IRRIGATION IN THE CANADIAN NORTHWEST. 



attract the attention of ample capital to carry their 

 ventures to a successful issue, as one can hardly con- 

 ceive of a more secure and profitable investment for 

 private capital. 



In the Draft Irrigation Act to be laid before Parlia- 

 ment at Ottawa during the present session, the first 

 important step has been taken towards facilitating 

 irrigation operations in the Northwest Territories, 

 and, judging from the interest which has been ex- 

 hibited by the settlers in the semi-arid district of 

 these Territories in the matter, it is evident that they 

 are keenly alive to the importance of legislation be- 

 ing provided while this vast district is as yet in its 

 infancy; the preparation of this act has been en- 

 trusted to the most able men available, and expres- 

 sions of opinion and criticisms have been invited and 

 freely given on the subject of alterations and addi- 

 tions to the proposed act by a number of parties di- 

 rectly interested; valuable material has, of course, 

 also been gathered from the experience of similar 

 enactments in the United States. Several irrigation 

 conventions have also been held recently throughout 

 the Territories, chiefly with a view to discussing the 

 proposed act, and it is to be hoped that in the inter- 

 est of irrigation, the same will become law in the near 



future. A delegation composed of representatives 

 from the various irrigation leagues established in this 

 district are at present on their way to Ottawa to 

 press the passage of the act and also to make repre- 

 sentations to the Dominion Government as to the ne- 

 cessity of having a reconnoissance survey made of 

 the semi-arid district, with a view to the reservation 

 of reservoir sites, etc., at the earliest possible date in 

 order that these reservations may be made before 

 vested interests have to be considered in giving effect 

 to the same. 



It is impossible to estimate the advantages of ex- 

 tensive irrigation schemes in this part of the North- 

 west Territories, so bountifully favored by nature in 

 every other way, both as a means of attracting a de- 

 sirable class of settlers to take up their abodes on our 

 fertile lands and of improving the condition of those 

 already settled here. Experience has shown what 

 transformation has taken place in the arid regions of 

 the United States since the general adoption of irri- 

 gation in localities subject to drought, and it is to be 

 hoped that the enterprising settlers of the Canadian 

 Northwest, or at least those parts where irrigation 

 might be advantageously introduced, will profit 

 thereby and "go and do likewise". 



GRAND VALLEY, COLORADO. 



THE total amount of land lying in Grand Valley 

 immediately surrounding Grand Junction that is 

 capable of being irrigated is about 120,000 acres. 

 Of this amount 35,000 acres are watered by the Grand 

 Valley Irrigation Company's system of canals, the 

 head of which taps the Grand river twelve miles east 

 of the city and extends through the valley to a point 

 about fifteen miles " northwesterly from the city. 

 This canal was built in 1883-4, and it is under this 

 system that most of the farming and fruit growing is 

 done at present. This system consists of seventy-six 

 miles of canals and laterals and has a capacity of 

 about 600 second feet. The south bank of Grand 

 river for some distance above and below Grand Junc- 

 tion is a perpendicular bluff from 75 to 150 feet high. 

 On this bluff lies some of the choicest fruit and garden 

 land of the valley. It has been found cheaper to 

 water this land with pumps run bv the power obtained 

 from the falls or rapids in the river than by gravity 

 ditches. There are at present four of these plants in 

 successful operation ; the Oasis fruit farm plant 

 owned by Geo. P. & Jas. H. Smith, watering 480 acres. 

 Over 100 acres of their orchard will bear fruit this 

 year. The Grand Junction Orchard Mesa Land 

 Company's plant watering about 800 acres. About 

 300 acres of their orchards will bear this year. This 

 plant was built by Charles N. Cox, who is the present 

 manager. The plant built by A. B. & W. R. John- 

 son & Silas Wilson, watering about 1,000 acres. 

 These three plants are on what is known as Orchard 

 Mesa. The fourth is the Mt. Lincoln Land and 

 Water Company's plant, situated at the mouth of the 

 canyon 14 miles east of the city. It has a capacity 

 at present of about 1,500 acres. Surveys have been 

 made for a high line canal to take water from the 

 Grand river in the canyon east of the city and skirt- 

 ing the foot hills and covering about 75,000 acres 



above the present Grand Valley canal. The Western 

 Colorado Development Company have secured about 

 6,000 acres of choice land on Orchard Mesa which 

 they propose to water by means of water (living and 

 snow water) stored in reservoirs on Grand Mesa, 

 and by means of a pumping plant placed near the 

 mouth of the canyon at the upper end of the val- 

 ley. This company has one or the most favorable 

 sites for a power plant on the river. Considerable 

 construction work has already been-done on this sys- 

 tem. Surveys have been made and some construc- 

 tion work done upon another pumping plant to water 

 about 3,500 acres of land on Red Mesa across the 

 river from Grand Junction and below the mouth of 

 the Gunnison. The power for this plant is to be ob- 

 tained by means of a canal from the Gunnison river 

 opposite the city extending to a point about one and 

 one-half miles west of the city when ahead of twenty- 

 one feet is obtained. In view of the rapid advance- 

 ment of the application of electricity to domestic 

 uses (heating, lighting and cooking) and for the trans- 

 mission of power, it is easy to foresee the important 

 part this immense water power, stored at these various 

 plants, will play in the development of our city and 

 valley. All of the plants mentioned can be increased 

 to a capacity many times greater than what is re- 

 quired for their present purpose, pumping water for 

 irrigation. Our valley is rapidly being cut into small 

 farms from ten to eighty acres; the average will per- 

 haps be forty acres. With this thickly settled com- 

 munity electric railroads will be run up and down 

 the valley, and many of our country homes will be 

 using electricity for light and for cooking. These 

 features, together with what has already been dem- 

 onstrated our fruit growing possibilities, our excel- 

 lent climate, etc.- should make this valley a very 

 attractive field for the homeseeker and the investor. 



