[Water_news] 5. DWR'S CALIFORNIA WATER NEWS: AGENCIES, PROGRAMS, PEOPLE - 2/18/09

Department of Water Resources

California Water News

A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment

 

February 18, 2009

 

5. Agencies, Programs, People –

 

Farmers constantly seek more ‘crop per drop’

The California Farm Bureau Federation

 

Healdsburg asks residents to cut water use by 20 percent

The Santa Rosa Press Democrat

 

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Farmers constantly seek more ‘crop per drop’

The California Farm Bureau Federation – 2/18/09

By Kate Campbell

 

When irrigation specialist Rick Mallory sets off for work on San Joaquin Valley farms, he's headed for a world of computers, spreadsheets and complex math equations. He uses these tools to fine-tune the H2O delivered to crops on thousands of acres, wringing the most benefit from every drop.

 

"Our evolution to the sub-surface drip irrigation system we use today has taken place during the past 20 years," Mallory said. "We haven't made any big investments in irrigation equipment lately because we're already pretty high tech. But we do upgrade as new technology becomes available."

 

Lately, however, Mallory said he's seeing a dramatic increase in the rate other farms are investing in new technology, including sub-surface drip irrigation, especially in water-short areas like the western San Joaquin Valley. And, he points out there also has been ongoing investment in irrigation technology as it has been improved—better emitters, valves, gauges and management.

 

"Ten years ago I only knew of one grower who was using sub-surface drip on processing tomatoes. But today, because sub-surface drip has proven to be the way to go because of increased crop yield and quality, more growers have invested in the technology," Mallory said.

 

"It's a chicken and egg thing. With more growers using the technology, with more acres involved, companies are updating their computer programs, soil monitoring technology, metering systems—all of which is making it easier to apply the technology, do more with available water and calculate a return on investment," he said.

 

But, new irrigation technology can be expensive, he said, and it also requires a whole new skill level for employees.

 

"We're finding new irrigation products all the time, at farm shows and in trade publications. And we're finding ways to integrate emerging technology, like GPS (global positioning systems), which has really come into its own in the past four or five years. All these things make it easier for us to do the job, but at a cost."

 

Experts suggest California farmers and ranchers have invested hundreds of millions of dollars in irrigation technology in recent years, and there's general agreement that the pace of investment and technological advancement is increasing. The 2003 Irrigation Survey, a supplement to the U.S. Census of Agriculture, indicates that California farmers with irrigated land invested more than $217 million in irrigation equipment that year. The figure includes investments in facilities, land improvement and computer technology.

 

A new five-year survey is being conducted now that will reflect investments in irrigation technology for 2008 and document the scope and rate of investment in recent years. The survey has been mailed to 35,000 producers nationwide. Survey results are scheduled to be available online Nov. 30.

 

For a longer look, the California Farm Water Coalition compared the amount of water applied to California farmland and the amount of crops produced in 1967 and 2000. The coalition's analysis shows that while agricultural water use is almost unchanged during the past 40 years, crop production figures have increased dramatically.

 

In 1967, the state's farmers applied 31.2 million acre-feet of water on their irrigated cropland. In 2000, that figure was 34.2 million acre-feet, an increase of 9.6 percent. During the same period, acres planted increased about 8 percent.

 

But production volume for field crops, fruit and nut crops, and vegetable and melon crops jumped from 35.8 million tons to 67.7 million tons, an increase of 89 percent.

 

"It's clear California farmers are using water much more efficiently than they did previously," said Mike Wade, the coalition's executive director. He added that analysis also indicates that the value earned for crops has not kept pace with production levels—margins are thinner and water is getting more scarce.

 

A coalition survey of irrigation companies and suppliers shows that between 2003 and 2008, California farmers invested more than $1.5 billion on drip and microsprinkler irrigation technology. About 1.3 million acres had high technology irrigation systems installed during the period.

 

Wade said the coalition also plans a new survey of growers, "to find out what leads farmers to install and upgrade irrigation systems and, equally important, what's preventing this kind of investment."

 

Charles Burt, an irrigation expert with Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, agrees that better data regarding investments on irrigation technology would be helpful, but he says from personal knowledge that in recent years irrigation equipment dealers have had some of their best sales results.

 

And, as head of the university's Irrigation Training and Research Center, he said students who have majored in irrigation technology and soil science often are hired before they graduate—another indication of farmers' interest in the technology and the growing need for trained personnel to operate it.

 

In addition to installing on-farm irrigation technology, many farmers engage in other kinds of conservation practices, for example use of cover crops, minimum tillage, water recycling and mulching.

 

"Let me put the decision this way," said farmer Ted Sheely of Lemoore. "When we converted to underground drip tape we saved about a tenth of an acre-foot of water per acre, but we also increased crop yield more than 20 percent. That's were the business economics come in."

 

Sheely says a farmer can make the conversion and pay for the cost of installing the system in four or five years.

 

"The high cost of water, however, isn't something we can escape. We use drip on tomatoes and all our permanent crops, pistachios and winegrapes. We provide the precise amount of water we want," he said. "On the other hand, it doesn't matter how much drip equipment you put in, if you don't have water to send down the line. Right now we don't have enough water to supply all the high-tech irrigation systems that are out there." #

 

http://www.cfbf.com/agalert/AgAlertStory.cfm?ID=1237&ck=A9EB812238F753132652AE09963A05E9

 

Healdsburg asks residents to cut water use by 20 percent

The Santa Rosa Press Democrat – 2/17/09

By Clark Mason

 

Healdsburg wants residents to become more miserly with water use, but stopped short Tuesday of imposing mandatory conservation measures.

 

The City Council unanimously voted to ask citizens to voluntarily reduce their water use by 20 percent for a variety of mostly outdoor uses, like lawn and garden irrigation that will come into play when the rainy season concludes.

 

But depending on rainfall over the next couple of months, City Council members said they will revisit the possibility in late April of mandatory water restrictions that would carry financial penalties for violations and even shutting off service to severe offenders.

 

“Water is a finite resource and we really need to protect it,” said Councilman Mike McGuire.

 

“We’re in a critically dry year. We can’t let the wet streets fool us.” “Healdsburg residents meet the challenge and usually exceed it,” Councilman Gary Plass said in urging voluntary conservation measures initially, like those that resulted in a 16 percent reduction last year.

 

But Healdsburg residents are being asked to conserve an additional 20percent on top of what they did in 2008.

The latest rains have helped replenish water reservoirs, but not enough, said Jim Flugum, Healdsburg’s senior civil engineer.

 

“I’ve been watching it all weekend and it hasn’t done much in Lake Mendocino,” he said.

 

Flugum noted that the recent series of storms added about 5,000 acre-feet to Lake Mendocino. That brings the lake to about 36,000 acre-feet as of Tuesday at 5 p.m., still less than half the supply it had at this time last year.

 

Healdsburg gets its water from two well fields that draw from the Russian River and a third system from Dry Creek.

Russian River flows originate from Lake Mendocino and are augmented by several smaller streams, while the Dry Creek flows originate from Lake Sonoma.

 

Lake Sonoma is in better shape than the river, but there are limits on how much fast-moving water can be released in order to protect the fish run in Dry Creek.

 

Low water supplies have prompted the call for conservation measures by the Sonoma County Water Agency and the cities it serves, including, Santa Rosa, Rohnert Park, Petaluma, Cotati, Sonoma and some smaller districts.

 

Healdsburg has senior rights to the river that are not subject to mandatory water rationing imposed by the Sonoma County Water Agency.

 

But city officials note that the reduced flows may hinder Healdsburg’s ability to pump water, and conservation makes sense to ensure an adequate water supply.

 

The voluntary measures approved Tuesday include:

 

Watering every other day, but not on Mondays.

 

Watering only during the evening and early morning hours.

 

No outdoor wash down, including parking lot and sidewalk washing.

 

Inspecting irrigation systems for leaks and over spraying.

 

No refilling, or initial filling of swimming pools although topping off will likely be allowed to protect filters and other pool equipment.

 

No noncommercial washing of cars, boats and other vehicles except by bucket or a hose equipped with a shut-off nozzle.

The council at its March 2 meeting will consider crafting an ordinance that could require as much as 50 percent mandatory conservation in the future.

 

The city plans to mail out information to let water users know what the average home consumes along with tips for saving water.

 

One unwelcome side effect of conservation is that it can lead to increased use fees for residents.

 

Reductions in water consumption will result in equally significant reductions in revenue to cover the fixed operational costs, Public Works Director Mike Kirn said. But he said the dip in revenue might be covered by delaying some capital improvement projects and using the money to subsidize operations instead. #

 

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20090217/articles/902170215

 

 

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