September 2010 2010 September

0461 0461 - 678 (208) Office Field Snake Upper www.usbr.gov/pn

the American public. public. American the

economically sound manner in the interest of of interest the in manner sound economically

related resources in an environmentally and and environmentally an in resources related

develop, and protect water and and water protect and develop,

clamation is to manage, manage, to is clamation Re of

The mission of the Bureau Bureau the of mission The

Recreation: over 674,000 visits - $25 million million $25 - visits 674,000 over Recreation:

Flood damage prevented: $8.8 million million $8.8 prevented: damage Flood

Power generated: $5.6 million million $5.6 generated: Power

Livestock industry: $342 million million $342 industry: Livestock – Idaho–WyomIng

Irrigated crops: $622 million million $622 crops: Irrigated

What’s the Yearly Value? Value? Yearly the What’s

Project Project

the West. West. the

Minidoka Minidoka

some of the best outdoor recreation opportunities in in opportunities recreation outdoor best the of some

also provides fish and wildlife enhancement and and enhancement wildlife and fish provides also

The Story of the the of Story The production, and to reduce flood damage. The project project The damage. flood reduce to and production,

River system for later irrigation use, electricity electricity use, irrigation later for system River

Minidoka Project reservoirs store flow of the Snake Snake the of flow store reservoirs Project Minidoka Many Benefits Benefits Many

Congress passed the Reclamation Act in 1902 to storing project water. The 1911 permanent was Railroad Draws Settlers bring water to the arid West. The Act provided the modified and enlarged several times over the years. technical means and the money to develop large- The capacity for storing water also increased with Pioneer farmers immigrated to eastern Idaho in the scale irrigation projects. The Act also specified the modifications. mid-to-late 1800s. Construction of the Short that those who receive irrigation water and power Line Railroad, completed in 1882, brought many from Reclamation projects would pay part of the continued to grow with workers who settled in minidoka. more and more construction costs and ongoing operation and construction of American Falls, Island Park, and people came by rail to the valley. maintenance costs. Grassy Lake between 1927 and 1939.

The Secretary of the Interior authorized the Minidoka Project, one of Reclamation’s earliest Moving A City projects, in 1904 to provide irrigation water and generate electricity. Building would put most of the town of American Falls under water. Reclamation Landscape before irrigation purchased land the reservoir would flood and land for relocating the city and its residents. The arid landscape, largely sagebrush, got little more than 10 inches of annual rainfall. However, the fertile silt and sandy loam soils were perfect World War II Camp for farming. Early farmers quickly realized how productive the area could be with adequate water. During World War II, the U.S. government removed

Rigby and Rexburg grew as farming communities in 1911 thousands of Japanese-Americans from their West with small, moderately successful irrigation systems. Coast homes and relocated them to remote camps. The Hunt Site, in Jerome County, Idaho, housed The Project’s Early Days over 9,300 people during the war. The evacuees built and repaired portions of the Minidoka Project’s Reclamation started building Minidoka Dam on the canal system and assisted in clearing the land and Snake River in 1904. Several project canals and farm delivery systems were built by 1906. Minidoka Dam powerplant began generating electricity in

An early survey crew 1909, and started supplying irrigation water that same year.

Early Government Involvement

Hunt Site barracks The learning continued The valley’s agricultural successes fit perfectly with the Federal government’s interest in settling planting crops. After the war, Reclamation offered the West. The U.S. Geological Survey surveyed the camp buildings and equipment to war veterans, the Minidoka area in 1889-1890 for potential The 1911 Dam including Japanese-Americans, who settled on the large irrigation projects. State and private interests project. The now manages investigated further and provided the driving force Reclamation completed a temporary dam in 1907 the minidoka Internment national monument to for a large irrigation development. at the site of Jackson Lake in Wyoming to begin preserve this historic site.

at the site of Jackson Lake in Wyoming to begin begin to Wyoming in Lake Jackson of site the at

preserve this historic site. site. historic this preserve

for a large irrigation development. development. irrigation large a for

Reclamation completed a temporary dam in 1907 1907 in dam temporary a completed Reclamation

the minidoka Internment national monument to to monument national Internment minidoka the investigated further and provided the driving force force driving the provided and further investigated

project. The National Park Service now manages manages now Service Park National The project.

large irrigation projects. State and private interests interests private and State projects. irrigation large

m m aeDkan Loskca1 J19e 1hT

including Japanese-Americans, who settled on the the on settled who Japanese-Americans, including the Minidoka area in 1889-1890 for potential potential for 1889-1890 in area Minidoka the

the camp buildings and equipment to war veterans, veterans, war to equipment and buildings camp the the West. The U.S. Geological Survey surveyed surveyed Survey Geological U.S. The West. the

planting crops. After the war, Reclamation offered offered Reclamation war, the After crops. planting with the Federal government’s interest in settling settling in interest government’s Federal the with

The valley’s agricultural successes fit perfectly perfectly fit successes agricultural valley’s The

d d uenitnocnginrae lheT s kcarraebtit SnuH

Early Government Involvement Involvement Government Early

water that same year. year. same that water

w w erycevruy slran eA 1909, and Lake Walcott started supplying irrigation irrigation supplying started Walcott Lake and 1909,

Dam powerplant began generating electricity in in electricity generating began powerplant Dam

farm delivery systems were built by 1906. Minidoka Minidoka 1906. by built were systems delivery farm

Snake River in 1904. Several project canals and and canals project Several 1904. in River Snake

canal system and assisted in clearing the land and and land the clearing in assisted and system canal Reclamation started building Minidoka Dam on the the on Dam Minidoka building started Reclamation

built and repaired portions of the Minidoka Project’s Project’s Minidoka the of portions repaired and built

over 9,300 people during the war. The evacuees evacuees The war. the during people 9,300 over The Project’s Early Days Days Early Project’s The

The Hunt Site, in Jerome County Jerome in Site, Hunt The , Idaho, housed housed Idaho, ,

Coast homes and relocated them to remote camps. camps. remote to them relocated and homes Coast with small, moderately successful irrigation systems. systems. irrigation successful moderately small, with

Minidoka Dam in 1911 1911 in Dam Minidoka thousands of Japanese-Americans from their West West their from Japanese-Americans of thousands Rigby and Rexburg grew as farming communities communities farming as grew Rexburg and Rigby

During During World War II, the U.S. government removed removed government U.S. the II, War World productive the area could be with adequate water. water. adequate with be could area the productive

for farming. Early farmers quickly realized how how realized quickly farmers Early farming. for

World War II Camp Camp II War World the fertile silt and sandy loam soils were perfect perfect were soils loam sandy and silt fertile the

more than 10 inches of annual rainfall. However, However, rainfall. annual of inches 10 than more

The arid landscape, largely sagebrush, got little little got sagebrush, largely landscape, arid The

for relocating the city and its residents. residents. its and city the relocating for

purchased land the reservoir would flood and land land and flood would reservoir the land purchased on on itaigrrieorfe bpeacsdnaL

town of American Falls under water. Reclamation Reclamation water. under Falls American of town

generate electricity. electricity. generate

Building American Falls Dam would put most of the the of most put would Dam Falls American Building

projects, in 1904 to provide irrigation water and and water irrigation provide to 1904 in projects,

Minidoka Project, one of Reclamation’s earliest earliest Reclamation’s of one Project, Minidoka Moving A City City A Moving

The Secretary of the Interior authorized the the authorized Interior the of Secretary The

maintenance costs. costs. maintenance Grassy Lake Dams between 1927 and 1939. 1939. and 1927 between Dams Lake Grassy

people came by rail to the Snake River valley. valley. River Snake the to rail by came people

construction costs and ongoing operation and and operation ongoing and costs construction construction of American Falls, Island Park, and and Park, Island Falls, American of construction

workers who settled in minidoka. more and more more and more minidoka. in settled who workers

from Reclamation projects would pay part of the the of part pay would projects Reclamation from Minidoka Project continued to grow with with grow to continued Project Minidoka

Line Railroad, completed in 1882, brought many many brought 1882, in completed Railroad, Line

that those who receive irrigation water and power power and water irrigation receive who those that

mid-to-late 1800s. Construction of the Oregon Short Short Oregon the of Construction 1800s. mid-to-late

scale irrigation projects. The Act also specified specified also Act The projects. irrigation scale the modifications. modifications. the

Pioneer farmers immigrated to eastern Idaho in the the in Idaho eastern to immigrated farmers Pioneer

technical means and the money to develop large- develop to money the and means technical The capacity for storing water also increased with with increased also water storing for capacity The

bring water to the arid West. The Act provided the the provided Act The West. arid the to water bring modified and enlarged several times over the years. years. the over times several enlarged and modified Railroad Draws Settlers Settlers Draws Railroad

Congress passed the Reclamation Act in 1902 to to 1902 in Act Reclamation the passed Congress storing project water. The 1911 permanent dam was was dam permanent 1911 The water. project storing

Many Benefits

Minidoka Project reservoirs store flow of the Snake River system for later irrigation use, electricity production, and to reduce flood damage. The project The Story of the also provides fish and wildlife enhancement and some of the best outdoor recreation opportunities in the West. Minidoka Project What’s the Yearly Value? Irrigated crops: $622 million Livestock industry: $342 million Idaho–WyomIng Power generated: $5.6 million Flood damage prevented: $8.8 million Recreation: over 674,000 visits - $25 million

The mission of the Bureau of Reclamation is to manage, develop, and protect water and related resources in an environmentally and economically sound manner in the interest of the American public.

www.usbr.gov/pn Upper Snake Field Office (208) 678-0461

September 2010 Irrigation Brings Crops to Fun for Everyone an Arid Desert Minidoka Project’s Take fertile soil, favorable topography, an average 5 reservoirs offer 200 -day growing season, and add the irrigation more than 100,000 water provided by Minidoka Project —the result acres of water is 19,000 farms on more than 1.1 million acres of surface and 320 land stretching some 300 miles from Ashton to miles of shoreline. Bliss along both sides of the Snake River. These Jackson Lake, in lands are responsible for most of southeastern picturesque Grand Idaho’s agricultural economy–millions of dollars Teton national worth of world famous potatoes, grains, vegetables, Park, is the most popular project attraction. cereals, forage crops, dairy farming, and livestock Fishing, boating, waterskiing, camping, hunting, production. Water users and electricity sales will, picnicking, and sightseeing are favorite activities. over time, pay about 70 percent of the total project construction costs. Sections of the Snake River between Jackson Lake and American Falls are nationally known for exceptional white water rafting and kayaking. South Fork and henrys Fork Snake River offer premier Preventing Flood Damage Across State Lines Other Reclamation trout fishing. A formal agreement between Reclamation and the U.S. Idaho, Wyoming, and Projects Contribute Army Corps of Engineers regulates reservoir storage Reclamation cooperate Reclamation’s Palisades in Jackson Lake to provide a buffer against flooding. to provide the most and Ririe Projects American Falls and Island Park Reservoirs are filled, efficient uses of Snake contribute to Minidoka based on expected snowmelt and precipitation. Excessive River water and to Project by providing runoff that is temporarily stored in the reservoirs is then equitably divide the additional irrigation water Minidoka Dam gradually released to prevent downstream flooding along water between the during dry years and the Snake River. two states. • Constructed: 1904 -1906 additional flood protection. • Height: 86 ft • Length: 4,475 ft • Water Storage (Lake Walcott): 95,180 acre -feet • Generating Capacity: 28,000 kW

0 10 20 30 40 50 Miles American Falls Dam • Constructed: 1925 -1928, replaced in 1977 • Height: 104 ft • Length: 5,277 ft • Water Storage (American Falls): 1,672, 600 acre -feet IDAHO • Generating Capacity: 112,420 kW (Non -Federal) Boise Idaho Falls Minidoka • Constructed: 1937- 1939

WYOMING • Height: 94 ft * • Length: 9,500 ft * • Water Storage (Island Park): 135,500 acre -feet * • Generating Capacity: 4,800 kW (Non -Federal) * * * • Constructed: 1937- 1939 • Height: 118 ft • Length: 1,170 ft • Water Storage (Grassy Lake): 15,182 acre -feet • Generating Capacity: None * N • Constructed: 1907, raised in 1916 • Height: 65.5 ft *Not a Minidoka Project • Length: 4,920 ft Facility • Water Storage (Jackson Lake): 847,000 acre -feet • Generating Capacity: None

Enhancing Fish and Wildlife The Project’s Largest Reservoir Minidoka Project American Falls Reservoir is the project’s largest reservoirs provide storage reservoir and holds up to 1.7 million acre - excellent habitat for feet of water. fish and wildlife. millions of waterfowl nest in or migrate through the minidoka Crops As Far As National Wildlife Refuge on Lake Walcott each year. The Eye Can See Minidoka Project, in southeastern Idaho and northwestern Making Electricity Project reservoirs provide water to maintain streamflow for river Wyoming, has 5 storage reservoirs, 2 diversion dams, 2 fisheries in the Snake and Columbia Rivers. This water comes powerplants, 4 pumping plants, 103 miles of main canals, Minidoka Dam Powerplant, one of from reservoir space and natural flow that Reclamation purchases 815 miles of the first Federal power developments, from willing sellers and Idaho water rental pools. smaller canals, is listed on the national Register of and more than Historic Places. The Allen E. Inman 170 water supply Powerplant, added in 1997, replaced wells. The some of the original units and raised Many Wetlands – Many Benefits combined water the generating capacity to 27,700 storage available kilowatts. Water upstream from Minidoka Project wetlands for project use minidoka dam passes through the improve water quality, allow is more than powerplants to generate about 150 water reuse, and provide 4 million acre -feet. Water from deep wells in the Snake million kilowatt- hours of electricity additional wildlife habitat. River Plain aquifer adds to the irrigation water supply each year– enough to serve a town Wetlands filter runoff water during dry years. These facilities significantly influenced the size of Blackfoot. Bonneville and irrigation return flow as growth in southeastern Idaho by bringing water to the land Power administration sells the it moves through the vegetation. Wetlands also help water enter and and prosperity to the area. Additional private facilities are electricity not needed by the project. recharge the groundwater aquifer. operated as part of the project.