Governor praises water projects that increase resilience of state’s ‘lifeblood’
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POCATELLO – The governor of Idaho praised steps taken by the state to strengthen its water system as the dam holding back the largest reservoir on the Snake River towered behind him.
Gov. Brad Little made this speech on a visit to eastern Idaho on Monday afternoon, speaking highly of projects that have upgraded or will upgrade aging water infrastructure. The two he was there to highlight in particular were a project to modernize the Falls Irrigation District pumphouse and the American Falls Dam Spillway Rehabilitation project.
“We are making great progress as we strengthen the resiliency of our water system, which everybody knows, is the lifeblood of the state of Idaho,” Little said.
Falls Irrigation District pumphouse
The governor delivered his remarks right next to the Falls Irrigation District’s main pumping station, which just received brand new equipment in a project to bring it up to modern standards.
The pumphouse, which pumps over 25,000 acre-feet of water every year to 12,621 acres of irrigated farms in Power County, had far exceeded its service life. According to a release from the Idaho Department of Water Resources, it was originally built in the late 1950s, and the equipment had aged so much that it was at risk of failing every irrigation season.
“If the equipment were to fail during the irrigation season, the consequences would be devastating to the many farmers who rely on Falls Irrigation District water for their livelihoods,” reads the release.
Not only that, but maintaining the pumphouse’s infrastructure had grown costly, requiring annual winter servicing. The equipment also required custom manufacturing when parts broke or failed.
In order to keep pumping water to the district’s users, it began replacing the pumping infrastructure and electronics of the pumphouse last October, finishing the project this month.
This $9.8 million project was funded by the Idaho Water Resource Board and a BOR WaterSmart grant.
Shawn Tischendorf, the manager of the Falls Irrigation District, called the upgrades, “much needed improvements.”
American Falls Dam Spillway Rehabilitation
Just a short walk away from where Little was speaking was the American Falls Dam, which stands 94 feet tall. A longterm project has been underway since January to rehabilitate the dam’s spillways.
After the governor’s remarks, a group of various water officials and elected leaders went on a tour of the dam, guided by Ryan Bliss, the Upper Snake Field Office Operations and Maintenance manager. The group walked up to get a view of the spillway, then entered the cavernous outlet gallery and then finished the tour by taking the access stairs all the way to the top of the dam.
The American Falls Dam was first built in the late 1920s, and was expanded on and reconstructed in the late 70s. After over four decades since that reconstruction, a project is currently underway to replace some of its aged equipment.
The Spillway Rehabilitation project will replace the trunnion pins and bushings, critical components to the operation of the dam’s five radial gates, which hold back the waters of the American Falls Reservoir. These pieces were supposed to be self-lubricating when the dam was upgraded, according to another IDWR release.
“But over time, the pins became stuck in place and needed to be replaced,” reads the release.
One of these gates per year will be upgraded until all five are done. Additionally, one of the nine guard gates of the dam will be repaired per year. Both of these parts of the project started in 2023.
The intake gates of the powerplant, which are original to the dam’s construction, have developed oil leaks and have issues drifting closed. Design work for those improvements will be completed by 2028, and construction will start in 2030.
The entire Spillway Rehabilitation Project will be completed in 2033.
The governor’s remarks
The governor spoke highly of both projects at the American Falls Dam, and highlighted how much more work there is to come.
Little praised legislation passed this year that allocates $30 million per year towards water projects in eastern Idaho and the Magic Valley under the Eastern Snake Plain Aquifer Water Sustainability Projects Program.
“The (Idaho Water Resource Board’s) regional water sustainability projects are providing crucial, historic funding for water improvement projects,” Little said.
The governor also pointed to funds allocated even before this legislation. The Water Resource Board has approved 90 aging infrastructure projects for $56 million since 2023.
“We’ve seen more than 20 of these projects get built across the Snake River plain to modernize infrastructure, conserve water, save electricity and set up our farmers for success for decades into the future,” Little said.
