Flood Control on the Cache National Forest

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Ueny will reaaiaber th© amvmvm avmmr  floods in 1923 tfctft coat loss
of lift and such .property daisags at -illard, the destructive flood cause
froa ftliott aanyoa. Again 1b INI a rtffrfitTff flood burst mam am town of
fillard ©ut of Willard Canyon. 3©sidea two people baiag killed, Mt daw-
ago done by tho two floods was estimated to bo a half Billion dollars.
The watarslsed of illard Canyon eabraeas soaa 3,000 aor#s of very
staop rugged mountainous country. It riaos abruptly froa 5»O0O foot
elevation at rflllerd to 9,000 fast elevation at th® ha ad of ^Illard Oaayoa.
The flood of July 31, 1936 was "the last straw". Than and thsm
tha people ef 3lllaMI decided to do something about It. Thoy took their
problem to tha Regional. Forester la Ogden aisce Ullari Canyon had been
added to tha Cache Rational Forest in Kay S3, 1936. The Regional forester
indicated Ui willingness to help solve tha problem of willard but told
ths people that he was snore or leas powerless to <!© anything alas© pra»
tloally all the land an the fiilard Canyon watershed wa© in private o«ar*>
ship.
I«B©di»tely, illianl City took steps to get the land transferred
to public ownership by purchase* since the Utah State Hoed CoaBtlssio®
and the County Gosndaoionero were also quite interested in the fiilard
watershed problem is order to protest tha state highway and lives of the
traveling public and to protect the county property values, tho state
Head Cowiiaalon and Beard of Couaty Coa»issl©»ro each contributed one*
third of tha purchase price of tbe watershed land.
.'hiie steps were being taken go place the land ln public ownership
an latensivo l&vastigatioa was taado/tao watershed to determine what needed
to be done to put a stop to, or decrease the intensity of floods. This
investigation disclosed the facte that nuoh of the watershed which lies
at a slope of over 60$ was so closely pNMt by dosastle stock year after
year that auoh of the grass cover had been killed'out} uncontrolled cutting
of timber had resulted ia rewvai of a large part of tha tiaber cover$ lack
of any fera of organised forest fire control had resultad la destruction of
aueh additional timber as well as brush cover*
Seraovsl of th® timber, brush aad trass left tha soli exposed to
forces t;.*t would cause erosion and floods, particularly heavy auasar
rains. Sesult m floods of 1913 and 193$.
*ihat shall be done about It*? was tha question* the best authorities
oa erosioa and flood control in the latexaouataia region sere consulted, seas
were on the staff of the Utah State Sarperiaaat Station at Logan, soaa wore with
the U. ^* Soil Conservation Service, MMM were with the te S* forest Service
and mom were **** Just dealing with the vagaries of the rushed jaouataiae
of Utah.