Irrigation District Faces Big Bill

Officials of an irrigation district that serves 900 acres say it will cost $4 million to replace the pressurized system.

District manager Rex Barrie of the Caldwell Irrigation Lateral District said the district’s 42 miles of conduit is deteriorating rapidly and fixing leaks has become a losing battle.

“The system has served its life,” he said.

Barrie said the district could install a new, pressurized system for $4 million, less than half of what it would cost to replace the existing flood system.

Caldwell city officials wanted to install a pressure irrigation system almost a decade ago, but could not get public support. In 1989 the cost of a pressure system was estimated at $3.2 million.

A second option was to upgrade the flood system with new pipe at a cost of $7.7 million. The city reported it would cost more than $7 million to maintain the old system and continue fixing leaks.

Then-Mayor Pete Cowles and the city council decided to get out of the irrigation water delivery business and the Caldwell Lateral Irrigation District was formed.