Lower Colorado River Authority to offer irrigation services for rice fields

The US Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) is providing water from its experimental gravel pit reservoirs to irrigate rice fields in the Highland Lakes.

LCRA water operations manager Ryan Rowney said the work is an important step to help determine if the pits can reduce downstream demand for Highland Lakes water.

"I think we’re all confident that we can capture excess water from the river in the gravel pits," Rowney said.

"Now we have to determine issues like what the fuel will cost to run the pumps, and ultimately, whether this project will reduce demand on stored water from the lakes."

The pilot project, which uses gravel pits to store water, was initiated in early 2012 and is part of the authority’s commitment to find 100,000 acre-feet of new water by 2017.

The pits, which are in the Garwood Irrigation Division in Colorado County, can capture water that flows into the Colorado River downstream of the Highland Lakes and can hold a maximum of 2,000 acre-feet of water.

---

Image: The gravel pits capture water that flows into the Colorado River downstream of the Highland Lakes in the US. Photo: Billy Hathorn.