USCID Fourth international conference on irrigation and drainage

Presented at the Role of irrigation and drainage in a sustainable future: USCID fourth international conference on irrigation and drainage on October 3-6, 2007 in Sacramento, California.Includes bibliographical references.Integrated regional water management -- Change of irrigation water quantity according to farm mechanization and land consolidation in Korea -- Local stakeholders participation for small scale water resources management in Bangladesh -- Water user participation in Egypt -- The man swimming against the stream knows the strength of it -- Roles and issues of Water Users' Associations for Sustainable Irrigation and Drainage in the Kyrgyz Republic and Uzbekistan in Central Asia -- Chartered Water User Associations of Afghanistan -- Updated procedures for calculating state-wide consumptive use in Idaho -- Measuring and estimating open water evaporation in Elephant Butte Reservoir in New Mexico -- Evapotranspiration of deficit irrigated sorghum and winter wheat -- Evaluation of a two-layer model to estimate actual evapotranspiration for vineyards -- Estimating pecan water use through remote sensing in Lower Rio Grande -- Estimating crop water use from remotely sensed NDVI, crop models, and reference ET -- Alfalfa production using saline drainage water -- Performance evaluation of subsurface drainage system under unsteady state flow conditions in coastal saline soils of Andhrapradesh, India -- Management strategies for the reuse of wastewater in Jordan -- Providing recycled water for crop irrigation and other uses in Gilroy, California -- Oakdale Irrigation District Water Resources Plan -- Use of information technology to support integrated water resources management implementation -- Decision-support systems for efficient irrigation in the Middle Rio Grande -- Salt management -- Ghazi Barotha Project on Indus River in Pakistan -- Field tests of OSIRI -- Water requirements, irrigation evaluation and efficiency in Tenerife's crops (Canary Islands, Spain) -- Using wireless technology to reduce water use in rice production -- Variability of crop coefficients in space and time -- Assessing the implementation of integrated water management approach in closed basins -- New strategies of donors in the irrigation sector of Africa -- Holistic perspective for investments in agricultural drainage in Egypt -- Mapping system and services for canal operation techniques -- An open channel network modernization with automated structures -- Canal control alternatives in the irrigation district 'Sector BXII del Bajo Guadalquivir,' Spain -- Hydrodynamic behavior of a canal network under simultaneous supply and demand based operations -- Simulation on the effect of microtopography spatial variability on basin irrigation performance -- Drip irrigation as a sustainable practice under saline shallow ground water conditions -- Water retention, compaction and bean yield in different soil managements under a center pivot system -- Precision mechanical move irrigation for smallholding farmers -- Wild flood to graded border irrigation for water and energy conservation in the Klamath basin -- A method describing precise water application intensity under a CPIS from a limited number of measurements -- An irrigation sustainability assessment framework for reporting across the environmental-economic-social spectrum -- Planning for future irrigation landscapes -- One size does not fit all -- Water information networks -- Improving water use efficiency -- Irrigation system modernization in the Middle Rio Grande Valley -- Relationship of operation stability and automatic operation control methods of open canal -- Responsive strategies of agricultural water sector in Taiwan -- Effect of network water distribution schedule and different on-farm water management practices on sugarbeet water use efficiency -- Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) considerations for irrigation -- Accuracy of radar water level measurements -- Transition submergence and hysteresis effects in three-foot Cutthroat flumes -- Practical irrigation flow measurement and control -- Linear anionic PAM as a canal water seepage reducing technology -- In-situ non-destructive monitoring of water flow in damaged agricultural pipeline by AE -- Reoptimizing global irrigation systems to restore floodplain ecosystems and human livelihoods -- Water management technologies for sustainable agriculture in Kenya -- Impacts of changing rice irrigation practices on the shallow aquifer of Nasunogahara basin, Japan -- Drought protection from an in-lieu groundwater banking program -- Development of agricultural drought evaluation system in Korea -- Bean yield and root development in different soil managements under a center pivot system -- Can frost damage impact water demand for crop production in the future? -- Real time water delivery management and planning in irrigation and drainage networks -- Growth response of palm trees to the frequency of irrigation by bubblers in Khuzestan, Iran -- Application of Backpropagation Neural Network to estimate evapotranspiration for ChiaNan irrigated area, Taiwan -- Increasing water and fertilizer use efficiency through rain gun sprinkler irrigation in sugar cane agriculture

A Model for Solving the Optimal Water Allocation Problem in River Basins with Network Flow Programming When Introducing Non-Linearities

[EN] The allocation of water resources between different users is a traditional problem in many river basins. The objective is to obtain the optimal resource distribution and the associated circulating flows through the system. Network flow programming is a common technique for solving this problem. This optimisation procedure has been used many times for developing applications for concrete water systems, as well as for developing complete decision support systems. As long as many aspects of a river basin are not purely linear, the study of non-linearities will also be of great importance in water resources systems optimisation. This paper presents a generalised model for solving the optimal allocation of water resources in schemes where the objectives are minimising the demand deficits, complying with the required flows in the river and storing water in reservoirs. Evaporation from reservoirs and returns from demands are considered, and an iterative methodology is followed to solve these two non-network constraints. The model was applied to the Duero River basin (Spain). Three different network flow algorithms (Out-of-Kilter, RELAX-IVand NETFLO) were used to solve the allocation problem. Certain convergence issues were detected during the iterative process. There is a need to relate the data from the studied systems with the convergence criterion to be able to find the convergence criterion which yields the best results possible without requiring a long calculation time.We thank the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitivity (Comision Interministerial de Ciencia y Tecnologia, CICYT) for funding the projects INTEGRAME (contract CGL2009-11798) and SCARCE (program Consolider-Ingenio 2010, project CSD2009-00065). We also thank the European Commission (Directorate-General for Research & Innovation) for funding the project DROUGHT-R&SPI (program FP7-ENV-2011, project 282769). And last, but not least, to the Fundacion Instituto Euromediterraneo del Agua with the project "Estudio de Adaptaciones varias del modelo de optimizacion de gestiones de recursos hidricos Optiges".Haro Monteagudo, D.; Paredes Arquiola, J.; Solera Solera, A.; Andreu Álvarez, J. (2012). A Model for Solving the Optimal Water Allocation Problem in River Basins with Network Flow Programming When Introducing Non-Linearities. Water Resources Management. 26(14):4059-4071. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11269-012-0129-7S405940712614Ahuja R, Magnanti T, Orlin J (1993) Network flows: theory, algorithms and applications. Prentice Hall, New YorkAndreu J, Capilla J, Sanchís E (1996) AQUATOOL, a generalized decision-support system for water resources planning and operational management. 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J Water Resour Plan Manag 124:69–78Harou JJ, Medellín-Azuara J, Zhu T et al (2010) Economic consequences of optimized water management for a prolonged, severe drought in California. Water Resour Res 46:W05522Hsu N, Cheng K (2002) Network Flow Optimization Model for Basin-Scale Water Supply Planning. J Water Resour Plan Manag 128:102–112Ilich N (1993) Improvement of the return flow allocation in the Water Resources Management Model of Alberta Environment. Can J Civ Eng 20:613–621Ilich N (2009) Limitations of network flow algorithms in river basin modeling. J Water Resour Plan Manag 135:48–55Kennington JL, Helgason RV (1980) Algorithms for network programming. John Wiley and Sons, New YorkKhaliquzzaman, Chander S (1997) Network flow programming model for multireservoir sizing. J Water Resour Plan Manag 123:15–21Kuczera G (1989) Fast Multireservoir Mulltiperiod Linear Programming Models. Water Resour Res 25:169–176Kuczera G (1993) Network linear programming codes for water-supply headworks modeling. J Water Resour Plan Manag 119:412–417Labadie J (2004) Optimal operation of multireservoir systems: state-of-the-art review. J Water Resour Plan Manag 130:93–111Labadie J (2006) MODSIM: river basin management decision support system. In: Singh W, Frevert D (eds) Watershed models. CRC, Boca Raton, pp 569–592Labadie J, Baldo M, Larson R (2000) MODSIM: decision support system for river basin management. Documentation and user manual. Dept. Of Civil Engineering, CSU, Fort CollinsManca A, Sechi G, Zuddas P (2010) Water supply network optimisation using equal flow algorithms. Water Resour Manag 24:3665–3678MMA (2000) Libro blanco del agua en España. Ministerio de Medio Ambiente, Secretaría general Técnica, Centro de PublicacionesMMA (2008) Confederación Hidrográfica del Duero. Memoria 2008. http://www.chduero.es/Inicio/Publicaciones/tabid/159/Default.aspx . Last accessed 25 June 2012Perera B, James B, Kularathna M (2005) computer software tool REALM for sustainable water allocation and management. J Environ Manag 77:291–300Rani D, Moreira M (2010) Simulation-optimization modeling: a survey and potential application in reservoir systems operation. Water Resour Manag 24:1107–1138Reca J, Roldán J, Alcaide M, López R, Camacho E (2001a) Optimisation model for water allocation in deficit irrigation systems I. Description of the model. Agric Water Manag 48:103–116Reca J, Roldán J, Alcaide M, López R, Camacho E (2001b) Optimisation model for water allocation in deficit irrigation systems II. Application to the Bembézar irrigation system. Agric Water Manag 48:117–132Sechi G, Zuddas P (2008) Multiperiod hypergraph models for water systems optimization. Water Resour Manag 22:307–320Sun H, Yeh W, Hsu N, Louie P (1995) Generalized network algorithm for water-supply-system optimization. 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Finding water management practices to reduce selenium and nitrate concentrations in the irrigated stream-aquifer system along the lower reach of Colorado's Arkansas River Valley

2018 Summer.Includes bibliographical references.Agricultural productivity in the Lower Arkansas River Valley (LARV) in southeastern Colorado has been high over the last 100 years due to extensive irrigation practices. In the face of this high productivity, however, the LARV currently face many issues as a result of the long period of irrigation, including waterlogging and soil salinization, leading to a decline in crops yields and high concentrations of nutrients and trace elements. In particular, irrigation practices have led to high concentrations of selenium (Se) and nitrate (NO3) in groundwater, surface water, and soils, similar to other semi-arid irrigated watersheds worldwide. Environmental concerns due to these high concentrations include human health, health of fish and waterfowl, and eutrophication of surface water bodies. The objective of this thesis is to identify water management strategies that can lead to a decrease in the concentrations of Se and NO3 in groundwater and surface water in the LARV by evaluating the three-water management BMPs which is reduced irrigation (RI), lease fallowing of irrigated land (LF), and canal sealing (CS). This is accomplished by constructing and testing a computational model that simulates the fate and transport of Se and NO3 in a coupled irrigated stream-aquifer system, and then applying the model to evaluate selected best management practices (BMPs) to decrease the concentration of Se and NO3 to comply with Colorado water quality regulations. The modeling system consists of MODFLOW, which simulates groundwater and stream flow, and RT3D-OTIS, which simulates the reactive transport of the principal Se and nitrogen (N) species in groundwater and a connected stream network. RT3D-OTIS uses simulated flows from MODFLOW to exchange Se and N species' mass between streams and the aquifer on a daily time step. The coupled flow and reactive transport model is applied to an approximately 552 km² study region in the LARV between Lamar, Colorado and the Colorado-Kansas border. The model is tested against Se and NO3 concentrations measured in a network of groundwater monitoring wells and stream sampling site, and against return flows and mass loads to the river estimated from the mass balance. Model calibration was performed manually and by using PEST software tool, and the effects BMPs on Se and NO3 concentrations in groundwater, streams, and groundwater mass loadings to the Arkansas River within the stream-aquifer system are quantified. Three BMPs are considered RI, LF, and CS, which are simulated for a 40-year period and then compared to a baseline ("do nothing") scenario. The results indicate that implementation of the CS scenario might lead to lower groundwater concentrations of Se and NO3 by 40% and 38%, respectively, a reduction in groundwater mass loading to the Arkansas River by 100% and 60% for Se and NO3, and a reduction in stream concentrations of Se and NO3 by 30% and 40%, respectively. In contrast, the RI and LF scenario, while lowering the water table and in consequence the rate of groundwater return flow to the Arkansas River, leads to elevated groundwater concentrations of both Se and NO3 in the riparian areas, resulting in an overall increase in groundwater mass loading to the river. This may be due to changes in the rate of groundwater flow due to lower hydraulic gradients leading to longer residence times of NO3 in the aquifer, increasing the potential for the release of Se from the bedrock shale through oxidation processes. Also, lowering the water table due to reduced recharge from irrigation reduces the size of the saturated zone, perhaps contributing to a higher concentration of Se and NO3. Moreover, changes in water and mass flux between the saturated and unsaturated zone occur under RI and LF scenarios. As a consequence of these altered processes, the RI and LF scenarios do not decrease the in-stream concentrations of Se and NO3 in the Arkansas River, with values for Se and NO3 increasing by 15% and 8%, respectively under the RI scenario, and by 10% and 10.5% for the LF scenario. Further, the results are compared with results obtained from a modeling study in the Upstream Study Region of the Lower Arkansas River Valley, to determine the similarity and differences of BMP implementation in the two regions. Further assessment of localized BMPs should be performed to determine key regions where they should be implemented for the largest impact on Se and NO3. Combined water management BMPs and land management BMPs, like reduced fertilizer application and enhanced riparian buffers, should also be evaluated

The impact of agricultural activities on water quality: a case for collaborative catchment-scale management using integrated wireless sensor networks

The challenge of improving water quality is a growing global concern, typified by the European Commission Water Framework Directive and the United States Clean Water Act. The main drivers of poor water quality are economics, poor water management, agricultural practices and urban development. This paper reviews the extensive role of non-point sources, in particular the outdated agricultural practices, with respect to nutrient and contaminant contributions. Water quality monitoring (WQM) is currently undertaken through a number of data acquisition methods from grab sampling to satellite based remote sensing of water bodies. Based on the surveyed sampling methods and their numerous limitations, it is proposed that wireless sensor networks (WSNs), despite their own limitations, are still very attractive and effective for real-time spatio-temporal data collection for WQM applications. WSNs have been employed for WQM of surface and ground water and catchments, and have been fundamental in advancing the knowledge of contaminants trends through their high resolution observations. However, these applications have yet to explore the implementation and impact of this technology for management and control decisions, to minimize and prevent individual stakeholder’s contributions, in an autonomous and dynamic manner. Here, the potential of WSN-controlled agricultural activities and different environmental compartments for integrated water quality management is presented and limitations of WSN in agriculture and WQM are identified. Finally, a case for collaborative networks at catchment scale is proposed for enabling cooperation among individually networked activities/stakeholders (farming activities, water bodies) for integrated water quality monitoring, control and management

Root Zone Sensors for Irrigation Management in Intensive Agriculture

Crop irrigation uses more than 70% of the world’s water, and thus, improving irrigation efficiency is decisive to sustain the food demand from a fast-growing world population. This objective may be accomplished by cultivating more water-efficient crop species and/or through the application of efficient irrigation systems, which includes the implementation of a suitable method for precise scheduling. At the farm level, irrigation is generally scheduled based on the grower’s experience or on the determination of soil water balance (weather-based method). An alternative approach entails the measurement of soil water status. Expensive and sophisticated root zone sensors (RZS), such as neutron probes, are available for the use of soil and plant scientists, while cheap and practical devices are needed for irrigation management in commercial crops. The paper illustrates the main features of RZS’ (for both soil moisture and salinity) marketed for the irrigation industry and discusses how such sensors may be integrated in a wireless network for computer-controlled irrigation and used for innovative irrigation strategies, such as deficit or dual-water irrigation. The paper also consider the main results of recent or current research works conducted by the authors in Tuscany (Italy) on the irrigation management of container-grown ornamental plants, which is an important agricultural sector in Italy

TWINLATIN: Twinning European and Latin-American river basins for research enabling sustainable water resources management. Combined Report D3.1 Hydrological modelling report and D3.2 Evaluation report

Water use has almost tripled over the past 50 years and in some regions the water demand already exceeds supply (Vorosmarty et al., 2000). The world is facing a “global water crisis”; in many countries, current levels of water use are unsustainable, with systems vulnerable to collapse from even small changes in water availability. The need for a scientifically-based assessment of the potential impacts on water resources of future changes, as a basis for society to adapt to such changes, is strong for most parts of the world. Although the focus of such assessments has tended to be climate change, socio-economic changes can have as significant an impact on water availability across the four main use sectors i.e. domestic, agricultural, industrial (including energy) and environmental. Withdrawal and consumption of water is expected to continue to grow substantially over the next 20-50 years (Cosgrove & Rijsberman, 2002), and consequent changes in availability may drastically affect society and economies. One of the most needed improvements in Latin American river basin management is a higher level of detail in hydrological modelling and erosion risk assessment, as a basis for identification and analysis of mitigation actions, as well as for analysis of global change scenarios. Flow measurements are too costly to be realised at more than a few locations, which means that modelled data are required for the rest of the basin. Hence, TWINLATIN Work Package 3 “Hydrological modelling and extremes” was formulated to provide methods and tools to be used by other WPs, in particular WP6 on “Pollution pressure and impact analysis” and WP8 on “Change effects and vulnerability assessment”. With an emphasis on high and low flows and their impacts, WP3 was originally called “Hydrological modelling, flooding, erosion, water scarcity and water abstraction”. However, at the TWINLATIN kick-off meeting it was agreed that some of these issues resided more appropriately in WP6 and WP8, and so WP3 was renamed to focus on hydrological modelling and hydrological extremes. The specific objectives of WP3 as set out in the Description of Work are

Millennium Ecosystem Assessment Scenario drivers (1970-2050): Climate and hydrological alterations

This study was carried out to support and enhance a series of global studies assessing contemporary and future changes in nutrient export from watersheds (Global Nutrient Export from Watersheds (NEWS)). Because hydrography is one of the most important drivers in nutrient transport, it was essential to establish how climatic changes and direct human activities (primarily irrigation and reservoir operations) affect the hydrological cycle. Contemporary and future hydrography was established by applying a modified version of a global water balance and transport model (WBMplus) driven by present and future climate forcing, as described in the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment scenarios (1970-2050). WBMplus represents a major upgrade to previous WBM implementations by incorporating irrigational water uptake and reservoir operations in a single modeling framework. Contemporary simulations were carried out by using both observed climate forcings from the Climate Research Unit of East Anglia (CRU) data sets and from Global Circulation Model (GCM) simulations that are comparable to the future simulations from the same GCM forcings. Future trends in three key human activities (land use, irrigation, and reservoirs operation for hydropower) were taken from the Integrated Model to Assess the Global Environment (IMAGE). The reservoir operation required establishing a realistic distribution of future reservoirs since the IMAGE model provided only the hydropower potentials for the different future scenarios

The water footprint assessment manual: setting the global standard

This book contains the global standard for \u27water footprint assessment\u27 as developed and maintained by the Water Footprint Network (WFN). It covers a comprehensive set of definitions and methods for water footprint accounting. It shows how water footprints are calculated for individual processes and products, as well as for consumers, nations and businesses. It also includes methods for water footprint sustainability assessment and a library of water footprint response options. A shared standard on definitions and calculation methods is crucial given the rapidly growing interest in companies and governments to use water footprint accounts as a basis for formulating sustainable water strategies and policies