U.S. Bureau of Reclamation officials plan to discuss lining the New York Canal’s urban upper reach at an open house.

Other topics will include the canal’s history, economic and other benefits, operations, safety and maintenance.

Reclamation has started an environmental assessment of the lining project because newly available federal and state funding means the project can be bigger, with more work completed each year.

The Project is the operating agent for five southwest Idaho irrigation districts and delivers water via infrastructure the bureau owns, including the 41-mile New York Canal.

Reclamation earlier met with local emergency management specialists to discuss the canal and six-mile lining project.

“The intent of these meetings has mostly been awareness,” said Bryan Horsburgh, deputy area manager for the bureau’s Snake River Area Office in Boise.

Reclamation and the Boise Project have proactive programs to improve the canal and reduce risks in the urban environment. Nevertheless, the meetings aim to educate stakeholders, the emergency management community and local landowners about “potential consequences of a canal failure in terms of public safety, property damage and a loss of agricultural water supply,” he said.

Greater urbanization around the canal has resulted in more frequent incidents and situations that could impact its structural integrity, Horsburgh said. Unauthorized crossings, and encroachments on easements and rights of way are examples.

Goals of the lining project, to cost about $50 million and be completed as soon as 2029, include increased safety, reliability and irrigation delivery efficiency.

The environmental assessment, conducted under the National Environmental Policy Act, is targeted for completion in early fall. A draft is expected later this spring.

The public meeting on lining the New York Canal will be 6 to 8 p.m. May 17 at the Holiday Inn Express, 3050 S. Shoshone St., Boise.