June 18, 2002

LINCOLN, Neb. — In the midst of a severe drought, irrigation is like life support. If the plug gets pulled, the farm might go with it.

As limited precipitation, scorching temperatures and high winds parch the western Nebraska plains, reservoir inflows dwindle to historic lows and bring little hope for surface irrigation to quench withering crops, a University of Nebraska irrigation engineer said.

Panhandle irrigation districts will deliver water for only 35 to 40 days if current conditions persist, said Dean Yonts, Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources irrigation engineer at the Panhandle Research and Extension Center in Scottsbluff. Districts are just beginning to release water to canals, hoping to stretch water use for critical crop times.

Irrigation districts will have to strictly monitor and track water use due to the limited supply, Yonts said.

"The problem will be trying to dole out the amount of water available," he said. "Once a grower has used (his or her) allotment, there's no choice but to shut the gates down."

That's what frightens growers like Monty Flock, who farms 400 acres of corn, sugar beets and dry beans near Morrill.

"It's got us scared to death," he said. "I think we're in trouble because what crop we do get is going to be worthless. If they turn off the water in mid-August, our plants won't mature. We'll have nothing to sell."

Drought conditions are most severe in southwest Nebraska, where some irrigation districts will not deliver water at all this summer. That includes the Hitchcock and Red Willow Irrigation District, which draws water from Enders Reservoir, and all districts feeding from Swanson Reservoir, said Susan France, Nebraska Department of Natural Resources' division manager for water rights administration. Several other districts will deliver substantially less water than normal during a shorter time. Projected allocations range from 4 to 9 inches of water for less than 45 days. Many of these districts normally receive at least 12 inches of water May through September.

Water available for irrigation in the Panhandle and Republican River Basin is limited because of near-record and record low spring inflows that left Colorado, Wyoming and western Nebraska reservoirs well below capacity. Reservoirs in the Republican River Basin are exceptionally low, filled at 29 percent to 55 percent capacity. North Platte River Basin reservoirs are moderately low, filled at 52 percent to 78 percent capacity, said Mike Hayes, climate impacts specialist at NU's National Drought Mitigation Center.

At Lake McConaughy on the North Platte River near Ogallala, water levels are down significantly but there is enough water for this year's irrigation allocations. McConaughy's water is used by irrigators in the Central Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District.

The major concern for Panhandle farmers is the extremely dry North Platte River, in which inflows are projected to be 30 percent of average through September, Hayes said. South Platte River inflows are projected to be 25 percent to 46 percent of average through September, Hayes said. Minimal inflows mean minimal water for crops.

"In the 44 years I've been farming, I've never witnessed anything like this," said Robert Busch, a farmer near Mitchell. "People don't realize yet what's coming. The economic loss is going to be devastating."

Busch and his son farm 1,100 acres of corn, dry beans, sugar beets and alfalfa. Corn is three weeks behind schedule and only about 4 inches tall, Busch said. To make matters worse, irrigation allocations in the Gearing-Fort Laramie district are expected to be less than 50 percent of the normal supply, he said. The district receives water from Seminoe and Pathfinder reservoirs in Wyoming.

"In today's environment, you need a good crop every year," he said. "If you don't get that, you're in big trouble."

Sensible water management will be critical to salvaging crop yields, Yonts said.

"Water means crop growth," Yonts said. "In many times during drought and water restrictions, our crops haven't been too bad because we tried to use water more efficiently and make changes faster. But I've never been through anything like this."

Some growers reliant on surface water for irrigation may already be suffering the drought's consequences. Alfalfa in the Panhandle might only yield two cuttings, reducing yields by as much as 50 percent, Yonts said. Corn and dry bean yields could drop 25 percent.

"It all depends on how far the water will stretch," Yonts said.

The limited water supply might require growers to make sacrifices, Flock said.

"We're such optimists," he said. "I think we're making a big mistake by not abandoning a percentage of our crops and stretching the water across what's left."

To help stretch water, furrow irrigators can surge irrigate, or alternate water back and forth for a shorter time to reduce infiltration rates, and use polyacrylamide to stop erosion in furrows to increase water supplied to evenly irrigate fields, Yonts said.

He also suggested shutting off water once it reaches the bottom of a field to reduce unnecessary runoff. Stressing crops at times when water is less critical also may help.

"It's going to hurt," Flock said. "Everybody's going to hurt in the whole valley. Many of us are going to go bankrupt. I'm afraid my wife and I might not farm next year."

Flock and Busch represent many western Nebraska farmers who worry about the future of their farms – a future that seems as fallow as their dusty fields.

"This is the worst I've seen it," Flock said. "We've all been going through times when we're depressed and want to give up. But we know we can't do anything about it."

06/18/02-SH

Sandi Alswager Karstens
IANR News and Photography
(402) 472-3030

Department: Agronomy & Horticulture|Biological Systems Engineering|School of Natural Resource Sciences