Vote allows canal companies to join forces

SMITHFIELD, Cache County — Two water canal companies in northern Utah will join forces on a $25 million rehabilitation project.

On Monday, shareholders with the Logan and Northern Irrigation Co. voted in favor of working with the Logan, Hyde Park and Smithfield Canal Co. Of those who met Monday night, 1,719 voted in favor of the merger and 202 were against. Some urged the vote be delayed until more information became available.

Shareholders of the Logan, Hyde Park and Smithfield Canal Co. overwhelmingly approved the merger at a similar vote earlier this month. A new nonprofit organization, the Cache Highline Water Association, will be formed and will represent the two groups.

"This is unprecedented in my lifetime — to see four communities and two canal companies come together in the spirit of cooperation," said Logan and Northern President Jon Meikle.

On July 11 a mudslide killed a mother and her two children in their Logan home. The Logan Northern Canal broke during the slide, prompting discussions about how to manage the waterways. The canal that ruptured is managed by the Logan and Northern Irrigation Co.

Engineers have deemed a portion of the canal unsafe to continue receiving water.

The rehabilitation project will allow some parts of the canal system to be enlarged and expanded.

Most of the work will be funded by federal dollars, which became available after the Logan and Northern canal broke.