The Bear River is administered yearly by the DWR. The Nickell Ditch is the call point a majority of the time. The Nickell Diversion is currently a push-up dam that the water users put in and remove yearly. This project will replace the diversion with a stop-log weir structure and a new headgate. As this point of diversion is the typical dry-up point along the river, a secondary measuring device will be built to facilitate the potential delivery of water to meet the junior instream flow right. As part of this project, the ditch headgate operation will be automated using telemetry information soon provided by the planned DWR system installation. Automation will allow for more efficient water delivery through remote adjustment during the irrigating season when the river experiences frequent diurnal fluctuation. This project will serve as a demonstration project for the potential expansion of automated headgate operations along the heavily administered Bear River.
Approved: May 2024
Basin Award: $24,780
State Award: $161,070
Application