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- Reclamation Announces Award of Contract for Rehabilitation of Canals and Laterals Operated by the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project
News Release Archive
Reclamation Announces Award of Contract for Rehabilitation of Canals and Laterals Operated by the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project
Media Contact:
Doug Hendrix, (801) 524-3837, dhendrix@uc.usbr.gov
For Release: September 29, 2008
On Friday, September 26, 2008, the Bureau of Reclamation announced that it had awarded a contract in the amount of $2.37 million to DLM Contracting Enterprises, Inc, of Albuquerque, NM, for rehabilitation of the Burnham Lateral - West and Reach 1 - Canal operated by the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project (NIIP).
"Award of this contract will help to improve both the safety and water delivery capabilities of canals and laterals operated by the Navajo Nation," said Reclamation Commissioner Robert W. Johnson. "Repairs to the Navajo Nations existing water conveyance facilities will foster continued development of the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project and benefit future generations of water users."
Work to be performed under the contract will include: excavation and disposal of concrete lining and unsuitable materials from the existing canal embankment; construction of new embankments and installation of reinforced concrete lining; installation of new safety access ladders; and sealing of cracks in the existing canal lining. Reclamation anticipates rehabilitation work performed under this contract to be completed in summer of 2009. The canal improvements will occur along the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project's Burnham Lateral which is located approximately 18 miles south of Farmington, New Mexico in San Juan County.
The Navajo Agricultural Products Industry (NAPI) is one of the largest Native American owned and operated agricultural enterprises in the United States. In the early 1960's the United States Congress authorized the construction of the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project (NIIP), enacted by Public Law (87-483), to provide a water delivery system from the Navajo Dam reservoir to 110,630 acres of irrigable land. The statute includes an annual diversion right of 508,000 acre feet of water to irrigate these acres.
Reclamation has lead responsibility for the design and construction of NIIP irrigation facilities through the turnouts at the individual farm units. The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), in cooperation with the Navajo Nation, is responsible for developing the farm units, farm distribution systems, drainage, and farm-to-market roads. The Navajo Nation established the NAPI to farm the project.
DLM Contracting Enterprises, Inc. is an emerging, minority-owned commercial and institutional building construction contractor, based in Albuquerque, NM. The company specializes in maintenance and repair of real property or facilities in the Albuquerque and Farmington, NM, areas.
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The Bureau of Reclamation is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior and is the nation's largest wholesale water supplier and second largest producer of hydroelectric power. Our facilities also provide substantial flood control, recreation opportunities, and environmental benefits. Visit our website at https://www.usbr.gov and follow us on Twitter @USBR; Facebook @bureau.of.reclamation; LinkedIn @Bureau of Reclamation; Instagram @bureau_of_reclamation; and YouTube @reclamation.
