77-1-304. Selection and location of lands granted by United States. Under the general direction of the board and as rapidly as the appropriations for the work will permit, the department shall select and locate all lands granted to this state by the United States for any purpose and not located by the grant itself. It shall also select and locate lands in lieu of all those lands in sections 16 and 36 and in the other federal land grants which for any reason have been lost to the state. All selections shall as far as possible be in legal subdivisions. In the selection and location of these lands, careful attention shall be given to the water available and which may be appropriated for these lands for domestic use, livestock, and irrigation.