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BELLE FOURCHE IRRIGATION DISTRICT 



PHONE 605-456-2541 



P.O. BOX 225 



NEWELL. SOUTH DAKOTA 57760 



September 4. 1993 



The Honorable Larry Pressler 



US Senate 



Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Small Business Committee 



To: Senator Pressler and Members of the Committee 



Subject: Testimony regarding the issues surrounding public land 

 use, especially the wilderness proposals offered by the 

 Black Hills Sierra Club 



My name is Jim Winterton. I am the project manager of the Belle 

 Fourche Irrigation District. I am a registered Professional 

 Engineer in South Dakota. My background includes working 15 

 years for the State of South Dakota, Department of Water and 

 Natural Resources prior to being renamed "Department of 

 Environment and Natural Resources". Twelve years were with the 

 Department in the Division of Water Rights. I was the head 

 engineer in charge of determining surface water supplies that 

 were available for issuing water permits. I am very well aware 

 of the limited surface water supplies in the Black Hills Area. 



The Belle Fourche Irrigation District is in Newell, SD. The 

 District provides irrigation water service to approximately 350 

 water users on 57,000 acres of land. The Belle Fourche Project 

 was constructed beginning in 1905. The Belle Fourche Reservoir, 

 which stores water during the off season, depends on the flows of 

 the Redwater River, Belle Fourche River and their tributaries. 



The flows of the rivers have not been adequate during recent 

 years to provide the volume necessary to provide for full 

 irrigation of the lands. This has been the case also for many of 

 the past years. The water year of 1993 has been an exception to 

 the rule where we have adequate water supplies. 



The District is concerned about the possible decreased yield of 

 the Northern Black Hills and Bear Lodge watersheds if areas are 

 designated Wilderness. I believe that it could prohibit good 

 tree management of the watershed areas. All studies that I have 

 read indicate a significant decrease in water yield when forests 

 are not periodically thinned and cleared of the debris. 



The USDA Forest service has published most of the information 

 regarding water yield characteristics in the Black Hills. The 

 Forest Service studies show a significant increase of water yield 

 in forested areas which are thinned. A forest can be over 

 stocked with trees all competing for a limited water supply. The 



