Irrigation Leader May 2013

Volume 4 Issue 5

May 2013

Making the Best of What You Have: A Conversation with Subhas K. Shah

Funding and the Fear of the Unkown

By Kris Polly Chris Udall, executive director of the AgriBusiness Counsel of Arizona, does a great job, and I highly recommend attending his organization’s one-day Annual Business Meeting. It always has a strong agenda, and this year’s May 17 meeting was no exception. One of Chris’s speakers, Mr. Jim McCauley, a benefits consultant for Wells Fargo Insurance, gave a presentation titled “Healthcare Concerns—The Effects of Obamacare.”

Mr. McCauley held the rapt attention of every irrigation district manager in the room. It was clear to everyone present that the coming changes to our healthcare system are a major concern for irrigation districts.

Following up on the Operations and Management Workshop that Irrigation Leader magazine sponsored in January, we have scheduled a summer workshop, “Grant Preparation, Finance, Insurance, and Contracts Workshop,” to be held on July 11–12, 2013, at the Embassy Suites Hotel–Denver International Airport.

Perhaps a more accurate title would be “Funding and the Fear of the Unknown.” The purpose of the workshop is to provide an opportunity for irrigation district managers and staff members to perfect grant-writing skills before fall application deadlines and learn about other finance and funding options. Attendees will also learn about the compliance requirements for the Affordable Care Act

(Obamacare) pertaining to irrigation districts. Wells Fargo Insurance representatives will present a two-hour segment on the new requirements and answer questions. (If you are unsure how the new law will affect your district, this workshop will provide you with answers.) Additionally, attendees will learn about various contract options that may reduce risk and save money while completing project improvements.

As with our first workshop, irrigation district managers suggested topics of the summer workshop. We selected the Denver airport for ease of travel and for its central location. Managers recommended the day-and-a-half format to limit time away from their districts. Please see the workshop registration form and tentative schedule on the inside back cover of this issue. Should you wish to receive additional information about the workshop as well as agenda updates, please contact me at Kris.Polly@waterstrategies.com. We hope to see you in Colorado.

Kris Polly is editor-in-chief of Irrigation Leader magazine and president of Water Strategies, LLC, a government relations firm he began in February 2009 for the purpose of representing and guiding water, power, and agricultural entities in their dealings with Congress, the Bureau of Reclamation, and other federal government agencies. He may be contacted at Kris.Polly@waterstrategies.com.

The Water and Power Report www.WaterAndPowerReport.com The Water and Power Report is the one-stop news aggregate site for news on water and power issues in the 17 western states.

Sign up for the free Daily service to receive a notice of the top headlines and press releases posted each business day.

2

Irrigation Leader

MAY 2013

C O N T E N T S 2 Funding and the Fear of the Unkown

Volume 4

Issue 5

Irrigation Leader is published 10 times a year with combined issues for November/December and July/August by: Water Strategies, LLC P.O. Box 100576 Arlington, VA 22210 Staff: Kris Polly, Editor-in-Chief John Crotty, Senior Writer Robin Pursley, Graphic Designer Capital Copyediting, LLC, Copyeditor SUBMISSIONS: Irrigation Leader welcomes manuscript, photography, and art submissions. However, the right to edit or deny publishing submissions is reserved. Submissions are returned only upon request.

ADVERTISING: Irrigation Leader accepts one-quarter, half-page, and full-page ads. For more information on rates and placement, please contact Kris Polly at (703) 517-3962 or Irrigation.Leader@waterstrategies.com.

CIRCULATION: Irrigation Leader is distributed to irrigation district managers and boards of directors in the 17 western states, Bureau of Reclamation officials, members of Congress and committee staff, and advertising sponsors. For address corrections or additions, please contact our office at Irrigation.Leader@waterstrategies.com.

Copyright Š 2013 Water Strategies, LLC. Irrigation Leader relies upon the excellent contributions of a variety of natural resources professionals who provide content for the magazine. However, the views and opinions expressed by these contributors are solely those of the original contributor and do not necessarily represent or reflect the policies or positions of Irrigation Leader magazine, its editors, or Water Strategies, LLC. The acceptance and use of advertisements in Irrigation Leader do not constitute a representation or warranty by Water Strategies, LLC, or Irrigation Leader magazine regarding the products, services, claims, or companies advertised.

COVER PHOTO: Subhas K. Shah, chief engineer and CEO of the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District.

Irrigation Leader

By Kris Polly

4 Making the Best of What You Have: A Conversation with Subhas K. Shah 8 Water and Drought: A Call for Cooperation

By Senator Tom Udall

10 Drought in New Mexico 12

Smart Irrigation Month

By Michael Mills

District Focus: 14 Carlsbad Irrigation District

By Dudley Jones

MANAGER PROFILE:

16 Steve Johnson Board Member Profile: 22 Robert Faubion, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Elephant Butte Irrigation District

RECLAMATION PROFILE: 26 Regional Director Larry Walkoviak

Water Law: 30 Litigation on the Rio Grande and Pecos Rivers in New Mexico

By Steve Hernandez

The Innovators:

34 Precision Irrigation for California Farms: Lindsay Zimmatic Center-pivot Systems

By Chuck Powell

38 CLASSIFIEDS 3

Making the Best of What You Have:

A Conversation with Subhas K. Shah

MRGCD district office in Albuquerque.

F

or the last 35 years, Subhas Shah has served as the chief engineer and CEO of the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District (MRGCD). The MRGCD serves over 100,000 constituents across 275,000 acres of land. In meeting the needs of the urban and rural residents of Middle Valley, Subhas oversees a staff of 215 employees and manages an annual budget of $25 million.

Irrigation in the Middle Valley dates back several hundred years, starting with the pueblos and continuing with Spanish colonists. The MRGCD was formed in 1923 to drain the floodprone Middle Valley and better utilize the waters of the Rio Grande for additional agricultural projects. Today, the MRGCD’s system of dams and 1,200 miles of riverside drains, canals, ditches, and laterals provide a variety of public goods to the urban and rural communities of the Middle Valley: support for agriculture, protection of wildlife; and drainage, flood control, and recreational opportunities.

Irrigation Leader magazine’s editor-in-chief, Kris Polly, spoke with Subhas about the long history of irrigation in the Middle Valley, managing resources during a time of drought, and accommodating competing interests for water.

Kris Polly: Tell our readers about the MRGCD.

Subhas Shah: The MRGCD was initially formed by the Conservancy Act of 1923. During that time, the Rio Grande was uncontrolled. Irrigation practices in Colorado and changes in the river made the hydrology such that the river would frequently flood; approximately 70 percent of the valley land that had previously been irrigated was waterlogged.

Not only were irrigation conditions different, the board of directors was not elected. In those days, the MRGCD board members were appointed by the conservancy court. It was only in 1976 that board members were elected. The conservancy district is governed by seven board members elected by property owners 4

within benefitted areas of the MRGCD in four counties: one member each from Socorro, Sandoval, and Valencia counties; three members from Bernalillo County, our most populous county; and one at-large member.

The MRGCD runs through six Rio Grande pueblos: Cochiti, Santo Domingo, San Felipe, Santa Ana, Sandia, and Isleta. Each pueblo has its own government. The pueblos were irrigating the lands prior to the Spanish period and obviously prior to the formation of the MRGCD, as far back as 900 years ago, so they have special prior and paramount rights. Under federal law, the MRGCD honors all of those rights.

The MRGCD is 150 river-miles long and passes through several towns, villages, and New Mexico’s largest city, Albuquerque.

The MRGCD has four diversion dams on the Rio Grande and one storage dam, El Vado, on the Rio Chama, a couple hundred miles north of Albuquerque, that was constructed by the MRGCD in 1935. It is a unique dam and is an ASCE [American Society of Civil Engineers] Historical Landmark because it was built with steel face plates; there are only two such dams in the world similar to it.

The MRGCD has 1,234 miles of canals and laterals, including acequias [earthen waterways that date back to Spanish colonization of the Southwest] and drains. Originally, the valley had 70 community acequias, which used to get water directly from the river. When the MRGCD was formed, it united all the acequias, built diversion dams, and created new points of diversion for the acequias. Those efforts helped bring more certainty to deliveries and reduced the large amount of silt that would clog the acequias.

Some of the acequias date back to the 1500s. Thus, the MRGCD reflects the traditions of the pueblo irrigators, the irrigators from the Spanish and Mexican period, and the current farming culture of irrigators who have diverted the waters of the Rio Grande since prior to statehood. Because of the expansive cottonwood forest, the wetlands adjacent to the river, and the fact that the Rio Grande Valley is a unique ribbon of green within the desert stretching for 150 miles, the MRGCD serves an extensive environmental Irrigation Leader

constituency of fish and bird life dependent on the Rio Grande.

Kris Polly: Given that the MRGCD is extremely long, is there a number that best represents how much you divert annually?

Subhas Shah: The MRGCD is about 150 miles long and ranges from 0 to 10 miles wide east or west of the Rio Grande.

It encompasses about 275,000 acres of land within the valley.

There are approximately 11,000 farmers and 70,000 acres being irrigated. The system is entirely gravity fed—no pumps. It is a very well-designed system. We divert about 350,000 acre-feet of water annually. Water returned upstream in the system is rediverted and reused for the downstream users. One can hardly imagine the expensive pumping costs that would be incurred if New Mexico irrigators were forced to lift water to fields in the conservancy district with electricity, not to mention the increased energy effects from utilization of the increased amounts of electrical power.

The MRGCD has about 100 miles of concrete lining in its system. Many people do not want to see more lining because seepage helps recharge the aquifer.

Kris Polly: What crops are predominant within the MRGCD? Subhas Shah: The kinds of crops that are grown are dependent upon soil types and access to markets. Mostly, the conservancy district irrigators grow alfalfa—but the farmers also grow oats, corn, chilies, onions, fruits, and vegetables.

Kris Polly: What irrigation methods do your farmers use?

Subhas Shah: Most of our farmers use the furrow method, because it is a gravity-fed system. A few growers are using dripirrigation systems; we do not have any pivots. The pivot systems using surface water require storage ponds from which the water can be pumped to derive enough pressure to run the pivots. It is anticipated that there will be more use of drip and related systems to the degree that is economical and truly promotes efficiency.

Kris Polly: What are the three biggest challenges the MRGCD faces?

Subhas Shah: The biggest challenge during last summer and this summer is the drought. When there is inadequate storage and snow pack, the conservancy district must rely on the monsoon rains. If these do not come, then water is extraordinarily scarce and conflicts arise among users. These are tough times with the water supply.

Like many other irrigation districts, the challenges we face are tied to urbanization. The MRGCD runs through the heart of the largest city in New Mexico. Urban water through wells must be conjunctively managed with surface water of the Rio Grande.

Conversion of surface irrigation rights to urban well rights can be a very serious issue.

Furthermore, because the ditches run through urban centers, there can be conflicts in use of ditch banks and with acequia traditions. You have to be careful how you manage those acequias in a metropolitan area because the ditches are running through people’s backyards. We can only maintain them properly by hand; Irrigation Leader

A ditch rider checks a heading on a canal.

this is hard work and expensive. Yet the people in the urban green belt sustained by the MRGCD greatly appreciate the ambiance and opportunities provided by the MRGCD ditches.

Finally, the MRGCD is also dealing with ESA [Endangered Species Act] challenges. Within the MRGCD, two critical endangered species are the Rio Grande Silvery Minnow and the Southwest Willow Flycatcher, and like urban users, irrigators, and the cottonwood bosque, these species also need water to survive.

Kris Polly: Tell us a little more about the impact of the current drought in New Mexico. Describe the status of water supplies and what steps the MRGCD is taking to help farmers.

Subhas Shah: The current drought has serious implications for agriculture, both pueblo and non-pueblo farmers; the environment; and our urban communities. As I am sure you know, water conservation is a key component of our survival in both the urban and rural areas. We have a water conservation plan and a water distribution policy that demand conservation and that specifically acknowledge that we have a limited water supply and that there are multiple competing demands on that supply. These users requiring water include farmers, urban users, the environment, recreation, and endangered species. The MRGCD has not created a hierarchy of uses, except for the pueblo water rights as required under federal law.

Because of the almost nonexistent snow pack, the MRGCD doesn’t have adequate water supply and storage this year. We will not be able to last the whole season due to the limited water supply. Normally, our irrigation system begins on March 1 and ends on October 31, but this year we may only have enough water to last until the end of June. The MRGCD is managing its water wisely with strict rotation, scheduling, and water conservation.

Kris Polly: Explain how your “Water Bank” works.

Subhas Shah: In 1995, the MRGCD established a public Water Bank pursuant to the MRGCD’s statutory authority to manage the allocation and distribution of the surface waters of the Rio Grande within the benefited area of the MRGCD. The Water Bank seeks to preserve the irrigability of lands within the MRGCD while promoting agriculture. The major function of the Water Bank is to encourage persons who do not currently 5

Isleta Diversion Dam on the Rio Grande.

have vested pre-1907 water rights to utilize perfected valid rights held by the MRGCD under its permits to maintain their land in irrigation. Therefore, the Water Bank is aimed at keeping the maximum amount of land in irrigation as possible. It is designed to provide water when there is a sufficient water supply for those who have not sold their water rights or use rights under the MRGCD permit.

The MRGCD holds a permit from the New Mexico state engineer and, by statute, for 123,267 acres that benefited from the construction of the works of the MRGCD. The acres under the MRGCD ditches include pre-1907 water rights and the rights created by construction of the works of the MRGCD. As you know, the MRGCD traverses several municipalities, including Bernalillo, Albuquerque, Los Lunas, Belen, and Socorro. As the Middle Valley has become increasingly urbanized in the years since the late 1960s, a substantial portion of the acreage reclaimed and on which water rights have been perfected by the MRGCD has been taken out of agriculture and subdivided into residences and other uses. The MRGCD’s Water Bank contains the perfected water rights on lands that were previously irrigable, but which are no longer irrigable as a result of urbanization.

The right to divert the unused MRGCD water is available through a Water Bank lease. Entities or individuals who have lost their pre-1907 water rights by selling, transferring, or otherwise moving them to another location and want to continue to irrigate can lease water from the Water Bank and use some of the MRGCD’s unused rights. But if water supplies are short, the Water Bank users are the first to get cut off. Use of the Water Bank by Water Bank lessees provides multiple benefits to the Middle Valley, such as allowing all irrigable lands to remain in agriculture for the longest period of time while allowing urban users to utilize their senior water rights.

Kris Polly: Has the MRGCD considered any additional offriver impoundments for winter/surplus storage and then use during irrigation season?

Subhas Shah: We have looked at small flood control reservoirs in the past, but New Mexico state law prohibits the storage of water in such reservoirs for more than 96 hours. We utilize stored water from small flood control dams when the MRGCD can accept additional flows in its system. We are also working with the Fish and Wildlife Service to see whether we can create some off-river storage on its lands so we can use that stored water when supplies are critical.

Kris Polly: Describe how the Endangered Species Act has affected MRGCD activities.

6

Subhas Shah: People’s opinions of the environment have changed. When there is abundant supply of water, everyone is happy—the fish, the farmers, the environmentalists, the recreationalists, and the cities. There are two new water users in the MRGCD, namely, the Rio Grande Silvery Minnow and the Southwest Willow Flycatcher, and they need water as well. For all of us to survive, we must manage and share water supplies.

In the past, the MRGCD diverted large amounts of water and returned large amounts of water back to the Rio Grande. Now, the MRGCD diverts only the amount of water needed for crops.

Water conservation, efficient water management, and limited diversions result in reduced return flows that are needed for wildlife habitats and endangered species. However, because of the ESA, we always have to be aware of how much water is needed to ensure survival of the endangered Rio Grande Silvery Minnow and the Southwest Willow Flycatcher, but it does have an economic impact on the valley.

Kris Polly: What major projects are you working on right now?

Subhas Shah: We are working on a new biological opinion that was supposed to be completed by March of this year, but it will be delayed until next year. The new biological opinion has to account for the hydrological and biological reality, since the resources are limited.

We have a plan to construct a siphon south of Bernardo (Highway 60) to move water from the San Juan Riverside Drain on the east side of the Rio Grande to the Drain Unit 7 located west side of the river. This will provide a reliable source of water for our Socorro Division. The siphon will be 60 inches in diameter and 1,200 feet long.

We have another project starting construction this November.

We are building a portion of levee approximately 2.5 miles long to provide flood protection to the City of Socorro at a cost of $10 million.

Kris Polly: What is the most important lesson you have learned as the MRGCD’s CEO? Subhas Shah: I have learned how to survive the political process. I am a professional engineer, and I came to a position where sometimes it seems that politics is more important than the actual work performed. If you want to be a good manager, you have to learn to balance competing interests and work with your board members, employees, colleagues, constituents, elected state and federal officials, and government entities. Resources are limited, so we have to make the best of what we have.

Irrigation Leader

ADVERTISEMENT

Water and Drought: A Call for Cooperation

By Senator Tom Udall

T

he people of New Mexico have long been very water conscious. We have had to be. Our survival has depended on it. Water is the don divino, the divine gift. It is the lifeblood of our communities. The native Pueblos who settled along the Rio Grande understood this. So did the early Spanish settlers who built the acequias to irrigate their crops.

More recently, there has been a dangerous complacency.

Recent decades were relatively wet for our area. Cities and agriculture have relied on groundwater pumping, thinking supply was nearly infinite.

Today, we are in the worst drought in over half a century.

Projections are for hotter and drier conditions to continue.

Groundwater levels are dropping. The challenge this presents to our economy and our quality of life cannot be understated.

Last August, I was proud to co-host the 57th Annual New Mexico Water Conference at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces. Five hundred participants gave freely of their time. We heard from panels of experts. We met with farmers, ranchers, engineers, conservationists, and community members. It was an opportunity to have a healthy dialogue about an issue that is so important to the future of our state.

One of the participants at the conference told me, “We want to get to the truth about water in New Mexico. We don’t want to hear a bunch of lies.” He was right on target.

That was exactly the point of the conference. To listen. To talk about solutions. And to tell the truth about the hard choices we are facing.

Since the conference, my office has been compiling the strategies and proposals that were discussed. I was pleased recently to release our Water Conference Report. The report contains 40 proposed actions to help New Mexico adapt to ongoing drought and water supply challenges. It also contains 40 additional recommendations by audience members from the conference. I encourage everyone to read the report at my website, www.tomudall.senate.gov.

There is much work to do. And in today’s tough economic times, we will have to fight for the funding to do it. Congress should fully fund the Secure Water Act, which helps communities assess existing water supplies, especially groundwater, and better plan for the future. We should reverse cuts to low-cost, but vital, information like stream flow monitoring stations. We need to know how much water we have in order to avoid overallocation and to ensure sustainable use.

New technology offers great promise, but will not be a cure-all that avoids hard choices. Desalination research is underway in New Mexico, but on a large scale, the cost and energy use remain high hurdles. Efficiency programs that help reduce water waste, such as through use of new leak 8

technology, can provide a buffer to prevent shortages. But if conservation in one area simply leads to more use in another, we can become more vulnerable to shortage.

The conference report also calls for improved management of dams and reservoirs for both agricultural and environmental purposes. These interests are not mutually exclusive. Water in the river can support wildlife and agriculture downstream.

Groups who are often at odds need to work together—and there are promising examples of this, such as the New Mexico Audubon Society and the Elephant Butte Irrigation District.

Our report also recommended pilot voluntary water transfer programs to encourage best practices in this promising, but controversial, way to allocate supply. I think we should be skeptical, however, of large-scale, permanent transfers, especially outside a particular basin, and from rural to urban areas.

Further, greater scrutiny is advised for new large water projects, such as those involving the Gila River, where massive federal investments are unlikely to materialize. The Gila is the last wild river in New Mexico and one of the few in the nation.

Cities and towns are going to face more and more of the true costs of their water infrastructure going forward. I’m fighting to preserve federal funding for drinking water and water treatment for financially struggling communities. But the resources are dwindling while the needs are compounding.

For their part, New Mexico’s farmers and ranchers will adapt to their conditions, as they have in the past. In the meantime, we also need to pass a Farm Bill and restore the vital disaster assistance programs that expired in 2011. Our farmers and ranchers have been hit hard by drought, and this assistance is long overdue.

As the conference title suggested, hard choices will have to be made if we are to avoid the divisive conflicts of devastating drought. The conference report is a positive step, but it is not the end of the conversation. It is the continuation of it, and I want to hear from all New Mexicans about their water future.

We hear a lot about water “wars.” But one big message came through time and again from participants at the water conference. Cooperation is key. That is how we will move forward. The challenge is clear. The stakes are high. Our efforts will have to be focused, innovative, and resolute. The people of New Mexico deserve no less.

Tom Udall is the senior senator from New Mexico. Senator Udall serves on the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development and on the Committee on the Environment and Public Works.

Irrigation Leader

ADVERTISEMENT

Drought in New Mexico

N

ew Mexico is in the middle of an historic and acute drought. According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, from January to April 2013, New Mexico’s precipitation was 47 percent of normal.

Reservoir storage is well below normal across the state— many at 15 percent or less of their storage capacity.

Unfortunately, this year’s lack of precipitation is not a new phenomenon—the state has been in drought for the last 10 years, and 2013 is the third consecutive year of acute drought.

This drought is nothing less than historic—the most critical in the last 100 years. Only the drought of the 1950s was comparable. The impact on growers is devastating. For the Elephant Butte Irrigation District (EBID), this year will mark records for smallest release from reservoir storage, the smallest diversion from the Rio Grande, and the longest period of a dry riverbed.

“Normal” Conditions In New Mexico’s arid and semiarid climates, average annual precipitation ranges from less than 10 inches in the southern desert to more than 20 inches at higher elevations. Over the course of the EBID Project, which was completed in 1916, there have been more dry years

Hazard area near Elephant Butte Dam.

10

than wet, but nothing nearing this length of time. EBID General Manager Gary Esslinger said he “never expected the drought would persist for 10 years.”

According to Phillip King, consulting hydrologist for EBID and professor of civil engineering at New Mexico State University, EBID had a full supply every year for 24 consecutive years—from 1979 to 2002. But that period of time was anything but normal. “The last time we had that wet of a climate was before Christ. What we are seeing now is more normal.”

Impact on EBID Eighty percent of EBID’s water supply comes from runoff of Rocky Mountain snowpack in southern Colorado and northern New Mexico. The decrease in snowpack, coupled with the lack of precipitation, has prevented replenishment of storage. In general, the primary source of recharge in EBID’s groundwater system is deep percolation from irrigation activity. Now, growers must pump more groundwater to make up for the lack of surface water. So there is no recharge from the surface water system. As Professor King describes it, “It’s a double whammy on the groundwater system.”

Normally, the groundwater table drops down by winter and then returns during the irrigation system. The table is not springing back up, declining 4 feet per year for the last few years. Wells are running at reduced capacity. Pumping down water in the shallow alluvium induces saline intrusion into the Rio Grande Valley.

EBID is drastically reducing its releases. This year, EBID has 110,000 acre-feet to work with— 55,000 acre-feet for EBID, 48,000 for El Paso, and only 3,200 for Mexico.

That translates to a 35-day irrigation season and a great deal of stress for growers. As Mr. Esslinger relates, “People are upset, full of anxiety, and unhappy. All of those emotions are at the highest level right now.”

Irrigation Leader

Growers bear the costs. It is difficult for farmers to pay EBID assessments for system operation and management and then turn around and pay for groundwater pumping.

Mr. Esslinger explains: Farmers down here look at surface water as a checking account—you use it every day, you have a balance with the district, you draw from it, and the accounts provides water eight months out of the year.

Farmers turn to their savings account—the groundwater—during those times of drought.

Because of the last three years of drought, farmers are almost entirely dependent on their savings account to sustain crops.

Low reservoir levels leave a "bathtub ring" around Elephant Butte Reservoir.

In EBID, in an average year, a farmer can get up to 4.5 acre-feet both surface water and groundwater. Until 2003, farmers were getting as much as 3 acre-feet per acre of land. That amount would last eight months. “Right now,” says Mr. Esslinger, “we are putting 3.5 inches in farmer accounts. We are about 33 inches short.”

Conservation Efforts Back in 2004, EBID undertook a large water conservation effort to pipe open ditches and laterals in an effort to use water more conservatively and efficiently.

EBID has installed about 35 miles of pipelines with Bureau of Reclamation and state grants. Mr. Esslinger acknowledged that putting the laterals into pipe has helped reduce groundwater pumping, but that the district has a long way to go. EBID has 300 miles of laterals.

EBID’s watershed is a high plains desert and it is eroding. Where there used to be grasslands to hold the soil down, there is now mesquite and greasewood. So when it rains, it is hard to slow the water down. EBID has also developed a stormwater management plan to help slow water for rain events down and capture runoff from monsoon events. EBID has developed infrastructure to divert storm water into its drains, recharge its aquifer, and encourage its farmers to use the water if it is not too silty or dirty. For Mr. Esslinger, it is “the new water” in the arid West.

Irrigation Leader

Adaptation and Recovery Some southern New Mexico growers are fallowing their land, some are going over to lower water use crops, and some are not farming at all. Despite these developments, EBID is making the best of what it has.

Mr. Esslinger emphasizes, “We have to manage what we have when we do make a release—and that release will at least help replenish the aquifer. We’re telling the farmers that they have one shot to irrigate their crops this season with river water, from June 1 to about July 8.”

On the research and planning side, Professor King highlighted work to find alternative sources of groundwater supply, in an effort to identify more water and more salt-tolerant crops. “We are doing some geophysical investigations to try and identify some systems that have not been explored extensively. We are also looking at different water depletions from different crops.”

State researchers are monitoring aquifers and the crop root zone.

If the Rio Grande catchment area begins to see normal precipitation, recovery will still take time. One year of rain will show improvement, two years will reduce the longerterm salinity and depletion effects, and three years of full water supply will put EBID back to full recovery. But Professor King remains wary. “I think we are in a drought cycle with good years and bad years interspersed.”

11

Smart Irrigation Month

By Michael Mills

J

uly is Smart Irrigation Month. You may have heard this, but what does it mean to the irrigation professional? Aren’t we constantly working to improve the quality of irrigation? Isn’t every day an effort to be the best stewards of water as a natural resource? Doesn’t every project strive to increase the yield from each drop of water applied? For the irrigation professional, every month is Smart Irrigation Month, so why is this effort important?

The Smart Irrigation Month initiative is about more than just reaching the professionals that work in the irrigation industry every day.

It is about reaching the influencers and end users of irrigation technology to raise their awareness of the strides in technology and knowledge that improve their overall operations. It is about making sure that the most advanced and conservation-minded practices are being employed at all the levels of irrigation utilization, from water sourcing to delivery to application.

The manufacturers of irrigation equipment have made tremendous improvements in so many aspects of irrigation technology and control. From sprinkler devices that can automatically adjust throw radius, to controllers that can activate and deactivate components based on field location, to weather monitoring and reporting technology that allows operators to make precise water application decisions, these advances will be the catalyst for continued access to water and protection of water rights.

Sustainable and efficient irrigated agriculture is becoming increasingly important in the face of continued drought conditions. Over the next 40 years, the global agriculture sector will be required to double its productivity while water availability remains limited. For growers to meet this challenge, efficient irrigation products and practices must be part of the solution. Efficient

12

irrigation practices not only help increase production and maximize crop quality, yield, and profits, but they can also lower labor and energy costs.

By taking the month of July, typically the month with the highest demand for irrigation, the industry can spotlight its greatest achievements and encourage irrigation operators to look at their methods from an aspect of efficiency. Not just using less water, but achieving the highest productivity from the water being incorporated.

This July, take a few short minutes to evaluate your operation. Reach out to your vendors, suppliers, and customers and encourage them to assess their current methods and look for ways to adopt the current technology that can ensure the future of irrigated agriculture. For more information on the Smart Irrigation Month initiative, visit www.smartirrigationmonth.org. The more proactive the industry can be today, the less reactive the industry will need to be tomorrow.

Michael Mills is a Certified Irrigation Designer, Certified Irrigation Contractor, and Certified Landscape Irrigation Auditor. He has 15 years as an instructor for the Irrigation Association and sits on the Smart Irrigation Month Committee. He is currently the southeast territory manager for Reinke Manufacturing based in Deshler, NE. You can reach Mike at (704) 787-2885.

Irrigation Leader

ADVERTISEMENT

District Focus

Carlsbad Irrigation District

By Dudley Jones

D

elivering water sufficient for farming operations in the Chihuahuan Desert of southeastern New Mexico is always a challenge, but amidst an historic drought, the Carlsbad Irrigation District (CID) may be facing it greatest challenge. Given this adversity, CID is making the most of its infrastructure and its water rights to continue to provide Pecos River water to its alfalfa, cotton, and pecan growers.

CID was one of the first Bureau of Reclamation projects in the West. While private interests constructed the initial infrastructure in late 1800s, the Bureau of Reclamation purchased the project in 1905 after entrepreneurs were unable to get it up and running. Reclamation rebuilt part of the district from some of the damaged works in place, upgraded the infrastructure, and brought CID up to operational capacity. CID, as an entity, dates back to 1933.

In fact, many CID structures are on the National Register of Historic Places. For example, our flume, which crosses the river with the main canal, was built in 1903 by Reclamation. The siphon that goes under Dark Canyon—a dry arroyo that runs during large rain events—dates back to 1907. Much of our historic infrastructure dates back to the efforts of the Works Progress Administration and the Civilian Conservation Corps under President Franklin Roosevelt. Those workers came in and built laterals out of rock—laterals that are still in use today. Our historic structures continue to function really well.

The District CID serves 25,055 irrigated acres. We have a storage right of 176,500 acre-feet in four different reservoirs: the farthest north is Santa Rosa, a Corps of Engineers project; then Sumner Dam, a Reclamation structure that we operate as an operations and maintenance (O&M) contractor; Brantley Dam, another Reclamation-owned and CID-operated structure; and then finally, our small diversion structure, Avalon Dam—the oldest dam on the Pecos River. We have 151 miles of laterals, 95 of which are concrete, and 37 miles

of main canal, 9 of which are concrete. A rehabilitation and betterment project in the early 1980s brought concrete to our main canal and some of the laterals.

Our water is used strictly for agriculture. However, a small portion of it does fall under the category of “miscellaneous” use. Our supply is governed by the Pecos River Compact, which is equitably divided between New Mexico and Texas, and the Pecos River Settlement Agreement, which sets forth a plan enabling New Mexico to meet its water delivery obligations to Texas.

CID does have some water that is a product of that agreement between the New Mexico Interstate Streams Commission (NMISC), the State of New Mexico, Reclamation, CID, and the Pecos Valley Artesian Conservancy District (PVACD). Under the settlement agreement, the State acquired sufficient water rights to deliver water to CID in short water years or to Texas to make sure the State complies with the compact.

Revenues Like many districts, we are dealing with aging infrastructure and a limited budget. We try to keep assessments, which fund O&M costs, at a reasonable rate. Even with the lack of available water, it is those operational costs that a farmer absorbs. In a short water year, they are not going to be able to produce as much crop, and the assessment becomes a much larger percentage of their total expense. On the other side of the equation, those revenues do not provide CID with sufficient funds use for upgrading our aging infrastructure.

We are, however, looking at alternative ways of generating revenues. CID has analyzed its daily costs of doing business that do not directly relate to individual farmers. There is a lot of oil and gas exploration in the area. With oil and gas companies having to cross, or go under, our canals with pipelines, we can collect fees for use of our rights of way. That helps benefit the farmer by reducing the burden of CID O&M expenses.

Drought Our most significant challenge—one we have been dealing with for the last three years—is drought. It has caused extremely negative impacts on the district and the water supply, and caused a ripple effect in the settlement agreement. In 2010, we had a really good water year.

We experienced a lot of rain in the area and received an allotment of 3.2 acre-feet per acre, but that was our last wet year. It was followed immediately in 2011 by the beginning of this historic drought. So our allotment in Flume built in 1903 by Reclamation. It crosses the Pecos River and is part of the main canal for the CID system.

14

Irrigation Leader

2011 was 1.4 acre-feet per acre; in 2012, it was 0.9 acre-feet per acre; and in 2013, it is 0.3 acre-feet per acre. It has been a precipitous slide.

This situation has created a very stressful environment for our farmers. While all of our growers have been very creative in their methods of maximizing water use, a limited amount can only go so far. Half of the district does not have the ability to pump groundwater to supplement surface water.

That half is impacted most severely. Everyone, however, is impacted—even the farmers who can pump are seeing increased electrical and repair costs.

And groundwater pumping has its limitations. Our surface water usually has somewhere between 1,800 and 2,500 parts per million (ppm) of total dissolved solids (TDS). While that is not outstanding surface water quality, some of the wells in the area have 7,000 or 8,000 ppm of TDS. That is tough. A grower can only do that for a little while, as long as he or she has an opportunity to flush that salt past the root zone and get it out of the soil. The area will need some really wet years to prevent the build up of all that salt in the soil and ensure the productivity of the fields.

The Priority Call In light of its dwindling water supply, CID called for a meeting of the settlement agreement parties in January 2013. We met and determined that there was no way to augment water supplies from the mechanisms in the agreement, rain events, or any other short-term solution. So, we attempted to get funding from the state legislature for our farmers, who were not going to produce at a level that would defray their on-farm operating expenses. The funding request would have helped prevent the loss of farms, some of which have been in families for generations. The funding legislation did not get out of the finance committee. It fell short.

The settlement agreement provides a framework for a priority call. Our board recently voted to make the call.

At this point, the settlement parties—the State Engineer’s Office, the NM ISC, Reclamation, and our partners at PVACD—are meeting to try and figure out how to handle a priority call issue. This year, the New Mexico Supreme Court confirmed that the State Engineer could implement “Active Water Resource Management,” which gives him some latitude on how to implement the control and management of a basin in challenging water years or where a basin has not been fully adjudicated. The settlement parties want to know how the State Engineer will actually implement active water resource management in dealing with the priority call. We are still trying to find a way through this without spending a lot of time and money in court.

CID hopes this process will produce an action timeline within the next few months. The burden right now is on the State Engineer. In meantime, the settlement parties are looking at alternatives that could be added to the settlement agreement, or forming a new agreement, to address Irrigation Leader

management this year and put long-range mechanisms in place for the next drought that comes around. Then we will not have to go through this process again.

It is always a tense discussion among the parties, but the system can produce only so much water. We need to figure out a way to distribute that water as fairly as possible based on existing criteria. New Mexico surface water is governed by prior appropriation—first in time, first in right. CID is a surface water district, and our partner to the north, PVACD, is a groundwater district. Among a variety of factors, we do have to look at how much groundwater pumping impacts surface water flow. So the implementation process really will be the crux of the matter.

It is a shame we are here at this point in time. The State of Colorado, as far as I understand, adjudicates as soon as someone has a water right. You know where you stand in line. If a senior rights holder needs water in a short water year, the junior rights holder’s allotment will be reduced or cut off. If we had implemented that type of adjudication early on in New Mexico, these circumstances would be far less tense. Water users would know exactly how they would be impacted and to what extent. While that type of adjudication is called for in the New Mexico Constitution, it has not been practiced to a major degree.

Implementing Solutions Within Our Grasp We have little to no control over the amount of surface water available to our system of dams and reservoirs. We do, however, have some control over the efficiency of the water that flows from Avalon Dam to the farm gate. A couple of years ago, CID investigated ways to reduce loss within the system and deliver more water to the farm gate and the farmer. We know how much we are turning out of Avalon, so if we can determine where it is going more precisely, then we could know where exactly to mitigate loss.

We applied for, and were awarded, a WaterSmart grant.

We are in the midst of implementing that grant. On key divisions and laterals, we will deploy remote telemetry units that will accurately measure the water and aid in managing flows. With that technology in place, we will be able to monitor flow data in the office or in the watermaster’s truck. We will also be able to post that information to our website, so district water users can monitor the system. We are also installing some overshot gates that will help achieve a better mass balance of the system. These are positive steps that make us more efficient and better custodians of our resources.

Dudley Jones is the manager of Carlsbad Irrigation District. For more information on CID, you can reach Dudley at (575) 236-6390 or Dudley.Jones@cidistrict.com.

15

Manager Profile

Steve Johnson

Steve Johnson: My first job was as a well-site geologist off the coast of Saudi Arabia for a contractor, Core Laboratories, working with the Saudi national oil company. So I worked on oil rigs representing the exploration department. I worked 28 days on and 28 days off. I got to see a lot of the world in my time off. It was a great experience for a young person.

In 1980, the Iran–Iraq War started. I woke up one morning and saw all of this black smoke coming from the north. That is when Iraq had bombed Iran’s Abadan oil refinery. We were on a jack-up rig in the middle of the Persian Gulf and didn’t have a clue what was going on.

A critical moment in my life occurred on the rig. We had the unfortunate experience of having a blowout on our rig. I led the effort to rescue guys from the rig floor and helped organize the evacuation. Sixtytwo people survived, but 28 did not. That was my first hitch—first assignment—offshore.

That event shaped my personal outlook, and I’ve carried it forth ever since. I have a different perspective from what people normally consider “risky.”

Considering whether a situation is life or death, or not, helps keep things in perspective. Every October, I remind myself of that lesson.

So, as a result, some people may consider me “riskseeking,” but I consider myself “not risk-adverse.”

Kris Polly: Tell us about your business consulting and management experience.

Steve Johnson in front of COID office. Water feature in background built from historic old wooden flume pipe used in the past for water deliveries.

S

teve Johnson is the general manager of the Central Oregon Irrigation District (COID). Since 2003, he has led efforts to modernize the operations of the district and tapped into new technologies to maximize COID’s hydropower infrastructure. From his childhood home in northeast Nebraska, Steve went on to earn a bachelor of science in geology from Washington & Lee University in Virginia, and later an MBA from Tulane University in New Orleans. With a background in the oil and gas industry, management consulting, and telecommunications, Steve brings a unique and innovative skill set to the world of irrigation. Irrigation Leader magazine's editor-in-chief, Kris Polly, spoke to Steve about his career, his district, and the value of hydropower.

Kris Polly: How did your experience working on an oil rig shape your decisionmaking?

16

Steve Johnson: Deloitte Management Consulting recruited me while I was at Tulane. I worked in the business for five years on a number of really interesting projects, including the Hunt Brothers bankruptcy; an oil trading company in Geneva, Switzerland; manufacturing changes for a company in Houston; and due diligence in the first hostile stock takeover by a Mexican company—one that etches the paint on bottles of Corona—of an American one. I developed a wide breadth of business knowledge and experience across several industries. Most of my work, however, was centered on the oil and gas industry.

My mom passed away of cancer during that time.

It was another inflection point in my life where I needed to focus on priorities. I loved the work, but the travelling lifestyle was not good for raising a family.

I had invested some money in a family business, a specialized telecommunications company in central Oregon. My uncle reached out to me after his business partner resigned. I ended up serving as the company’s vice president and chief operating officer for 12 years.

We worked in the vacation rental industry, providing Irrigation Leader

COID's new 5 MW in-conduit exemption Juniper Ridge hydroelectric facility. Commercial operations began in October 2010.

telephone and Internet application solutions to address employment and guest services. As an example of some of our work prior to the onset of cell phones, we developed a system that enabled housekeeping and maintenance staff to use a telephone keypad to remotely communicate to management via our software when and where they finished a room. We continued to develop unique business solutions using technology and were responsible for developing new applications for the hotel industry. The company now provides technology services to 1,000 client companies at home and internationally.

Kris Polly: What brought you to COID? Steve Johnson: After living in central Oregon for many years, I wanted to do something more impactful on our local community. I put my resume in with a headhunter who I had worked with in the past. She informed me that there was a general manager position open at the district. Although I did not know much about the water business, I thought I would give it try. Soon after I submitted my resume, I met with the board of directors.

COID was and is a large district, making 3,600 deliveries to about 7,000 people. The district’s 427 miles of canals service 44,000 acres of land. But it was more than just irrigation; COID ran a 5.5-megawatt (MW) hydropower project owned and operated since 1989. The district had been in some turmoil—after the departure of the prior manager, his replacement quit after two weeks on the job—but it was in a strong financial position because Irrigation Leader

of the hydropower asset. I recognized an opportunity to move into an entirely new industry and utilize the business and natural resources skills gained from my past experience. So I accepted the job.

I have a quick story to share about my introduction to the district. I’m not big on formalities, and I am always trying to do three things when I only have time to do two.

After about a week into the job, I had some of my normal office memorabilia and business books in a couple boxes in the back of my truck. I had been focusing on work, getting to know the staff, and learning about irrigation, so I didn’t have time to get my personal items in order at the office.

At our first staff meeting, I was excited to share with the staff how we would move the district into the 21st century together. (It had one e-mail account for a staff of about eight, and all of the accounting was done manually.)

After my pep talk, I opened up the meeting to questions.

Our watermaster spoke first, and with some real hesitancy.

He said, “Everyone’s concerned whether your staying or not.” I started laughing but quickly realized that he, and the rest of the staff, was serious. I asked them why that felt that way. He said, “You still have the boxes of your office stuff still in your car.” They were afraid I was going to drive away at any moment. I said, “Okay, let’s go out and get my boxes. . . . I can’t promise I’ll unpack them right away, but they’ll be in the office.” From that moment on, we really gelled as a staff.

So, I realized that I could bring a real stability and focus to the district. I studied up on the laws governing our operations and learned our water rights in detail. At the same time, I started implementing best management 17

practices within the district itself. To run a district with 3,600 deliveries across a wide geographic area, we needed systems, policies, and technology.

Kris Polly: What were some of the challenges you faced as a new manager in a new field?

Steve Johnson: The district has 100 percent availability of its water rights every year—our growers essentially have a flow at their head gate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week throughout the irrigation season. We don’t have an ordering system. The water is always flowing to everyone all the time. The water right is the same for everybody, whether you have 4 acres or 100 acres. Of course, you prorate that water right to the flow they are supposed to have. In the past, inconsistencies and favoritism had been part of the culture, where some larger interests received more than their fair share of water, not to mention the casual six-pack left at the headgate for the ditchrider.

Another challenge to overcome was the deficiency in technology. Having just moved from a telecommunications company creating Internet applications throughout North America, I would come into my office at the district and see little handwritten pink notes with phone messages.

So, we implemented e-mail for most of the administrative staff, changed the phone system . . . real nuts and bolts stuff in the beginning. It help streamlined the whole administrative enterprise.

On the operations side, we started putting in telemetry in major parts of our canals. That way, we could determine whether an area was receiving more or less water than the right allowed. With that information, we started tweaking where the flows in our system went. If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it. We also moved into pump gate automation controlled by our watermaster in the office and over smartphones. We started planning for this eight years ago.

Kris Polly: And finally, hydropower plays a significant role in the financial stability and success of the district.

Please discuss your thoughts on the impact of hydro in your district and the role it can play in district management.

Steve Johnson: Hydropower enables the district to bring in additional revenue without charging our patrons.

We have been able to make capital investments without impacting our assessment base.

There has been a value-set change in society. We are in the fastest population growth area of Oregon. In 1995, there were 80,000 people in the area; by 2008, there were

18

150,000. Irrigation boundaries totally encompass these towns. Over the last 10 years, we have had a major shift in the voting population from a rural, agriculturebased mindset to a more urban, environmental one.

To sustain agriculture and maintain good relationships with these growing cities, we needed to find a balance in water demands. To accommodate more demand for environmental flows, we voluntarily sought out ways to become more water efficient. That meant putting canal into pipe.

Hydro enabled us to get matching funds, or even be fully funded through programs like Reclamation’s Water 2025. We were one of the first recipients of that program’s grants, which included a 2004 visit from [former Secretary of the Interior] Gail Norton, who touted our conservation efforts. Through our efforts to put water in pipe, we were able to put a lot of water back into streams without affecting the amount of water at the headgate.

COID already had a core capacity for hydro development—we had the infrastructure, a staff who knew how to run it, and existing piping program partners. In 2005, we started looking into in-conduit hydropower production, identifying several areas of sufficient fall that we could pipe. Combining renewable energy incentives with a water conservation initiative, and tapping into 2008 Recovery Act funds, we were able to do a 2.5-mile pipe and a 5-MW hydro plant into the canal. The $24 million project was FERC’s [the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s] first conduit exemption in over 22 years.

If you stay within the in-conduit exemption, you have a very predictable schedule of regulatory approval and very predictable project costs. If you move outside of the canals and the in-conduit exemption, then expanded environmental review gets to be expensive and unpredictable. The process drags out on the project schedule and ultimately increases project costs, sometimes to the point of the project no longer going forward.

So, I am convinced of the value of in-conduit exemptions and their congressional support. Hydro helps deal with the variability of solar and wind as a baseline supply and keeps electricity dollars local. The additional revenue to the district also helps keep the assessments stable and helps fund capital projects. I recommend that districts at least look into the viability of a project in their system. They can be extremely economical, and there are private partners in the market looking for projects, so it’s not all on your own dime.

Irrigation Leader

Steven L. Hernandez attorney at law Specializing in

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Contracts and Western Water Law 21OO North Main Street Suite 1A P.O. Box 13108 Las Cruces, NM 88013

(575) 526-2101 Fax (575) 526-2506 Email:

slh@lclaw-nm.com

Family Farm

LLIANCE The Family

SM

Farm Alliance is a powerful advocate for family farmers, ranchers, irrigation

districts, and allied industries in seventeen Western states. The Alliance is focused on one mission To ensure the availability of reliable, affordable irrigation water supplies to Western farmers and ranchers.

As a 501(c)(6) tax exempt organization, our support comes exclusively from those who believe our mission is important enough to contribute. We believe the cause is important enough to ask for your support - Please join us by completing the web form at http://www.familyfarmalliance.org/ProspectiveContact.cfm.

For more information contact Dan Keppen by phone at (541) 892-6244, or by e-mail at dankeppen@charter.net

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

B O A R D

M E M B E R

P R O F I L E:

Robert Faubion, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Elephant Butte Irrigation District Robert Faubion is the vice chairman of the board of directors of the Elephant Butte Irrigation District (EBID) in southern New Mexico. A fourth-generation Mesilla Valley farmer, he grows alfalfa and other feed crops to meet the needs of his customer base—horse farms and stables in the Las Cruces area. He graduated from New Mexico State University with two bachelor of science degrees in agriculture. As the founder of a chemical application and a crop dusting company, Robert brings a keen business sense to his duties as vice chairman.

EBID is an island—its surface water governed by the Texas requirements of the Rio Grande Compact and its groundwater governed by New Mexico's Office of the State Engineer. So district board members have to bring a broad perspective and an aptness for negotiation to meet the district’s unique needs. Irrigation Leader magazine's senior writer, John Crotty, spoke with Robert about EBID, coping with drought, and engineering in-house to meet constituent needs.

John Crotty: How did you become involved with the board?

Robert Faubion: I have been involved with a number of boards and commissions in my time here.

I served a number of years on the county board and then later on the New Mexico Farm and Livestock Bureau Board. I’ve done a lot of work addressing legislative issues representing farming concerns. One of my neighbors stepped down from the [EBID] board and recommended that the board consider me for the job. It has been over 10 years now, and I’ve enjoyed my service.

John Crotty: Can you describe your work as a board member?

Robert Faubion: I am currently the vice chairman of the board. When the chairman is unable to chair the meetings, I fill in. Typically, we have a board meeting once a month, which is often an all-day event. I am also a member of a number of committees created to help streamline the board decisionmaking process. The water resources committee talks about water issues, the finance committee addresses the budget and makes recommendations, and various other committees address policy issues. During the legislative session, we make a trip up to Santa Fe to meet with legislators to discuss issues related to irrigation.

Any number of matters crop up out of the blue. Last year, it was a proposal by the IBWC [International Boundary Water Commission] to have 22

Irrigation Leader

an early release to Mexico, even though it was not part of the treaty. We worked to best represent the interests of our growers. There can be long periods of sheer boredom situated with moments of substantial work and decisionmaking.

John Crotty: What makes for a successful relationship between the board and the executive?

Robert Faubion: I am a strong believer that boards have a very powerful but limited role. The board sets policy for the irrigation district, and hires and fires the manager—that means we have to track whether the manager is managing correctly. That sums up the duties of the board. While it is nice when management consults the board for its ideas and opinions, the board is very cautious about meddling in the day-to-day operations.

John Crotty: What have been the biggest challenges facing the district?

Robert Faubion: As part of EBID’s obligations to the Bureau of Reclamation, we were required to undertake an agreement with the Bureau of Reclamation and our sister district in El Paso to formalize how the system will operate. Twenty years ago, there was relatively plentiful water, so there was no real sense of urgency in crafting that agreement. The drought brought a new sense of urgency that something needed to be done. As a result of negotiations from 2006 to 2008, we formalized the operating agreement between the two districts and Reclamation. By and large, it was a coming together as farmers and boards to hammer out issues of importance to reach a final agreement. I am proud of the work that we did to get that deal done.

Another challenge has been the current drought. This is not our first drought, so we’ve been able to cope. Even in prior longer-term droughts, there were individual years in which we had a decent water supply. In this drought, it has only been the last few years that we have been extremely short on water. This year, it looks like we are going to have only 35 days of water.

Normally in January, we have our allotment for the year. This year, in April, we were deciding whether we would allot 3 or 3.5 inches. So, as board members, we try to get the word out to our constituents early as to what water supplies are going to be.

Irrigation Leader

Farmers make adjustments. Most of our farmers have wells. However, those wells rely on water running down the river. Without water down the river, the water table drops. Luckily, it doesn’t take much water to bring it back to relatively normal levels.

As a farmer, you are always hopeful. You wouldn’t put seed in the ground if you didn’t hope. We are hopeful that the drought will reverse, and we will have water back in the system.

John Crotty: Where would you like to see EBID in the future?

Robert Faubion: I think we’re on a good path right now. We are increasing automation and efficiency. One of things I would like to see is for us to continue to be more efficient in water resources. That can mean a lot of things—not just canal lining and piping—including building better release strategies, and automating and accounting. And we’ve learned some very valuable lessons during this drought as to how to run water. We are learning how to stretch smaller supplies to last longer and work more effectively.

We have a very talented staff. Our staff has shown a good ability to go out and find grants to fund improvements. Our shop personnel and engineering department are gifted in designing and building our own structures—gates, check structures, radio systems. The cost savings run as much as one-fifth to one-tenth of the cost of commercially available products. We are continuing to modernize our shop in an effort to make our water go further.

Going hand in glove with that is the lead role the shop has taken—with [General Manager] Gary’s [Esslinger] vision—in building hydropower. That is a very forward-looking mission. Our staff looked into a variety of generating equipment, showed it to our shop personnel, and we decided that we could build it for a tenth of the cost. Although not much can be done with only 35 days of water in the system, we are ready to ramp up production when water levels return. That will afford us the opportunity to lower, or least not raise, our tax assessments.

I am very proud to be associated with such an innovative irrigation district.

23

ADVERTISEMENT

Choose from AquaLastic® High Pressure or AquaLastic® Low Pressure AquaLastic® High Pressure System – approved applicator installation* AquaLastic® Low Pressure System – application by a district’s own crew*

The self-contained AquaLastic® Low Pressure System reaches canals and flumes where access for vehicles is impossible.

AquaLastic® systems, high and low pressure, provide valuable repairs and leak prevention

This vertical-sided canal repaired by irrigation district’s own crew

The AquaLastic® Canal Repair Systems are proven.

Over 15.5 million feet of canal and flume now repaired in the USA Contact Customer Service to discuss which system is right for your canal repairs. *Some important differences exist between the AquaLastic high pressure and low pressure.

www.fixcanal.com Telephone 949-394-4228 for information Email: customerservice@fixcanal.com

ADVERTISEMENT

Pivot stuck again? Put your log chain away.

RAAFT TRAcks will solve your problem.

by PolyTech LLC

• Quick & easy to install • Keeps center pivots from getting stuck • Reduces or eliminates tracks and ruts • Fits tire sizes: 11.2x24, 11.2x24.5, 11.2x38, 14.9x24 • Can withstand bridges yet float with ease over acres of muddy terrain RAAFT tracks are manufactured using a rugged polyethylene/carbon composite plastic that is 100% recyclable and floats with ease over acres of muddy terrain. RAAFT Tracks are designed to operate in field conditions from 40° F to 105° F, with water being applied to the wet the track. It can be winter moved at temperatures down to -10°. Lightweight enough to be carried/dragged by one person, 4 to 6 bolts for installation per tower, depending on the model.

For more information, please visit our web site at

www.RAAFT.com e-mail raaftsales@gmail.com or phone (402) 261-5774

R E C L A M A T I O N

P R O F I L E:

Regional Director Larry Walkoviak Larry Walkoviak is the Bureau of Reclamation director of the Upper Colorado (UC) region, which encompasses Utah and New Mexico, western Colorado, northeastern Arizona, southwestern Wyoming, west Texas, and small portions of Nevada and Idaho.

Half of the region covers the Upper Colorado River Basin, while the other half covers the Upper Rio Grande Basin.

In 38 years of service, Larry has held multiple leadership positions within Reclamation and across the West. Prior to his current position, he served as deputy regional director of the Bureau of Reclamation’s Lower Colorado Region. He has held positions in Reclamation’s Great Plains and Upper Colorado Regions, as well as in the former Southwest Region. He’s had a broad array of assignments that included planning studies, environmental compliance, project construction, and daily operations and maintenance.

Born in Shawnee, Oklahoma, and raised on a dairy farm in east Texas, Larry holds a bachelor’s degree in agricultural engineering from Texas A&M University. He and his wife, Jo, have been married almost 39 years, and they have four sons and eight grandchildren (and a couple of dogs).

Kris Polly: What value does Reclamation bring to the Upper Colorado Region?

Larry Walkoviak: Our mission, our authorizations, and our responsibilities to the public are tied to water supply, river management, and, if possible, the generation of hydropower. Those are the three main areas of value, but we also provide value in other areas.

We have a tremendous amount of recreation at our reservoirs.

Kris Polly: What the top challenges for Reclamation in the Upper Colorado Region?

In particular, what is the status of Reclamation’s infrastructure?

Mike at the Hoover Dam. 26

Larry Walkoviak: We have always had to, and especially now have to, continue to find ways to meet our mission and provide those values of public service in the midst of significant challenges. In particular, this includes serious budget challenges, extended and in some places historic drought conditions, and evolving demands on our projects and facilities. Some of these challenges are greater than they have ever been.

We have 61 major dams and hundreds of miles of canals, laterals, and pipelines in the region.

Some of those projects are old and some are newer. In fact, we have one of the newest projects in Reclamation. . . . We signed the operations and management transfer agreement on the Animas– LaPlata Project a few months ago. We also have some of the oldest: for example, the Elephant Butte and the Strawberry Valley projects. With our partners on those older projects, we work hard to identify structures reaching the end of their service and determine whether we need to repair, fix, or replace them.

We have excellent project partners. Most of Irrigation Leader

Reclamation’s infrastructure is operated by one of our project partners. The have a real sense of pride in making sure the project works properly and is going to continue to work in the future. Reclamation and its partners have a good track record of finding a way to finance the things that need to get done from an operation and maintenance standpoint, but the current and future budget challenges are real and are getting tougher.

From a dam safety perspective, we are very active. We work closely with project partners, state dam safety offices, and other entities to undertake reviews of each facility.

We’ve done dam safety upgrades at 23 of those 61 dam sites.

Kris Polly: With respect to those changing demands on Reclamation, describe the work done in the region on Indian water rights settlements.

Larry Walkoviak: Some long-running settlement negotiations are coming to fruition and calling for water infrastructure to be put in place. For example, there is a very strong water settlement component to the Animas– LaPlata Project for the Ute Mountain and Southern Ute Indian tribes. Those tribes will be doing their due diligence to determine how to best utilize that storage now that Lake Nighthorse is filled.

Very recently, P.L 111-11 authorized the Navajo Gallup Water Supply Project. The bulk of the tribal water allocation goes to the Navajo Nation and also includes supplies to the Jicarilla–Apache Nation and the City of Gallup, New Mexico. I had the privilege of starting my career with Reclamation in Farmington, New Mexico, when we were about to irrigate the first lands on the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project. While collecting field data, I remember seeing folks that lived in the area hauling barrels of water in the backs of their pickups to their homes. That is still occurring in portions of the Navajo Nation. This project will be bringing treated, high-quality drinking water to those communities. To me, it is exciting to be part of the team that is dedicated to achieving the goals of these projects.

Kris Polly: As director, what issues draw your personal attention?

Larry Walkoviak: The challenges of dealing with what I talked about earlier—the combination of budget, drought, and evolving demands on our projects—tend to manifest themselves in individual projects. I spend much of my day addressing those challenges.

I am very blessed to have extremely capable people absolutely dedicated to our mission. I trust these smart, able, professional staff to do their jobs as best they can­— which they do every day. That encourages me to stay out of Irrigation Leader

the weeds and lets me focus on broader issues with policy implications.

Kris Polly: Tell us about irrigation in Reclamation’s Upper Colorado Region.

Larry Walkoviak: From an historical perspective, we have some of the oldest irrigation areas in the West. They have been irrigated on pueblos, prior to the arrival of Europeans in North America. There are some pueblos that have existed along parts of the Rio Grande for hundreds, even thousands of years. They used water from the river to irrigate and grow crops. Historians tell me that, in many cases, the canals and laterals in districts such as the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District follow some of those old irrigation alignments.

We have a really broad spectrum of irrigation. Down in Elephant Butte Irrigation District, we have some of the largest pecan orchards in the country, while up in the San Luis Valley Project in southern Colorado, Platoro Reservoir sits approximately 10,000 feet in elevation. Many of the lands of the nearby Conejos Water Conservancy District are around 8,000 feet above sea level. That is some of the highest elevation farmland in the country.

There are thousands of acres of irrigated lands that are vital parts of our projects. Water supplies to those lands represent one of the most valuable services that Reclamation provides to the public.

Kris Polly: What is the water supply situation for 2013?

Larry Walkoviak: It is historically bad in the Rio Grande Basin portion of the region. Many of the reservoirs in the Rio Grande drainage area are at their all-time lowest levels, and some of them are empty. Reclamation’s largest reservoir in the Rio Grande is Elephant Butte, which holds approximately 2 million acre-feet when it’s full, and it is at 10 percent of its storage capacity. The Arch Hurley Conservancy District in Tucumcari, New Mexico, has only been able to make an allocation of surface water to its farmers once or twice in the last 13 years.

That situation continues this year. We’ve had very low snowpack in the Rio Grande drainage. The Pecos River, which enters the Rio Grande down in west Texas, is historically dry as well. This is a set of water supply conditions that we have just not seen. The drought of the 1950s was very bad, but this appears to be worse and more persistent over time.

The Upper Colorado portion of the region was shaping up to be the third driest on record. But we did get welcome late-season moisture over the last three weeks in northeastern and central Utah, southwestern Wyoming, and parts of northern Colorado. We’ll have to see how much it actually adds to the water supply.

27

(Left to right) Upper Colorado Region Public Affairs Officer Barry Wirth, Lower Colorado Regional Director Lorri Lee, and Upper Colorado Regional Director Larry Walkoviak at the 2008 Glen Canyon Dam High Flow Experimental Release Event.

We have 30 million acre-feet of reservoir storage space in the Upper Colorado portion of the region. In 2000, it was very nearly full. Today, it is about half full. That storage has been essential to meeting water needs downstream of those dams and reservoirs.

Kris Polly: You are well known for your friendliness and approachability. What is your management philosophy?

Larry Walkoviak: I don’t know if everyone would agree with that statement, but I am honored if some people have that perception. We have over 700 people working in the Upper Colorado Region, scattered from west Texas to southwestern Wyoming. Our staff wear many hats, and we expect them to serve the taxpayer and numerous stakeholders as effectively as possible. They do their jobs really well. My focus can then be on listening to their advice and helping provide what they need to get their jobs done.

What is exciting as a manager is when a staff member comes to me and says, “I think we can do it better this way.” I always aim to foster an environment in which staff can do that. My job is to support them in the best way that I can and not tinker with what they are doing.

My general philosophy is to honor and respect the abilities of my coworkers, support them, and help them do their jobs to serve the public. I try to do that every day. If I fall short, I need folks to tell me so I do not repeat those errors.

Kris Polly: What advice would you offer Reclamation contractors in working with Reclamation?

28

Larry Walkoviak: Don’t ever be shy about raising concerns about our work. I am pleased to report that our partners don’t need any help in that regard. I don’t mean that in a flippant way. I greatly value the frankness of our partners. We rely on them to perform the daily operations and maintenance at most of our projects. Their input, their concerns, are essential.

I know there are times when our partners think that we provide too much oversight, or have too much bureaucratic input. I grew up on a farm in east-central Texas, and I remember my mom and dad railing away at government bureaucracy back in the 1960s when I was a little guy.

Yet, there are rules and requirements associated with our projects. So, my advice is to keep talking. We’ll keep listening. My staff and I will work with our project partners and contractors to ensure that these projects deliver the benefits that they were authorized to deliver.

Kris Polly: What should every U.S. citizen know about Reclamation?

Larry Walkoviak: We are an agency with a wonderful mission: to supply and manage water resources, produce power, and provide recreational opportunities on our facilities—and as former Commissioner John Keys said, “and everything else that is needed to accomplish that mission.” Many people know very little about Reclamation.

When I tell people what I do, I often mention Glen Canyon Dam, Hoover Dam, or Grand Coulee. They say, “Oh, how are you guys involved with that?” It gives me an opportunity to describe those big legacy projects, as well as to talk about less visible, but no less important water supply projects such as the Uncomphagre Project. They might not know it, but the lettuce they used in their salad last night may have come from a farm that used Reclamation water to irrigate. Or they might not know that the electricity they needed to turn on the light in the house was from one of our hydroelectric units. We may not have a spotlight on our name, but we continue to provide those essential services to the public.

Let me paraphrase something that I heard Commissioner Mike Connor say several months ago. He offered an analogy to describe why Reclamation is such a wonderful entity to work for. Of all the great reasons, he said the best was that we are usually right in the middle of the storm—and we love it. We love it because we cannot resist working hard to solve whatever problem is before us. We take great satisfaction in building the necessary partnerships with as many stakeholders as are needed to find a solution. Then, we go get in the middle of the next storm and do it again. I know I didn’t do justice to the way the commissioner made his analogy, but it rang so very true with me—and I was ready to sign up for another 38 years.

Irrigation Leader

ADVERTISEMENT

Water Law

Litigation on the Rio Grande and Pecos Rivers in New Mexico

By Steve Hernandez

T

he Lower Rio Grande Project starts 90 miles north of the Texas border at Elephant Butte Dam. The Rio Grande Project supplies surface water to Elephant Butte Irrigation District (EBID), El Paso County Water Improvement District No. 1 (EPCWID), and Mexico. The Carlsbad Project is the most southern portion of the Pecos River. Carlsbad Irrigation District (CID) is very similar to EBID in that it is a senior surface water rights holder at the very end of a river system in New Mexico. The acute drought in New Mexico has exacerbated long-term problems in both basins.

Priority Call on the Pecos Twenty-five years ago, New Mexico was trying to avoid a future shortfall situation of the delivery of Pecos River Compact water to the state of Texas.

This situation followed a United States Supreme Court decree [Texas v. New Mexico, 482 U.S. 124 (1987)] requiring New Mexico to comply with its Pecos River Compact delivery obligations to Texas, and a stipulated judgment [Texas v. New Mexico, 494 U.S. 111 (1990)] requiring New Mexico to pay Texas $14 million in damages.

Together with the United States, the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission, the Bureau of Reclamation, the Office of the State Engineer, and the Pecos Valley Artesian Conservancy District, an upstream junior groundwater rights holder, the parties drew up a settlement agreement using the adjudication of the water rights in the Carlsbad Project as a backdrop for what was considered to be a forwardlooking solution to problems with Texas and shortages to the district. The agreement confirmed CID’s water rights, project acreage, delivery requirements, and storage rights. CID’s priority date is in the 1880s, while most of the upstream users’ rights date back to the 1940s.

That agreement sought to bring hydrologic balance to the Lower Pecos River system, enabling the delivery of compact obligations and water to the project. It called for 20 percent of CID to be dried up, and another 9,600 acres to be retired in the Roswell 30

Artesian Basin, which is upstream of Carlsbad.

Unfortunately, the drought has exacerbated declines in surface water and an increase in groundwater pumping. The agreement provided that the Interstate Stream Commission would pump water into CID’s Brantley Reservoir, guaranteeing a 50,000 acre-foot water supply. For the last couple of years, CID has not been receiving its water, and its allocations have gone lower and lower.

This year, CID’s board of directors made a priority call to the state engineer as allowed by the agreement.

This is the second call this district has made in its history; the other was in 1979. The state engineer ignored that prior call, claiming that he did not have a way to determine priority dates because not all the rights on the stream had been adjudicated.

This past December, the New Mexico Supreme Court decided a case giving the state engineer administrative jurisdiction to determine, absent court adjudication, priority dates and quantities for any water right holder on a state stream. The state engineer now has the tools to administratively make those determinations on his own and can no longer say that he does not have a mechanism to enforce priority in New Mexico. The priority call will be the first test of the state engineer’s resolve to get senior water right holders their water.

Right now, CID is in negotiations with the State to determine what the priority call may look like.

The state engineer is indicating that he will not be able to get CID its water this year because of the delay involved in restoring surface water flows by stopping groundwater pumping upstream. It could take years for the surface flows to return under current hydrologic conditions. The district will weigh its legal options if it does not receive water or its members are not compensated in some way.

Rio Grande Litigation In 1980, EPCWID and EBID paid off their construction obligations on the Rio Grande Project and entered into agreements with the United States to take back the operations and maintenance of project drainage and distribution facilities. The United States had previously operated the entire project without Irrigation Leader

regard to state lines. Now that the districts were delivering the water, both districts promised to develop a mechanism to ensure equitable delivery of surface water allocations between the two districts in two states. Due to plentiful water supplies and other ongoing issues, that part of the agreement was put aside for future discussion.

With the onset of water supply shortages in the early 2000s, EPCWID argued that historically, releases from the upstream reservoir were not yielding the same amount for diversions in Texas because of groundwater pumping in New Mexico. Litigation ensued, leading to a resolution in federal district court whereby the United States and the two districts agreed to an operating agreement on how groundwater would be accounted for in establishing the diversion of surface water in the project.

The agreement is a living document that is reviewed every January by engineers from the two districts and the Bureau of Reclamation. The engineers get together and tweak it as necessary as they learn more about the system. The drought has created some issues with respect to delivery mandates because supplies are so low—but most of those issues were worked out between the two parties. EBID was convinced that it was a very good deal for their farmers because if the downstream district were receiving its water supply by agreement, Texas would not seek to litigate the issue of groundwater pumping in the United States Supreme Court as we have seen so many downstream states do in recent years.

The operating agreement addressed Texas’s concerns about groundwater pumping. EPCWID had always argued that the hydrologic baseline for deliveries had to date back to the Rio Grande Compact in 1938. The negotiated operating agreement moved the baseline to 1979, and EBID now assumes responsibility for the hydrologic impacts of groundwater pumping after 1979.

The agreement thus grandfathered in almost all of EBID members’ pumping prior to that date.

In exchange, EBID agreed that the two districts would observe carryover storage. So, in the beginning of the year when an allocation is made, if either district saved part of its allocation for the year, it can carry over that savings with limits on how much can be stored. EPCWID groundwater is much more saline than what EBID has in New Mexico. While EBID uses the groundwater as its reserve in times of shortage, EPCWID needs to conserve surface water for its times of shortage.

The New Mexico attorney general is convinced that New Mexico gave up too much in the agreement. Last year, the attorney general filed suit in New Mexico federal district court seeking to overturn the operating agreement.

Three months later, the State of Texas filed an action Irrigation Leader

requesting the United States Supreme Court to take a case claiming that New Mexico groundwater pumping was intercepting surface water in violation of the Rio Grande Compact. It noted in its filings that New Mexico had filed an action to void the operating agreement. The Supreme Court has requested the United States to file with the Court its position on accepting the petition, which should be submitted within the next 30 days. Judge Browning, of the Federal District Court for the District of New Mexico, has stayed the attorney general’s lawsuit until the Supreme Court rules and determines what issues it may address and who the parties may ultimately be.

EBID’s Position EBID is in a unique position because its surface water interests in the project are represented by the Texas Compact Commissioner. This is because the compact delivery point is 90 miles north of the state line at the project’s Elephant Butte Reservoir. For surface water north of the Elephant Butte reservoir, the state engineer of New Mexico represents all upstream New Mexico interests.

At the same time, the state engineer administers EBID members’ groundwater pumping through permits. EBID is an island in that there is no one entity in one state that represents all the water interests of their members.

So when the New Mexico attorney general states that he is acting in New Mexico’s best interest, EBID does not believe it is in southern New Mexico’s best interest, but rather upstream New Mexico’s. EBID lies in Compact Texas but is situated in geographic New Mexico!

If the United States Supreme Court takes up the case, EBID will file a motion for intervention. Up until a few years ago, interventions in Supreme Court cases were rare. However, a recent Supreme Court decision regarding the allocation of Catawba River between South Carolina and North Carolina enabled a water company situated similarly to EBID to intervene. That company provided water to customers in both states, and the Supreme Court acknowledged that its interests were not represented by either state. We think our situation is comparable.

Steve Hernandez is a Las Cruces– based attorney. He represents CID and EBID. You can reach Steve at (575) 526-2101.

31

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

The Innovators

Precision Irrigation for California Farms:

Lindsay Zimmatic Center-pivot Systems

By Chuck Powell

F

or farmers in the Midwest and Northwest, center-pivot irrigation is a way of life. That has not been the case in California, where flood and furrow irrigation have dominated the agricultural landscape. That situation, however, is changing. In line with efforts to reduce labor requirements while promoting water conservation, water efficiency, and energy savings, California growers are looking to center-pivot systems for high yields and long-term cost savings.

Existing Infrastructure

California growers have been slow to adopt pivot systems for a variety of reasons. First, there is an established culture of flood irrigation in the state.

Farmers know what to expect with flood. They know how their crops will grow. In addition, for a farmer growing a diversity of crops, it is difficult to understand the value of center-pivot irrigation. A farmer can grow corn and alfalfa under center-pivot, but if he or she wants to rotate into some varieties of tomato or other vegetable crops, they may require special sprinkler packages that keep water off the fruit.

Another factor is existing infrastructure—ditches are in already place, providing water to growers. It takes an upfront capital investment to convert from flood to center-pivot, anywhere from $130,000 to $150,000 per field. Added to that investment is the potential need for corner systems. When the price of farmland is expensive, farmers are also loath to give up corner sections of their plots. Going back 10 years, California farm ground has always been expensive.

Adding a corner system to the center-pivot allows growers to pick up an additional 20 percent of coverage on a standard quarter-mile machine.

In the past, the state had more than adequate water supply for the use of flood irrigation. But now, increased urban and industrial demands coupled with uncertain supplies are forcing farmers to reevaluate the costs and benefits of flood. In light of these uncertainties, the long-term water, energy, and cost savings associated with center-pivot become more appealing.

Benefits of Center-pivot

The key benefit of center-pivot is efficiency.

Efficient labor: A pivot system eliminates the hours required to move pipe or tubes, maintain ditches, open and close floodgates, and address root intrusion or

34

rodent damage. Efficient water use: Pivots provide a uniform and precise application of water versus flood, which stresses crops by overapplying at the upper end of the field and underapplying at the lower end. Also, less water is lost due to evaporation. Efficient use of funds: Because less water is required, pumping costs are lower.

Lindsay has improved center-pivot efficiency with the latest technology. Lindsay’s Zimmatic 9500 Custom Corner System (9500CC) adapts to the unique characteristics of an individual field. The 9500CC’s SmartChip Technology sends the pivot on a “mapping rotation,” taking 1,024 individual readings.

This information is transmitted to Lindsay, where a Lindsay engineer uses virtual modeling software to identify the best application rates for a field. The 9500CC is also GPS guided, saving time and labor during installation and allowing for easier path adjustment if needed. Lindsay has also developed a high-flow joint for the 9500CC that transmits water without a hose. In addition to greatly reducing the chance of leakage, the joint reduces water friction loss and lowers pumping costs.

Watertronics is another Lindsay company that adds to the total packaged solution. Its pump stations and controls are manufactured at a Lindsay plant in Hartland, Wisconsin. Each system is custom engineered for a specific project and factory tested on the company’s wet well prior to shipment. This process ensures that each pump station arrives onsite ready for installation without any in-field customization that can add cost and complexity and cause timing delays.

Labor requirements have also been reduced with the introduction of FieldNET, Lindsay’s wireless irrigation management system. This remote telemetry solution allows growers to both monitor and control their irrigation systems from anywhere in the world with an Internet connection via smartphone or PC. FieldNET also provides remote control and monitoring of a grower’s pumping network, providing an integrated solution that links the entire water delivery cycle into one convenient platform. This solution allows the pumps and pivots to work together, optimizing system operation and ensuring maximum energy efficiency.

Center-pivot in the Valley

Lindsay has worked for several years with Jeff Mitchell, a cooperative extension specialist at the University of California–Davis, to promote the benefits of pivot systems. With Jeff ’s help, we identified several Irrigation Leader

farmers who were receptive to pivots on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley near Five Points, California. I took them up to the Pacific Northwest for a tour of farms using pivot irrigation to demonstrate how our experience there could help them in California.

It was an interesting and informative experience.

Once the California growers saw center-pivots in action and understood how the machines could fit into their application, we knew we had a winning combination. The improvements in precision application and efficiency were visible and real. That initial trip was key to establishing market acceptance for center-pivots in California, and now we have 45 to 50 pivots operating in the Five Points area.

This same approach has opened up additional markets in California. We are currently finalizing a dairy project in the Merced area. This grower has had difficulty flood irrigating on sandy ground. We toured similar projects in Washington State last summer and took the same handson approach to demonstrating what is possible. They are now in the process of installing 13 corner systems. The project is a perfect example of the benefits of converting flood irrigation to center-pivot. Because of the move to pivot, they are reducing water use, lowering pumping costs, and decreasing energy consumption while improving crop quality and yields. They have also been able to offset the costs of the project with conservation incentives from the Natural Resource Conservation Service.

Looking Ahead

California’s agricultural market is moving toward more crop diversity and more high-end products. Efficient water use is critical to continued growth and profitability of this important industry sector. Flood irrigation is familiar but does not necessarily meet the needs of today’s farmer.

It can be costly, running $550 to $600 an acre to level the land, and it requires constant maintenance. On the other hand, center-pivot offers a high-tech, GPS-guided, precision water delivery system. And with Lindsay’s Watertronics pumps and FieldNET wireless irrigation management system, a grower can control and monitor his or her entire system from an iPhone or iPad. It is a state-of-the-art, integrated solution that meets the needs of farmers looking to improve efficiencies and meets the demands of a changing agricultural market.

Chuck Powell is the Pacific Northwest regional manager for Lindsay Irrigation. With over 15 years of experience, Chuck brings in-depth knowledge of pivot irrigation systems to farmers in California, Washington, Oregon, Nevada, western Arizona, western Idaho, and British Columbia.

Contact Chuck at (509) 547-7564 or chuck.powell@lindsay.com

Irrigation Leader

35

GMDA Members!

Summer Conference June 2nd - 4th, 2013 Cheyenne Mountain Resort Colorado Springs The GMDA Summer Session will be held in Colorado Springs, Colorado at the Cheyenne Mountain Resort on June 2-4, 2013.

•••••

Book your room at the special rate of $149 per night.

Call ahead and mention the GMDA Conference.

Or you can book a reservation online at: www.cheyennemountainresort.com

•••••

Registration for the full Conference is $260 After May 17th the registration for the Conference will be $300.

Includes the reception, all sessions of the conference, Monday night dinner, 2 breakfasts, 2 lunches, and the post conference tour.

•••••

Spouse registration is $165 and includes: the reception, Monday night dinner, 2 breakfasts, 2 lunches, and the post conference tour. The pre-conference tour to Cripple Creek is optional at $40.

•••••

For further information you can visit our website at www.gmdausa.org.

ADVERTISEMENT

CLASSIFIED LISTINGS The North Loup River Irrigation District, with headquarters in Ord, Nebraska, is seeking a

General Manager The District consists of three diversion dams, including two that are new state of the art structures, with approximately 77 miles of canals, 60 miles of laterals and numerous flume structures that deliver water to 25,000 acres. The General Manager reports to a five member board, supervises nine employees and implements Board Policies while managing the administration and operational functions of the District.

Responsibilities include personnel management, long range facility planning, financing and budgets, public relations and team building. Good oral and written communications skills are essential. A knowledge of water delivery/irrigation systems and state/federal water rights/laws are a plus.

Engineering skills are rewarded.

Starting salary is commensurate with qualification and experience. A full benefit package is included.

Submit resumes by June 15, 2013 to: North Loup Irrigation District ATTN: Mike Cox, Board President P.O. Box 147 Ord, NE 68862 or to nlrppid@yahoo.com

GENERAL MANAGER We are conducting a national search for a full-time executive to lead our team and deliver on our mission: To provide reliable, high quality and affordable water supply to benefit the people of North Dakota.

If you are a visionary leader in the water industry who is looking for an opportunity to lead, impact legislation and drive the necessary change to make a difference in North Dakota, then apply with us.

Ideal candidates will demonstrate excellence in planning, communication, negotiations and problem solving.

Leadership excellence in the area of strategic decisionmaking, emotional intelligence, team development and coaching. Requires a Bachelors degree, with 7-10 years of water industry leadership.

We offer competitive salary and benefits and look forward to your application including a cover letter, resume and three professional references to: recruiter@vogelbusiness.com.

For more information and to download our application, please visit: www.garrisondiversion.org.

GDCD is an EOE

Join Lindsay Corporation in our mission to be the leader in providing worldwide, differentiated water management solutions! We are growing and looking for top talent for the following roles: Regional Sales Manager, Mississippi Delta region- Candidate should have a demonstrated track record of attracting and retaining customers for life and a passion for the irrigation business. Requirements include: 4 year college degree, and 5+ years of direct sales experience in agricultural or equipment sales through a captive dealer organization. Position will be territory based, in or around the Memphis, TN area.

Product Service Technician, bilingual Spanish- Candidate should have a strong customer orientation with a willingness to go the extra mile to resolve customer issues. Requirements include: AA degree and 3+ years experience in the irrigation equipment or other agriculture industry, and experience with electrical troubleshooting. Strong phone and email communication skills.

Position will be based at our manufacturing facility in Lindsay, NE or our corporate office in Omaha, NE. Manager, Sprinklers & Applications Engineering- Candidate should demonstrate a passion for the irrigation business with strong work ethic and commitment to excellence. Requirements include: 2 or 4 year degree and 5+ years experience in irrigation or agricultural equipment industry. Irrigation Association CID designation or 5+ years experience in all aspects of irrigation design. Technical competence in sprinkler, VRI and complete system design. Position will be based our worldwide corporate office in Omaha, NE. All positions include a strong base + bonus package, and relocation assistance is available. We offer an excellent benefits package, including a comprehensive health insurance, 401K match and tuition reimbursement. Qualified candidates should submit a resume and cover letter to humanresources@lindsay.com. Lindsay Corporation is an EOE.

For information on posting to the Classified Listings, please e-mail Irrigation.Leader@ waterstrategies.com

2013 CALENDAR

May 7–10 May 17 June 2–4 June 4–5 June 10–11 June 17–19

June 19–21 July 8–12 July 11 July 11–12 July 29–31 August 14 August 21–23 August 27–29

Assn. of California Water Agencies, Spring Conference & Exhibition, Sacramento, CA Agri-Business Council of Arizona, Annual Meeting, Phoenix, AZ Groundwater Management District Assn., Summer Session, Colorado Springs, CO Nevada Water Resources Assn., Well Design, Construction & Rehab Workshop, Reno, NV Nebraska Assn. of Resources Districts, NRD Basin Tour, Valentine, NE Idaho Water Users Association, Summer Water Law & Resource Issues Seminar, Sun Valley, ID Texas Water Conservation Assn., 2013 Mid-Year Conference, Galveston, TX ESRI, International Users Conference, San Diego, CA Wyoming Water Assn., Annual Summer Tour, Evanston, WY Grant Preparation, Finance, Insurance, and Contracts Workshop, Denver, CO National Water Resources Assn., Western Water Seminar, Stevenson, WA Assn. of California Water Agencies, Regulatory Summit, Oxnard, CA Colorado Water Congress, Summer Conference, Steamboat Springs, CO Texas Alliance of Groundwater Districts, Texas Groundwater Summit, San Marcos, TX

For more information on advertising in Irrigation Leader magazine, or if you would like a water event listed here, please phone (703) 517-3962 or e-mail Irrigation.Leader@waterstrategies.com.

Submissions are due the first of each month preceding the next issue.

Past issues of Irrigation Leader are archived at

www.WaterandPowerReport.com