The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation has authorized another increase in flows in an irrigation canal that breached on January 5 and flooded hundreds of homes in Fernley, 30 miles east of Reno.

Bureau officials on Friday allowed the Truckee-Carson Irrigation District to increase flows in the 31-mile Truckee Canal from 250 cubic feet per second to 350 cfs - about one-half of the canal's typical maximum flow.

Bureau officials say the move was approved after the irrigation district implemented a special rodent control program and took earlier corrective and safety steps.

In March, a team of scientific experts concluded in a report for the bureau that burrowing rodents caused the century-old canal to fail and damage nearly 600 homes in Fernley.

Bureau officials have said any boost in flows beyond 350 cfs will require significant modifications of the canal, something the bureau does not anticipate this year or possibly even next.

The canal takes water from the Truckee River near Fernley to farms and ranches around Fallon, 60 miles east of Reno.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)