Not sure if you fishermen have seen this yet… Here’s short video that just came out today on the dam they want to build on Gooseberry Creek at the headwaters of the Price River.
I also got the final EIS from the Bureau of Rec (
www.usbr.gov/uc/envdocs/index.html), wh/ says that 83% of the water will be used for farmers to get a 3rd alfalfa crop. For the amount of impact this dam will cause, all we’re getting is a
3rd crop for farmers?
The remaining 17% will be for municipal and industrial use. That’s a pretty small minority of Sanpete County getting a benefit from the $50M. I wonder too if the members of the SWCD “agency” that we are entrusting with the $50M, are the alfalfa farmers who are basically lining their own pockets?
Seems like a good 60-Minutes story to me…
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This same talk has been going on for about 60 years or more, and may go on for another 60..
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Well I hope you're right. Things are coming to a head a bit right now with the EIS becoming final last month, but maybe with the price tag someone in the agency will figure out its not the best use of deficit spending right now...
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Wow you really said "alfalfa farmer lining their pockets". I don't know many farmers in Utah "lining their pockets".
If all you can get is two cuttings of alfalfa per year you won't be making a living off alfalfa. You will likely be using those two cuttings for your own livestock. That area of utah is struggling enough with the loss of coal mines that I say anything that helps them is fine by me.
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yes dams are dam spendy but this is how just about every dam dam has been built out west . were and how do ya think all the waters you fish came from? they all came from the need to dam up water for power or farming! almost every dam has a high cost to the funds and to the wild life around it . but with out them we who all live out west would be really dry .
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Sure, what a great use of tax dollars. Produce the most expensive irrigation water in the country to get a 3rd crop of alfalfa. Why don't we also have a back up that the government will import Fiji bottle water for that crop if expected water supplies are inadequate.[crazy]
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Good point about the farmers lining their pockets. But I'm guessing the farmers in Price will feel the pinch of a 30% water reduction, not to mention all the land owners on Scofield, people like me who fish the headwater creeks, Price River, and Scofield Res, etc.
$10M would pay for enough water efficiency projects to save the existing fisheries and get the farmer's their 3rd crop...
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Doesn't look like the video was attached to my original post. Here's the link if you're interested:
[url "http://youtu.be/ENAwWyBUWTQ"]http://youtu.be/ENAwWyBUWTQ[/url]
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Look the fact of the matter is the very best farm ground in this state sits underneath houses. And 65% of all water resources are now tied up in our green grass. So if we still want any kind of a "local" farm or agriculture production in this state we are going to have to develop other water sources. That area has plenty of ground water, if only plants could live on salt water.
Get a clue folks we need lakes in this state or we are all dried up. The most cost effective lakes and resources have been developed, so now you are going to have higher cost projects.
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Utah produces 0.4% of the net value of agricultural products for our country for a reason. Parts of Oregon get 5 cuttings a year without irrigation. The entire eastern half of this country gets over twice the average rain as Utah. The largest cow calf ranch in the country is owned by the LDS Church but is in Florida. They didn't choose the spot to be close to Mickey Mouse at the expense of supporting Utah's economy. No they picked the site because even with the huge federal subsidies with public grazing in Utah it made economic sense to do it somewhere that was dozens of more times productive than Utah.
Maybe I can get a federal subsidy to produce ice in Death Valley as it makes about as much sense as this plan.
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The north sanpete valley has NO long term water storage. There is no reservoir to hold their water. Water that originates in north sanpete, but runs down the creek to carbon and emery county. This reservoir should have been built sixty five years ago. Scofield is filled with stolen water. You want to talk about problems try being a farmer in Sanpete county.
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What do you mean "good point about farmers lining their pockets". Are you guys that uneducated to think farmers/ranchers actually make much of a profit! Its those folks that bust their ass all year so you can have milk in your fridge and meat on your table...obviously you have NEVER worked on a ranch. Ranchers dont ranch to get rich, they do it cause they are honest hard working americans not afraid of getting their hands dirty...stupid city slickers!
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My family has been farming in North Sanpete for over 100 years and some years, like this last one, we didn't have water for a second crop of hay let alone a 3rd crop. The irrigation water is gone by the 4th of July most years. Everyone in the county knows the people who steal water by the time August rolls around, their lawn is still green or their garden is still alive.
The fact is the lack of water has stunted the growth of the county for several years now. This new Reservior will not only benefit the farmers but it will allow the population of the county to grow.
I personally have some mixed feelings about the new Reservior. It will be good for the farmers but i dont want to see the population of the county grow much larger. However, I do think it will create some fantastic recreational opportunities. If managed correctly the new fishery should rival Schofield or even Strawberry. Once the Reservior is filled the tail waters, gooseberry creek, will have a more consistent flow of water and the fishery will bounce back and be as good as ever.
Schofield will be affected as they are filling the new lake but maybe not as much as people think. Clear creek and Fish creek will still flow into the Schofield without restriction and with the proper management they should be able to keep plenty of water in the lake.
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the goosberry dam project has allready been aproved. by the fedral gov.and a contractor has the won the bid to do the work on the dam.. carbin co has been fighting the project for well over 60 years.. 49% of the water going into Scofield from fish creek is by law Sanpets water.. that's way they have been fighting so hard for so meny years to stop the project!! it's on hold again as carbin Co. try to block it once again...
where i live in Sanpet and have seen the last 20 years most all the rivers (well what is called a river) dry up and have no flow in the summer months and the streams dry up by july i would say it's past time we get our far share of the water that is by Law our water!!
the money was aloted for the project over 60 years ago why you bitching about it now? the price just keeps going up as carbin Co keeps putting it off...
And realy farmers lining there pockets? you have never been a farmer have you? well what ever you think the water by law is Sanpets and we should be able to ues it!! my 2 cents!!
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When I said "good point about farmers lining pockets", I was talking about Pookies' comment @ 1:27p. In my original post I didn't say that Sanpete farmers were getting rich by farming alfalfa. Pls read it again. What I meant was that the dam is a huge expenditure that benefits a small # of people, and there are others ways to get the needed water that cost a lot less and has a much smaller impact on the fisheries, hunting grounds, and Price river basin.
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[quote mkade85]Scofield is filled with stolen water. [/quote]
Stolen?? For countless eons the water has flowed down Fish Creek, to the Colorado, and out to the Pacific Ocean. If they build the dam and divert it into Sanpete county it will then become stolen water.
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Yes, stolen. If you use and take water that you do not have the rights to its stolen. No matter how many eons its been happening. When they build the dam the water will go to those who have rights to use the water.
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The Gooseberry project is a must for the residents of N. Sanpete County. The impact you speak of is negligible. This water is rightfully N. Sanpete water and has been for the last 80 some odd years. Once this project is complete 15K acre feet of water will be available to Sanpete. As it stands now the 15K acre ft runs right past Carbon County and into the Green. That water is now being sold to Los Angeles by Carbon. On another note N. Sanpete without this project we have no holding lakes as does Price. The lake will make an outstanding fishery, as well as a recreation area. If you would like to read more on the Project just Google Gooseberry Project .
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How are they stealing it? Sanpete county cannot currently put this water to use. Now, if the Gooseberry reservoir were to be built, and Carbon county somehow diverted water from it, then I would agree. As it is now, the water is not available to Sanpete county. It is just running down stream.
The moisture that falls on Sanpete county belongs to Sanpete county, but if they can't use it, it runs down hill. The next stop is Carbon county, and they are using it. But they aren't stealing it.
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here i'll save ya the time of surching for it..
[url "http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/55238341-78/project-county-sanpete-narrows.html.csp"]http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/55238341-78/project-county-sanpete-narrows.html.csp[/url]
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