The office is receiving an unprecedented number of calls regarding when people can irrigate. Some people have already been able to irrigate for a period of time while others have not been able to irrigate as of yet. We posted that we would begin making water deliveries on July 5th, but we still had to bring the canals up to adequate flows and get pressure lines charged to make water deliveries available. The week of July 11th is our first full week of making deliveries and everyone wants the water at the same time.
The system was never designed to irrigate all lands at the same time. It was designed on a rotation basis and everyone must take a turn. At this time, we are still working to get headgates unlocked. We had water down to the end of all of the canals at one point, but with the high temperatures and heavy water use this week, we are currently struggling to get water back to the end of the East, Talent and West canals. We are working to distribute the water as quickly as we can, but it takes time and we are asking for everyone’s patience as we move through this difficult water situation brought on by the extreme drought.
We are also asking all water users to work together to adequately distribute this limited resource. If you have already had the opportunity to use the water, please consider shutting off your system and allow others to irrigate who have not yet had the opportunity.
We would like to remind people to call into the office when they are finished with the water so we know how much water is available for other people to use for irrigation. This is as important as calling the office for water orders.