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<br />000384 <br /> <br />The better grades of land suitable for project-type irrigation <br />development but not presently Irrigated from surface water systems are <br />shown on Map 1. Some areas, however, contain pump irrigation developments. <br />The amount of land remaining avai lable for irrigation development is <br />shown by river basins in Table 20. Of the 15,840,000 acres classified <br />as suitable for irrigation development but not presently irrigated, <br />nearly 30 percent of the total, 4,950,000 acres, are sol Is of the highest <br />suitabi Ilty type (Type A). <br /> <br />Large tracts of land with highly suitable soi Is are located in the <br />Big and Little Blue River Basins. Relatively large blocks of mostly <br />moderately suitable land available for irrigation development are <br />located in the Niobrara, South Platte, Elkhorn, Lower Platte, and <br />Republican River Basins. Most of this acreage is in small tracts located <br />within presently irrigated areas or on narrow ridges between drainageways. <br /> <br />TABLE 20 <br /> <br />LAND SUITABLE FOR FUTURE IRRIGATION DEVELOPMENT - 1,000 ACRES <br />( 1968) <br /> <br />River Basin <br /> <br />Total <br /> <br />A <br /> <br />Suitability Type <br />BCD <br /> <br />White River-Hat Creek 198 36 54 103 5 <br />Niobrara 2,040 528 552 741 219 <br />Missouri TributarIes 778 185 172 369 52 <br />North Platte 874 238 258 278 100 <br />South Platte 1,142 352 334 402 54 <br />Middle Platte 545 176 73 175 121 <br />Loup 1,645 417 320 564 344 <br />E I khorn 2,204 732 429 789 254 <br />Lower Platte 1,049 246 262 483 58 <br />Republ ican 2,207 797 546 761 103 <br />Little Blue 747 438 117 176 16 <br />Big Blue 1,336 648 280 378 30 <br />Nemaha 1,077 157 343 542 35 <br />STATE TOTAL 15,842 4,950 3,740 5,761 1,391 <br /> <br />Irriqation Opportunities by Basins <br /> <br />White River-Hat Creek Basin. This Basin has the least amount of <br />suitable lands avai lable for irrigation. It also has the least proportion <br />of the better types of Irrigable soils. The lands are in sma I I scattered <br />tracts. I nsta II at ion of project-type measures wou I d be cost I y. tlorma I <br />summer streamflows are overappropriated under present conditions. Indian <br />claims to surface waters limit the storing of off-season flows. <br /> <br />44 <br />