Water is becoming an increasingly scarce resource that must be shared by agriculture, other businesses and industries, and with city residents. Because agriculture is the largest user of water, it bears the greatest responsibility for conserving water and using it efficiently.
A “Future Directions” project is one way farmers are working with agricultural partners to ensure adequate water supplies are available for future generations.
The demonstrations highlight conservation practices and integrated advanced irrigation technologies. The research component is derived from TCP and NRCS working in collaboration with Texas A&M AgriLife Research and USDA-Agricultural Research Service (ARS) to conduct the evaluations, collect data and finalize the results.
Farmers are participating in the project through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP). They are working through the NRCS to plan and implement the most advanced technology with a suite of conservation practices to include:
- Soil Health – cover crops using no-tillage/strip-tillage/nutrient management
- Energy – variable frequency drives
- Irrigation System Efficiency – center pivot conversion – drops, center pivot replacement
- Irrigation Water Management – soil meters/soil moisture meters.