ONTARIO, Ore. (AP) — Water will start flowing in the Owyhee Irrigation District in eastern Oregon and southwestern Idaho one week earlier than expected.

The Capital Press reports that irrigation district board members have decided to turn on the system Monday rather than April 11 in part because high winds have dried out soil and many farmers have already planted. The Owyhee Irrigation District provides irrigation water to 1,800 farms and 118,000 acres through a system of 400 miles of canals, laterals and ditches.

The Owyhee Reservoir had 402,000 acre-feet of usable storage water as of March 30, which is 56 percent of its total capacity. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and Natural Resources Conservation Service estimate the reservoir will likely gain between 250,000 and 400,000 acre-feet of water.

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