The dilemma of efficient irrigation
Farmers on the lower Arkansas river are being discouraged from installing more efficient watering systems due to the effects on return flow to the main river, according to the Lamar Daily News. From the article, "State engineer Hal Simpson confirmed that Witte [Steve, Water Division 2 engineer] had been sent to talk with the farmers to try to explain the seriousness of the situation. According to Simpson, it is not a matter of telling farmers they can no longer have the same allotment of water, but rather how they use that water. Simpson agreed that sprinkler systems make more efficient use of the water. The problem is that because a wider area can be irrigated with the same amount of water, there is less to seep down into the ground and eventually return to the river.
"Flood irrigation, on the other hand, uses more water per acre and is much more labor intensive, which increases the farmer's cost per acre. The obvious choice for the farmer is to use sprinklers and get more coverage with less man hours. Flooded fields, however, allow the water to seep deeper into the ground and return more water to the river. The issue is that less water returned to the river leaves the region's farmers open to another challenge from the state of Kansas about insufficient return flow to the Arkansas, according to Simpson.
"Simpson said that in the lawsuit brought and won by Kansas water users, it was the government that paid the $35 million settlement. 'I doubt that the government will step up and pay another settlement on behalf of Colorado water users again,' he said.
"Local farmer Bud Scranton counters that there is more to the story than how much acreage is irrigated with the allotted water. He believes that officials are not considering the drought's effects on the land.
"According to Scranton, the water must pass through about 12 feet of ground before it gets to the clay barrier which carries the water back to the river. The drier the ground, the less likely that any of the irrigation water will reach the barrier because it is quickly absorbed and used by the plants within the top few inches of the soil.
"In wetter years, the irrigation water can contribute to the return flow because it is not so quickly absorbed at the surface. The bottom line said Scranton, is that 'Mother Nature is going to be the one to solve this problem. As soon as we get some nomal moisture, we will be in good shape with return flow.'
"So, it is, in fact true, that farmers who irrigate more efficiently on the same amont of acreage, will be penalized for it. Adding to the confusion is the fact that the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) is currently providing cost sharing, which defrays 50% of the cost for installing the sprinkler systems.
"Simpson said that part of the problem is the unique situation in the region, which is unlike other farming areas in the country, where more efficient watering systems are a win-win situation. The water short condition of the region, the fact that all rivers flow out of the state and that water compacts have been made with all downstream states agreeing to share the river water, makes the issue of more efficient watering a thorny one."
Category: Colorado Water
10:59:25 AM 
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