Twin Falls Canal Wins Award Firm’s Cedar Draw Project Given Industry Lobby Environmental Prize

The Twin Falls Canal Co. has been honored by an industry lobby organization for its efforts to improve the environment.

The Idaho Association of Commerce and Industry gave its Environmental Excellence Award, intended to be an annual prize, to the Twin Falls company.

Brent Olmstead, IACI vice president for natural resources, said the company won for its Cedar Draw water improvement project near Buhl. Other finalists were the Hewlett-Packard Co., Boise; North Side Canal Co., Jerome; Rogers Seed Co., Boise and Monsanto Chemical Group’s Soda Springs operation.

Olmstead said Twin Falls Canal Co. designed a system to remove sediment and nutrients from water and established a state of the art research facility for water quality monitoring.

The facility also serves as an educational facility for water users.

The Cedar Draw project removes up to 35 cubic feet per second of water from the Snake River and runs it through a series of sediment detention ponds and vegetative treatment areas.

That removes about 80 percent of the sediment and associated phosphorus from the water before it is returned to the river.

The association also announced at its annual convention that the winner of its Pat Harwood Award for distinguished service to Idaho business goes to J. Kirk Sullivan, vice president of governmental and environmental affairs for Boise Cascade Corp.