MCPPNtA. lOIC). GAXCTTT flMLS. TrdY. Joa. 17. IJT1 4
SCuobe Flood Unites People
Annual Financial Report Of
January I, 1971
lo December 31, 1971
In Solving Seriows
Bnk Balance t Jan. 1. 1971 S 195.62
- Gn Income from DioiK-ralors S 57.15-
Donutloiw (rnn annual Ailv
F. N. Bank IntereM (time savings)
Rt-funil mi 'a llah. Insurants ttus tnuri
2I!..V
5009
357.64
12.50
S 370 11 $ 370.14
Total Balance and Income S 565.76
Disbursements for 1971
Sect. State audit $ 5.00
Oregon Assc. Consv. dues 65.00
National Assc. Consv. dues 82.50
Stewardship Materials 19.65
RCD dues 20.00
Treasurer Bond - 10 00
Liability Ins. Bus tour . ... 25.00
Postage 1600
: Supplies, -.... 1-85
Lexington Grange annual meeting rent 20.00
Annual Adv ' 176.50
Trophies and Awards 44.63
Total disbursements .. $ 186.13 $ 486.13
Bank Balance and on Hand Jan. 1, 1972 $ 79.63
On Times Saving A cot : 1,000.00
Value of Equipment 358.97
Total Cash and Equipment $1,438.60
. Accounts receivable ..$137,50
.Accounts credit - 100
Net accounts rec $136.50
Rentals Gopher Getter $ 46.95
Sale of flags 117.00
Total i... --$ 163.95
Equipment; Gopher Getter, Noble Blade and Packer.
Respectfully,
EDMOND GONTY, Treasurer
Rhea Creek Progress Report
By BRYCE KEENE
During 1971 more core drill
ing was completed on the Ruggs
Ranch Damsite. The core drill
ing work done in 1968 showed
depth to solid rock to be too
great. The 1971 drilling was
done approximately 100 yards
upstream from the previous
site, and did show a much less
fcpth to solid rock.
-Cross section surveys were
eompleted on the creek from
the mouth to the damsite to
determine the area inundated
by various floods.
A gauging station was in-
t f
stalled at Garry Tullis' ranch
to determine normal runoff
from Rhea Creek to Willow
Creek. '
In addition to flood runoff
and storage for irrigation, the
dam has been designed to pro
vide a recreation pool with a
minimum of 50 surface acres.
All of the required data has
been gathered in order to write
a preliminary : investigation re
port by the" watershed Planning
Division of the State Engineers.
As soon as approval for a meth
od of joint-use storage has been
given, a complete report will
be available.
.V l -V
i mr
et
r
THIS PICTURE SHOWS Cltf swimming pool shortly eftn Hood waters
had pa sued. Pool U full of sediment and debris, building has hole
through both walls and pavement has been lilted off the street
(SCS Photo).
i '
THIS PICTURE SHOWS the water erosion on cropland. Soil loss
per acre was up to 300 tons en this field which had been stub
ble mulched but has no other protection. Notice the "supered
curves" indicating the speed ol the water that came off thee
20 slopes. (GT Photo).
Columbia-Snake-Palouse Program
Could Halt Erosion and Pollution
By AL OSMIN
Soil Conservation Service
The most widely publicized
(nation-wide) and talked about
area in Morrow County this past
ear has been the Shobe Can
yon Watershed and the flood of
May 25, 1971. Since that disas
ter many developments have
taken place with most of them
good.
The publicity which Heppner
received wasn't all desirable,
but this event seems to have
awakened the people to the ba-
ic cause of the flood problem
nd united them In reaching one
goal. This was to prevent fu
ture flooding to occur In Heppner.
Landowners, townspeople and
ity officials met with the su
pervisors of the Heppner Soil &
Water Conservation District
shortly after the flood to re
quest that something be done
about the problem. At this
meeting it was decided that a
complete land treatment pro
gram was needed and that fi
nancing for such a project would
have to be acquired.
Special project funds, at 8070
cost-sharing with the landown
ers, under the Rural Environ
mental Assistance Program
(REAP) was obtained through
the Agricultural Stabilization
and Conservation Service. The
design for a complete land
treatment program of the entire
Shobe Watershed was prepared
by the Soil Conservation Service.
Within 30 days after the
flood the design, financing ar
rangements and a contractor
was on the Job working on the
diversion ditches, sod waterway
and small erosion dams. These
construction measures along
with some additional acreage
will be seeded to grass. The to
tal objectives of all theso prac
tlces Is to reduce the total vol
ume and peak flow that can
occur In the cloudburst type
storm.
If all the flow volume that
came down In the May flood
wore caught In a big tub, 30
or more would have been some
thing other than water. Water
moving straight down the slope,
and in great enough volumes.
brings with it soil, rocks, wood
etc. Diversion ditches break up
the vertical runoff pattern and
leud the water on a contour to
the edge of the field to a grass
ed waterway or natural drain
age. This slows the water up
and gives some of it a chance
to be absorbed into the ground
In the natural drainages
email .irnuinn Inmu 11111 hn Ottfn.
structed that will reduce the
j i volume 01 now even more, ine
j I average capacity of these dams
J wiH.be around two acre feet.
' When these reservoirs fill with
CcXLSt runoff, the overflow will be car
iwtr i ""i
r '
r .. . . i
ried to the next dam or the
main channel by a grassed wa
terway.
" By the time the runoff from
the treated farmland area reach
es the main channels, the run
off water from areas of the wa
tershed not requiring conserva
tion practices will have moved
on out. This total concept is
what gives the spreading or
lengthening out of the cloud
burst instead of the "stacking
up of water",
To date approximately 70 of
the Shobe Canyon project has
been completed. As time and
THIS PICTURE SHOWS Route 207 bridge in the lower right and
pHrinhn'a imv hnm in (ho unoer center. The bam is about
10 feet higher than the bottom of the channeL The bridge has weather permits the remaining
a 6 foot high opening and a 2.5 foot high railing. work will be completed this
gcs Photo), spring.
Irrigated Acreage to Increase in 1972
DARRELL LEARN, Head of Watershed Planning Division. State
Engineers Office, will present the Progress Report for the Rhea
Creek Watershed Development.
Darrell Learn Scheduled to Speak
At S&WCD Annual Meeting Feb. 3
Darrell Learn, Supervisor of
the Watershed Planning Divis
ion of the Oregon State Engin
eer Office, was raised on a cat
tle ranch in northeastern Wash
ington. Graduated from Wash
ington State University in 1963,
with a degree in Civil Engineering.
He is registered as a civil I
engineer in the states of Calif
ornia and Oregon. He is 31
years of age and presently lives
in Salem with his wife Linda
and daughters Tracy, 6, and
Trina, 3.
Darrell has spent the last
seven years doing planning
work for Public Law 566, small
watershed projects.
By RUPERT KENNEDY
Port Manager, Port of Morrow
Morrow County had 3500 acres
of new intensively Irrigated
crop producing lands in 1971.
This acreage will be increased
by another 11,000 acres in 1972.
It is estimated there will be
30,000 privately irrigated acres by
1975, probably being Desert
Magic Inc., Shell Chemical
lands, Boeing lands and other
lands near the Columbia River.
The Port of Morrow Commis
sion with its bonding capabili
ties to distribute nuclear cool
ant water will continue to at
tract new nuclear power tenants
to the Sand Hollow and Juniper
Canyon areas to irrigate the
lands in that area. The next
nuclear tenant Is going to be
more difficult to attract to Mor
row County than the first one,
but the climate for siting is
improving continuously.
The Bureau of Reclamation is
continuing the studies and en
gineering on the South Side Project
M . . . 1
THIS PICTURE SHOWS Supervisors at monthly board meeting
Bryc Keene. Cory Grieb, Albert Wright Ed Conty, Ken Turner.
Dick McElligott Budy Bergstrom. (SCS Photo).
Heppner S&WCD
Supervisors
KEff. TURNER, CHAIRMAN
BRYCE KEENE,
VICE CHAIRMAN
. DICK McELLIGOTT.
SECRETARY
ED GONTY, TREASURER
ALBERT WRIGHT
RUDY BERGSTROM
GARY GRIEB
Advisory Supervisors
D. O. NELSON
O. W. CUTSFORTH
PAUL PETTYJOHN
C W. RUDDELL
By KEN TURNER
Soil loss by action of water
and wind has been and con
tinues to be a most serious prob
lem In many sections, especial
ly the summer fallow areas of
Idaho, Washington and Oregon.
The States' three Soil and Water
Conservation Commissions have
consolidated their efforts and
have developed a contractual
program which Is designed to
alleviate this serious erosion, air
and water pollution problem.
A bill Is being introduced In
to congress this year and If au
thorized and funded it will of
fer the regions' farmers a Great
Plains type conservation pro
gram which has been very suc
cessful In the Mid-West.
The main features:
1) Higher cost sharing of up
to 80 assistance for more
incentive.
2) Length of sign-up period (3
to 10 years) allows farmers
or ranchers time to system
atically apply conservation
measures,
3) The program as outlined
provides a vehicle for the
application- of a thorough
conservation Job.
Since a farmer would have
contracted assurance of funds,
a more complete and effective
Job could be done over a period
of several years.
The program would not com
pete with or weaken the pres
ent Rural Environmental Assist
ance Program, but would add
a big dimension to it The Soil
Conservation Service would pro
vide technical assistance while
Agriculture Stablllzaton and
Conservaton Service would like
ly administer it
Local Districts are working on
and supporting the proposal and
the Heppner SWCD has been
sold on this concept for many
years.
Lalce Pen land Project
Completed In 1971
By DALE W. BONER
Soil Conservation Service
This year the sounds of sum
mer home construction will re
place those of earth moving
equipment on the Lake Penland
Project. The completion of this
earth fill dam, a first for Mor
row County, was a big accomp
lishment for the Heppner Soil
& Water Conservation District.
Planning started on this proj
ect in 19C8 and construction in
August of 1970. Baldwin Bros.
Construction from The Dalles
had 70 of the work completed
by the first fall. Richard Mead
or, Heppner, finished the earth
moving for the dam last fall.
The visitor-day use of Lake
Penland has been estimated to
be 20,600 per year. This figure
is taken from a Forest Service
report and Is based on location
and actual counts made on
comparable reservoirs. For com
parlson, Bull Prairie which is
a slightly smaller reservoir but
has better access had an actual
count of 48,000 visitor days for
1970. With this recreational de-
I Heppner, many people from the
immediate area will use ren
land for . weekend outings to
get away from the summer
heat. ';,! ' ;'- '
The design fof Penland was
prepared by the Soli Conserva
tion Service and shows a res
ervoir with 67 surface acres be
ing created by the 28 foot high
earth fill dam. The crest length
of the dam Is 395 feet and the
Impoundment will hold 590
acre-feet of water. The 1971
Shobe Canyon flood did not have
as much water as Penland will
hold.
Lake Penland Corporation, a
non-profit organization, financ
ed the total cost of the land
and construction with the in
tent of the project to be used
solely for recreation.
The dam Is located on pub
lic land and an agreement was
made to give the public access
to approximately 13 of the
shoreline and the reservoir sur
face. The access is by a stand
ard gravel road built by Morrow
County. Campgrounds, restroom
facilities, boat ramp and park
ing will be developed by the
U. S. Forest Service and fish
will be stocked by the Oregon
State Game Commission.
..Wagers have probably been
made on if and when the res
ervoir will fill. Studies made by
SCS engineers indicated that
filling could take two years.
However, with the good snow
pack this early In the season
the reservoir stands an excel
lent chance of filling with the
spring runoff. Evaporation and
seepage will drop the surface
two to three feet but tnis will
be easily replaced each year.
t.Mmm
PENLAND EESERVOIB oa November 19, 1971.
(SCS
Y?
t.
: I
Photo).