Wellsville-Mendon Conservation District delivers irrigation water through two canals serving about 4,658 acres of agricultural, municipal, and industrial land in Cache Valley. To make better use of its supply from Hyrum Reservoir, the District enclosed the remaining open sections of its Upper Canal and added a pump station to pressurize the system.

Franson Civil helped the District carry the project from funding and planning through design and construction. We designed 3.3 miles of pipeline to connect previously enclosed sections of the five-mile canal. Pipe ranged from 8 to 36 inches in diameter, carrying up to 15 cubic feet per second. The design also included water delivery connections, meters, air-release valves, and drains.

The pump station needed to work with equipment the District already relied on. An existing hydraulic pump lifted water from the reservoir to the canal, but it could not automatically adjust to changes in irrigation demand. We designed a 75,000-gallon holding basin, called a wet well, between that pump and three new pumps with variable frequency drives. This arrangement allowed the new pumps to change speed as water users turned irrigation on and off, without disrupting the existing pump.

We worked with the Bureau of Reclamation to obtain permissions and easements for work on federal land and prepared an Environmental Assessment to meet WaterSMART grant requirements. A pipeline crossing beneath a stream required coordination with the Utah State Engineer and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Funding included a $1.71 million WaterSMART grant, a $1.5 million Utah Agricultural Water Optimization grant, and a $1.39 million state loan. We also assisted with bidding, award, and construction management.

The completed project connects the Upper Canal to a pressurized delivery system designed to reduce water losses and respond to irrigation needs throughout the growing season.