PREFACE 



This report presents partial results of research studies on the economics of 

 agricultural water management. The studies were conducted jointly by the Natural 

 Resource Economics Division, Economic Research Service, and the Soil and Water 

 Conservation Division, Agricultural Research Service, USDA; South Dakota State 

 University; and North Dakota State University. The studies stem from recognition 

 of important, newly developing technologies for agricultural water management in 

 the Northern Great Plains. 



The research summarized in this report was planned, conducted, and guided 

 by a number of individuals. The basic experiments, set up to explore the soil and 

 water relationship on level benches and the resulting effects on crop production, 

 were conducted at the Great Plains Research Center, ARS, Mandan, N. Dak. The 

 physical results of some of these experiments have been reported elsewhere 

 (items _9 and 10 in the bibliography). Contributions from North Dakota State Uni- 

 versity were made by Daniel J. McLellan, formerly Associate Professor of Agri- 

 cultural Engineering, who gave valuable assistance in working out the estimates of 

 construction costs; by Gary D. Lynne, Assistant in Agricultural Economics, who 

 assisted with the regression analysis; and by Fred R. Taylor, Chairman of the 

 Agricultural Economics Department, and Dale O. Anderson, Director of the 

 North Dakota Water Resources Institute, who provided assistance in this and 

 related studies. Officials of the Soil Conservation Service in both North Dakota 

 and South Dakota provided helpful suggestions and valuable information. Super- 

 vision for the Economic Research Service was provided by George A, Pavelis of 

 the Water Resources Branch, NRED, ERS. 



Washington, D.C. 20250 March 1970 



For sale by the Superintended, of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, V/a hington, D.C, 20402 



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