North Platte system storage favorable for irrigators

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With two years of above average inflows over 950-thousand acre feet above Seminoe Reservoir the water outlook is looking favorable for irrigators. At the North Platte River Water Operations public information meeting in Torrington on Thursday, the numbers were presented on the North Platte System Storage. As of this week, Seminoe is at 68 percent full, Pathfinder is at 72 percent, Glendo 37 percent and Guernsey is at 23 percent of capacity.

Along with above average inflows, John Lawson of the Bureau of Reclamation credits the water management of the irrigators for the increase in water stored. During the drought Lawson says "out of survival" irrigators held off irrigating early on in the irrigation season as well as cutting off irrigation in September.

Lawson says today the managers and boards are also far different than they were historically because they were required to change during the drought and they cautious knowing that the water supply situation can quickly change. Lawson says it too early to predict the water supply outlook for 2010, but with the October snow storms will aide the available water next spring.