Projects Agricultural Irrigation

St. John’s Irrigation District Canal Enclosure

The St. John’s Irrigation District Canal in Idaho is used to provide water for agricultural needs. It was an open canal, which was leading to substantial losses in water. Franson Civil Engineers created a feasibility study to estimate the cost effectiveness of converting the open canal system into a piped system. We then led a project to improve the canal and conserve water.

The project included enclosing about seven miles of canals to conserve water, eliminating erosion in the piped locations, and providing pressure to reduce pumping costs. To accomplish these goals, we piped a 6-mile portion of the main canal and a 1-mile section of laterals. Additionally, we constructed an inlet/screening structure and outlet structure.

The results of this project included bringing the canal up to state standards and St. John’s being able to irrigate more crops and land during droughts. Franson Civil assisted St. John’s Irrigation Company with funding acquisition, permitting, preliminary engineering, project engineering, and construction management.