OCR Text |
Show Agriculture There would be long- term increases in agricultural yields due to provision of an adequate and stable water supply. This would contribute to an improved standard of living for rural water users. The crop base for the State of Utah would also be increased by approximately 30,000 acres, all of which would be located in Utah and Juab Counties. This increase would then stimulate farm- related businesses and through the multiplier effect, benefit the State economically in much larger amounts than the value of the farm output alone. The anticipated increases in use of herbicides, pesticides, and fertilizers on the supplemental service lands would be minor as the necessary amounts are, in most cases, already being applied. In Utah and Juab Counties, however, the use of these chemicals on the new croplands would increase significantly. Streamflow Stream pollution resulting from construction activities would be of a short- term nature,, This hazard would be controlled and reduced as much as practicable. Diversion of large amounts of water from their natural courses would result in a reduction of flows in approximately 205 miles of Bonneville Unit streams. As a result, flows of the Green and Colorado Rivers would be reduced by some 166,000 acre- feet of water each year. These reductions would be long- term. There would be an increase in flows of 30 miles of stream. This increase would be a result of importation of water from other drainages and would be considered long- term. Minimum flows would be maintained in Rock Creek and Strawberry River but such flows would be less than the average minimum flows of these streams in their present state. Minimum flows would average 8 c. f. s. in Rock Creek below Upper Stillwater Dam and 4 c. f. s. in Strawberry River below Soldier Creek Dam. The ecology of all the streams which experience reduced flows would be unfavorably altered. Water Supply The Unit would provide a permanent supply of 207,500 acre- feet of water for irrigation purposes, and 99,000 acre- feet for municipal and industrial use, as well as make possible the use of an additional 24,000 acre- feet of local supplies for municipal use. The Unit would develop approximately 12 percent of Utah's total share of Colorado River water. 481 |