOU) between USDA and USDI. <br /> <br />Technical assistance and cost-share assistance are provided through contracts <br />with individual farmers for practices that meet the objectives. SCS <br />expenditures are reimbursed by the USBR. Over 40 percent of the planned <br />program has been installed. This activity is supported by research of the <br />ARS. Although current research is not directly related to the Title I <br />Program of Public Law 93-320~ the U.s. Water Conservation Laboratooy <br />continues to carryon water management research in the Well ton-Mohawk area, <br />and this is expected to contribute to the continuing job of irrigation water <br />management. Research on" remote sensing is intended to lead to more effective <br />irrigation scheduling. New automated devices allow automated irrigation to <br />be based on the amount of water delivered, as opposed to just the duration of <br />irrigation flow. <br /> <br />The U.S. Salinity Laboratory has completed a 2-year study to develop <br />management guidelines for irrigation under the adverse conditions caused <br />by flooding on the Gila River, so that salt damage might be minimized. <br /> <br />USDA Title II Activities <br /> <br />USDA activities in the Title II area are in accordance, with an MOA between <br />SCS and the USBR. Supplemental MOU'S between ARS, Agricultural, <br />stabilization, and Conservation Service (ASCS), Extension Service (ES), and <br />SCS cover coordination within the Department. <br /> <br />presently, SCS is using river basin funds (Public Law 83-566) for surveys, <br />investigations, and resulting study reports, while conservation operations <br />technical assistance funds are used for implementation technical assistance. <br />The latter is supplemented with a 5 percent transfer from ASCS based on the <br />commitment of ACP funds. ASCS is using targeted ACP funds for cost sharing <br />salinity control measures. The cost-sharing rate varies from 75 to <br />90 percent depending on the incentive needed for a specific practice. ARS <br />is using funds appropriated for research to develop more efficient surface <br /> <br />5 <br />