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Show - WATER FOR UTAH sion, primarily from the Colorado River system, a major stride toward achieving Utah's agricultural potentials can be accomplished. These diversions must supplement the full development of water supplies, particularly in the Bonneville Basin. Were sufficient water available, all the arable land in the State - 3,176,000 acres <- could be irrigated to advantage. However, at present this does not appear to be feasible and plans have been developed which, by major coordinated water development, would potentially benefit 406,800 acres of land now insufficiently supplied with water plus 607,400 acres of new land which would be brought under cultivation for full utilization. This would bring the area of land available for necessary expansion of agricultural opportunities in Utah to a potential total of 1,722,500 acres. This is approximately 50% more than the amount of land now under irrigation, of which one- half is inadequately supplied with water. ( See Table 3 - Areas of Land Now Irrigated and Areas Proposed to Benefit from Future Development of Additional Water Supplies - by Areas, Utah - below.) To accomplish these much- needed benefits would require the ultimate development of new irrigation facilities to provide 2,163,400 acre- feet of water each year. This amounts to 75% of the total now used. Of this, 665,900 acre- feet - or slightly less than one- third - can be developed within the Bonneville Basin and two- thirds must come from the Colorado River system. The largest acreage t+ ius to be brought to ultimate full potential by such coordinated water development would be in the Central Utah area, extending from the southern slopes of the Uintahs - including the Uintah Basin - to a considerable distance from the western slopes of the Wasatch Range into the Bonneville Basin. Of this acreage, 166,900 acres would be new lands and 242,300 acres would receive supplemental water. The Bear River area would receive water benefits for 185,000 acres; the Virgin River area, some 21,000 acres; and miscellaneous areas, the remaining 200,500 acres. ( See Chart 8 - Present and Proposed Future Use of Arable Land by Drainage Basin in Utah - page 30.) In general, 58% of the area benefited by these potential developments would be in the Bonneville Basin. The tbtal irrigated arable area would be increased 46% in this basin, and 105% in the Colorado Basin, bringing these areas to a more desirable level of agricultural activity. It may be feasible and ultimately desirable to divert even larger proportions of Colorado River water to the Bonneville Basin, since its arable soils, climate and marketing outlets are more favorable than those of the Colorado Basin. TABLE 3 AREAS OF LAND NOW IRRIGATED AND AREAS PROPOSED TO BENEFIT FROM FUTURE DEVELOPMENT OF ADDITIONAL WATER SUPPLIES - BY AREAS, UTAH Item Bear River Area Weber River Area Central Utah Area Misc. Areas Total Upper Colorado and Bonneville Virgin River Area Total Utah Land now irrigated: Adequate supply Partial supply Total irrigated Land proposed for additional water Now receives partial supply Now receives no water. Total land to be benefited Total irigated land after proposed irrigation development 1,000 acres 77.0 163.0 240.0 50.0 185.0 235.0 425.0 1,000 acres 63.0 57.0 125.0 57.0 42.0 99.0 167.0 1,000 acres 231.2 398.0 629.2 242.3 166.9 409.2 796.1 1,000 acres 27.8 119.4 147.2 49.4 200.5 249.9 347.7 1,000 acres 404.0 737.4 1,160.4 398.7 594.4 993.1 1,735.8 1,000 acres 3.5 20.2 23.7 8.2 13.0 21.2 36.7 1,000 acres 407.5 757.6 1,165.1 406.9 607.4 1,014.3 1,772.5 [ 29] |