FERNLEY, Nev. (AP) - Safety experts estimate it will cost $3.1 million to build an 11.7-mile long concrete barrier on the Truckee irrigation canal to protect against another breach like the one that flooded 590 homes in Fernley last January.

The concrete wall would be a foot wide and drop 12 feet deep along the north side of the Fernley Reach of the Truckee Canal. Members of the new Truckee Canal Safety Commission discussed the proposed barrier at its inaugural meeting at Fernley City Hall on Monday.

Dave Overvold, project manager for the Truckee-Carson Irrigation District which operates the irrigation canal, said the wall is estimated to cost $50 per foot - $43 of that per foot to cover the cost of the concrete.

Using a special trencher, Overvold said the work could be finished in two to three months time. He said the district will construct the wall with its personnel but may have to go to bid for the concrete work if it costs over $50,000. TCID policy states any work costing $50,000 or more must go out to bid.

David Stix Jr., former mayor of Fernley and TCID board member, said the $3.1-million estimate was slightly premature because the design plan still must be approved by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the federal agency which owns the Newlands Project.

The Fernley Reach is part of the 31-mile canal that takes water from the Truckee River west of Fernley to Fallon-area farmers.

TCID formed the safety commission in September and charged it
with presenting recommendations to the TCID board concerning canal
repairs.

TCID has imposed a general assessment on all property in the Newlands Project and will use the funds to help cover repairs.

Stix said that so far, the assessment has generated $104,850 - $14,500 from Lyon County and $90,350 from Churchill County.

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