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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1994.11.02 CITY COUNCIL MINUTES (2)t~ DATE: (110294) Present were: Mayor: Councilman: City Clerk: Attorney: Irrigation Meeting 11/02/94 6:30 P. M. Nile Boyle Glen Pond Farrell Young Kay Beck Nyle Fullmer Jim Flamm Rose Bagley J. D. Hancock Irrigators present: Dell Harney, Guy Erikson, Keith Erikson, Doug Harney, Gene Palmer, Lorin Kauer. RE: IRRIGATION MEETING, 11/02/94) TOPIC: (19,97,,,IRRIGATI0N,REXBURG DITCH,TETON PIPELINE) Glen took charge he told the irrigators this meeting tonight was to discuss some issues and then before the end of the year the council would meet in the regular session and decide what we will do with the water next year. He had J. D. check in June or July check to see if we filed for the water rights and we did file. Glen had gone with Doug and checked the canals to see where the water comes from and where it is suppose to go. It is bad behind the high school. He asked the irrigators to give their comments. Gene asked, who really owns the water? Hie dad use to have a copy of the agreement where the farmers who owned the water gave the water to the city with the agreement that the city would furnish them water. They cannot find that agreement. The mayor said the city had tried to do that on the upper part. Dell stated that the city agreed to take the water and administrate it and see that the farmers got their shares. Lorin- Asked J. D. if when he called down there if they told him the water had to be assigned to land, that is the way they had to do it? That ie the way the ajudification works. He wondered if when they filed if they put in the land that the city originally watered? J. D. said what we are trying to find out is what is being watered. Lorin said there would have to be a beneficial use for the water. Guy Erikson stated that about 30 years ago when Al Klinger was on the city council, the City of Rexburg wanted to do away with the ditch going through town and out south of town. They asked Rexburg Irrigation if they would water that ground. Lorin Kauer was on the board then and told the City they would water the ground if they got the excess water to cover the extra use. Over the years we have had agreements that have been on and off and right now we are suppose to get 7 c.f.s. and we pay the city $300 a year. They have 7 c.f.s., the Teton Pipe Line has 6 1/2 c.f.s. and the city still has 13 c.f.s. for the other farmers with the 83 decree. The 98 decree doesn't last too long. Lorin said they get by real good until the get the 98 decree. J. D. asked what land is now being watered by the canal that was originally watered by the ditch? Lorin told him everything east of the canal that goes out south of the city, Harold Nielson, Fujimoto, Gale Harding, Guy and Keith Erikson. Guy stated that the School District is an interesting situation, for years they said they should give up the water but they put in lawn which uses a lot of water. They put in a well but with this conjunctive management they might want the canal water running in the well. The mayor told them that all of their water is coming out of the city system. J. D. read out of the records that in 1960 it showed that these people south of town had shares in the Rexburg Ditch, E. W. Erikson one share, Leland Steiner one half share, Arther Silvester 2/3 share, Fujimoto 1 share. The 98 decree is not critical it is the 88 decree that is critical. ~~ Harold Nie lean waters 15 acres, Fujimoto 6 acres, Raymond Erikson 20, John Thompson 2 acres, Guy Erikson about 16 acres, Rulon Steiner 1 acres, Dick Davie 7 scree, Harold Nielson 15 scree, he thought they were still watering Mre Brown's house 1 acre. Louisiana Pacific use to use some water. They use to pump out of the canal to sprinkle their loge. The total is approximately 90 acres that the Rexburg Canal use. J. D. asked if they were watering from the old Rexburg ditch when it was in. Lorin said they all were. Ron had told Guy that the Teton Pipe Lines had filed ajudification on that water in their name. Ron figures that ie no problem, but it ie the city's water that is up in the air. The point of diversion has never been changed. The mayor asked how you measure it. Doug said the River man can measure it right out of the river. Guy said they did not put a lot of water in the canal during June and July. Doug said when Glen Pond went along the canal with him in June, we was pulling over 34 c.f.s. at the head of the river and at hie dads place there was not a bit of water getting past to water. Gene Palmer wanted water but had to wait a couple of days. The mayor asked how much land should one c.f.s water. Doug said it depended where you are on the ditch. Lorin said it could be remedied if the city just would not let Teton Pipe Lines have it and run it through the system. When he met with the city council originally, the agreement was that they would give ue their excess water to run through our system. We told them if they gave us their excess water we would water those people on the south of Rexburg. Dell stated that the ditch would need less maintenance if more water was running down the ditch. There is such little fault all the way through and it takes a lot of water to push it through. Gene stated we need to think about keeping that ditch in better shape in terms of cleaning silt out and getting the growth on the aides out so that there ie no more restriction there than necessary. Lorin felt that we would protect our water right by diverting the water right where it has always been diverted. He said they could work with the farmers but not with the people up on the hill. He wanted to see the water protected. He did not want to see any of the 1883 decree lost, because that is the life blood of this area. Guy stated the only thing he was concerned about ie the 6 1/2 c.f.s. that the Teton Pipeline has, that has been transferred to them and they filed to ajudification at the point of diversion. J. D. said he looked it up and it still shows the city owns it, they are only leasing it. He said by the records of Water District #1, Rexburg Irrigation company has always had adequate water. They have not used up all their storage water. Lorin said they had not used it because they can't get it. Guy said they dam the river dry and every thing over the 130 c.f.s. is their decree and everything over is storage. During August they were doing good to get their decree let alone any storage on top of it. Some days they were down to 15 or 20 c.f.s. They wasn't getting their decree. J. D. stated that those people down there don't think you should have - more than 1" of water per acre and if you flood irrigate. They claim you can use 4" per acre. If it shows we water 90 acre we should have ' 9o inches. `" Lorin explained that they us 10 acre feet in their system. Dell stated that from the head of the ditch to his place they loose more than half of the water. Harold Nielson forces hie water up hill so it takes a long time to water and more water than his share. Lorin said when you flood irrigate it puts it in the aquafer. Nyle asked if it was these irrigators opinion that Teton Pipe Lines need this water? Lorin told him that they have enough wells to adequately water without the city water. The water they lease from the city is cheaper than to pump the water. I~ Doug- Stated in May we started the ditch up about the 10th and filled the ditch up. He wasn't worried about it because our '98 water was on and we run it fairly high and then shut it back down. In June we have the river man come up and actually measure the flow of water that he had in the ditch and they got 34 c.f.s. The next day the 98 water went off and we had several people watering the ditch, and he had to drop the ditch to 20.5. He did that and took Glen up the ditch and at that time no water was getting past this dad's place. At that time there was no run off water from any of the canals. The only water that was in the ditch was decree water and there was very little run off water from the other canals through out the rest of June and all of July. We was running on the 20.5 c.f.s. During moat of July, he ie almost positive that we didn't give Rexburg Irrigation over 5 c.f.s. during that whole time, because it was used up during the whole time. During that time the demand on the grain was on. We are Baying we can get by with 13 c.f.s. running the ditch. A6 a watermaeter there is no way possible to irrigate past Gene Palmer with 13 c.f.s. at the head of the ditch. We had the ditch opened up in the Rexburg Canal and no water was getting to the River. Everything that was coming past Gene's was going into the canal. Some days it was a tremendous amount because there ie no way he can control the wastewater from the upper ditch. He can't guarantee these guys 7 c.f.a if he ie only pulling 20.5 c.f.s. With the Hoopes water pulling the river down, there is no way he could guarantee the water. If the city rents the water to Hoopes, then we are talking 20.5 c.f.s. If you give Rexburg Irrigation 7 c.f.s that drops those on the upper ditch to 13.5 c.f.s. There is not enough water at the head of the ditch to water. The first couple of people that water on his ditch, take the whole ditch. Dell said if Hoopes takes the water, then they are only getting about half what they should. J. D. asked if they would be willing to pay more of an assessment if we got someone in and cleaned the whole ditch? Dell said the city keeps doubling the aesesements. J. D. told him it was still lower than anyone else. The mayor recommended that first Gene, Dell and Doug look at the ditch and recommend cleaning the ditch so it will move water and second measure the water going to the Rexburg Irrigation and we will see how much it costa. 7.~ ~,~~ . Mayor, Nil L. Boyl City Clerk, Rosey~~ag~