Water is life, but how we use water is just as important as getting to the water. This is the first of a series that will discuss different irrigation techniques. Up today- flood irrigation. First, what is flood irrigation?
Flood irrigation is an irrigation system that uses pipes and ditches to distribute water on the surface of the soil. Levees and gates are often used to help farmers control how much water is released. These can most often be seen as relatively large irrigation ditches that are often lined with concrete or plastic. The larger ditches will feed smaller furrows that run along either side of a ridge of planted crops.
The cons of flood irrigation are that it is very inefficient with a high water loss from runoff and evaporation. On top of atmospheric water loss, when the plants are receiving more water than they need, the excess water percolates back into the groundwater. The land also needs to be evenly graded so that water can reach the entire field, if the land isn’t even it will lead to pooling on the low end and crops on the high end not getting enough water.
The benefits of flood irrigation are that runoff can be reused and there is a low initial equipment cost. Moreover, flood irrigation typically does not require much energy use to water the crops themselves.
Crop irrigation is vital to our food supply and economy. However, increasing water shortages are leading to fallowed crops. IX Power Clean Water is making it possible for industries to affordably treat and clean their wastewater so it can be reused in a sustainable, closed-loop system or for agricultural use. Then, industries don’t have to use our precious freshwater in their production processes and farmers have more water resources to use. Find out how IX Power Clean Water is helping to change industrial water consumption at https://ixwater.com/.
By Sierra Tanner