Elk Refuge plans to irrigate 5,000-plus acres
Critics want funds spent on transitioning wapiti to native range, not on growing more forage.
By Cory Hatch, Jackson Hole, Wyo.
April 29, 2009
A proposed plan to increase the amount of irrigated land on the National Elk Refuge by 3,400 acres will help reduce disease in wildlife and conserve water as the refuge seeks to reduce its reliance on supplemental feed, according to officials.
In an Environmental Assessment released Monday, officials outlined a proposal to use a combination of sprinklers and flood irrigation to grow extra forage from the southern end of Miller Butte south to the refuge boundary. The plan extends to land immediately northwest of Miller Butte and to low-lying areas on the east side of the refuge. The proposed expansion would bring the total amount of irrigated land on the refuge to just over 5,000 acres and could grow an estimated 9.2 million pounds of forage.
“Expansion of the irrigation system allows us to grow forage at a much larger area and allows the elk herd to remain dispersed longer,” said refuge manager Steve Kallin. “That will help reduce the potential for disease transmission in the herd and will result in, long term, a healthier elk population.”
Refuge spokeswoman Lori Iverson said the plan would rely on an underground pipeline to distribute water from Flat Creek. Roughly two-thirds of the 5,000 irrigated acres would be sprinkled while the rest would be flood irrigated.
Despite the increase in irrigated acreage, Iverson said the new system is a better use of water.
“The water usage could decrease because it is so much more efficient,” she said, explaining the current system relies heavily on flood irrigation. “We’re trying to get away from more flood irrigation because our soils are so porous. Eighty-five to 95 percent of the water is lost before it makes it to its final destination.”
The refuge is currently approved for a $3.7 million system that would cover a total 1,600 acres – about 670 new acres – using a combination of sprinkler and flood irrigation.
Over the past 10 years, with the current system, the refuge has irrigated an average of about 930 acres. The refuge covers almost 25,000 acres.
Lloyd Dorsey, a spokesman for the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, said the refuge should focus on getting animals to rely on native winter forage, not irrigating more land.
“While there may be some localized and short-term benefits to irrigating some acreage, the overall goal of the [U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service] should be to transition the elk to native ranges in appropriate densities as soon as possible,” Dorsey said in comments submitted by the coalition, Defenders of Wildlife and the Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance. “We feel that community efforts and finances are best spent on protecting natural habitat and offering landowners assistance to fence in their livestock to prevent wintertime commingling with free-ranging elk.
“We feel that the mission and purpose of the Elk Refuge is best served by – and that solutions to disease and habitat problems are best achieved through – a reliance on native range rather than an emphasis on expensive and intensive artificial forage production,” Dorsey continued.
Comments can be sent to National Elk Refuge, Attention Irrigation EA, P.O. Box 510, Jackson Wyoming 83001 or nationalelkrefuge@fws.gov with “Irrigation EA” in the subject line.
