The Wind River Irrigation Rehab Project began in 2007 to address the deferred maintenance needs of the project.

The Wind River Water Resource Control Board and the Office of the Tribal Water Engineer appreciates this opportunity to give an up-date on water related issues on the Wind River Indian Reservation.

Wind River Irrigation Rehabilitation Project

The Wind River Water Resource Control Board and the Office of the Tribal Water Engineer, on behalf of the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho Tribes received funding from the State of Wyoming thru the Wyoming Water Development Commission as follows:

• Phase I - 2004 - $3.5M 50:50 matching grant ($3.72M Federal matching funds)
• Phase II - 2015 - $1.48M 67:33 matching grant ($7.3K Federal matching funds)
• Phase III - 2018 - $9.3K 50:50 matching grant ($9.3K Federal matching funds)

During Phase I the following rehabilitation project structures were completed:

• Coolidge – Trout Creek Diversion Structure
• Johnstown Diversion Structure
• Lefthand Ditch Diversion and Waste Way Structures
• Ray Canal – Mill Creek Crossing Structure
• Ray Canal Diversion Structure
• Coolidge Canal Diversion Structure
• Ray Canal Fish Screen Structure
• Structures:  39-C, 11-C, 59-C, and 14-B
• North Fork Chute
• Willow Creek Diversion Structure
• Meadow Creek Diversion Structure
• Sub-agency Diversion Structure

Total cost of the rehabilitation of these structures:  $7,713,694

It should be noted that the rehabilitation project has provided an economic boost to Fremont County, the State of Wyoming and the Wind River Indian Reservation to the order of $10,033,885.  State and local contractors and sub-contractors have been utilized primarily during the construction projects.  These contractors include:

• Inberg-Miller Engineers (Riverton)
• Lowham Walsh LLC  (Lander)
• Dowl HKM (Lander)
• High Country Construction (Lander)
• 71 Construction (Riverton)
• HDR Engineering, Inc. (Lander)
• Reiman Corp. (Cheyenne)
• JR Civil, LLC (Sheridan)
• Sage Civil Engineering (Cody)
• LCI Trucking and Construction, LLC (Pavillion)

Phase I and Phase II of the Irrigation Rehab Project have barely scratched the surface of the overall needs of the Wind River Irrigation Project.  The deferred maintenance of the Wind River Irrigation Project has been estimated to be in the $90M range. 

Phase III of the Wind River Irrigation Rehabilitation Project is current in the design and bid phase for:

• Ray Canal Later 37 C and 10C Projects
• Sub-agency Canal Lateral 41A-3 and Maximo 84840 Projects
• Coolidge Canal Station 460 and Lateral 14B-44 Projects

It is hoped that these projects will go to construction during the fall and winter of 2019-20.