When Mother Nature doesn’t provide enough: Irrigation techniques Jade Sabourin, Zac Perkins, & Dani Ross

Irrigation is the artificial application of water to land to assist in the production of crops. Spray Irrigation is when a large piece of machinery is connected with hoses that spray out water for crops. Pros – does not require field leveling, less interference with cultivation and less land loss Cons – high cost, stable water supply needed Flood Irrigation allows water is to be pumped or poured along fields and flow amongst crops.

(continued) Pros – cheap, low tech, less water is lost through evaporation Cons - more water can be lost by runoff, leveling required Drip Irrigation lets small hoses that have tiny holes release water to crops (usually fruits and vegetables). The hoses are lined up along the crops or buried beneath the soil. Pros – saves fertilizer and water (1/4 water used is saved) Cons – tubes can clog if not properly cared for, cost

When humans first started farming they would carry buckets of water to their crops, now humans use a variety of techniques. The most common are flood, spray and better spray irrigation. Flood irrigation is used mostly in less developed countries since there is very little machinery needed, however it is not very efficient as most of the water is wasted in runoff or evaporated. Also the land must be 100% flat because if there are any bumps or small hills in the -land the water will not reach those crops.

Spray irrigation is very common in the U.S. It is the form where people use very large sprinklers that cover a range of plants in the farm. Better spray system is very similar, however is makes it 30% more efficient and covers a smaller area of crops. This is more common in windy areas so the wind does not blow the water away. -Examples of where this takes place: U.S., farmland in Europe, India, China and almost everywhere with fertile land (Link to picture of map)

Positive environmental impacts Takes the pressure off rain-fed lands helping to make more land available for use and prevent desertification.

Negative environmental impacts Can carry chemicals for dangerous runoff, drainage is expensive and if not done water-logging and sanitization can be an issue. Overuse of sources can lower (wells and groundwater) the or raise (rivers) water table depending on the area.

Bibliography Soil Soil disadvantages/ disadvantages/ and-get-water-efficiency-of-up-to-80/article ece and-get-water-efficiency-of-up-to-80/article ece s s