Gunnison-area irrigation company outlines $2 million automation project, updates emergency plan and dam concerns

Zach Janssen, president of Benson Irrigation Company, told the Gunnison City Council on Jan. 8 that the irrigation district has secured roughly $2,000,000 for an automation project to meter ponds and operate gates remotely.

The automation work, Janssen said, includes installing meters and automated gates on the largest ponds, linking pond levels into a remote-monitoring system and allowing staff to open or close gates from phones. Stan Jensen, vice president of the company, said the system will enable automatic responses during heavy rain or snowmelt events to protect canals and better allocate water to users.

Janssen said the $2 million was made up of a $1 million state grant plus an additional $1 million from Central Utah Water District earmarked funds. "Last 2 years ago, Stan applied for a state grant and we got a million dollars. And then… there was earmarked money… Stan was able to give us another million dollars of that," Janssen said.

The project already has installed at least one automated gate at Derrida Reservoir that staff can operate remotely. Jensen described plans for more automated gates and sensors: "We will be able to open and close those ponds remotely… those ponds will talk to Gunnison Reservoir… they'll also look at how much water is coming out of 12 mile so that we can keep track of how much water really is anywhere in the system," he said.

Jensen and Janssen said automation improves recordkeeping of delivered water to users, reduces guesswork in drought years and permits an "emergency mode" that can dump or divert excess flows when runoff spikes. They also said the system allows end-of-line ponds to be prioritized so downstream users do not run short.

The company said it plans to install a combined measuring device and automated gate (referred to in the meeting as a "picometer") at the Gunnison City ponds and to monitor all large ponds in the system. The technology vendor they vetted is based in Australia; Jensen said only Bear River in Utah had similar gates when their team researched the technology.

Company leaders gave technical and operational context: 25 cubic feet per second (CFS) is about the largest safe flow that can be put into the 9 Mile conduit without risking overflow, they said. They also reported a grant application to pipe flow from 6 Mile to the end of the line to reduce flooding risk in Sterling and to expand the system's ability to capture high-runoff years.

Janssen described recent work on the irrigation district's emergency planning. He said the district consolidated individual dam plans into a single Emergency Action Plan (EAP) this year for state dam inspections and that the irrigation office, the county emergency manager and the state emergency management office each hold copies. "By law, we have to have this in our irrigation building," he said, adding that the district had to update many contacts after leadership changes.

The company also reported ongoing concerns with Night Mountain Dam. Janssen said crews installed additional leach (drain) lines this fall to reduce saturation but that the repairs might not suffice and that a full dam rebuild could be required if monitoring shows continued problems. "At this point, we don't know what our next step is besides actually tearing out the dam and redoing it," he said.

Council members and staff asked operational questions about storage and diversion. Participants discussed Peacock Spring and whether the district could hold more water in local ponds instead of sending flows down 9 Mile; company leaders noted the Gunnison pond capacity is limited and that filling wetlands and pond shorelines during draw-in consumes water. Jensen said the automation project is intended in part to increase capture and reduce waste in high-runoff years.

The presentation also covered outreach and infrastructure risks. Company staff opposed a proposed public trail along parts of the canal corridor, citing liability, cattle and frequent maintenance use of canal roads, and the presence of expensive equipment at ponds (pedestals, solar panels and communications gear). Council members acknowledged the concerns and the irrigation company's control and easement needs.

Janssen and Jensen asked the city to coordinate on pond monitoring if Gunnison City wanted irrigation staff to add a municipal pond to the system; they said the district could provide monitoring but had not yet finalized an interface or costs.

Council members thanked the irrigation leaders for the update. The company said the automated controls had already improved response in one recent flood event and that the system helped keep downstream ends of the canal supplied last season.

Ending: The irrigation presentation closed after roughly 34 minutes of discussion. Company leaders said they would continue working with city staff, the county and state on emergency planning, dam monitoring and grant applications for piping and other capital work.