Alberta s Irrigation Water Management Challenges

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1 Alberta s Irrigation Water Management Challenges - The Need For Water Measurement Water Measurement Workshop July 14-15, 2010 Lethbridge, Alberta

2 Alberta s Water Challenges Increasing public pressure on the Government to improve water management throughout the province. Increasing demand for new water from urban centres, municipalities and industry. Challenges to Alberta s current water management principles. Increasing pressure for more water to be left in rivers/streams for environmental needs.

3 The water challenges that have faced much of the world in the past are now facing Alberta.

4 Alberta Watersheds Agricultural land Hay River Peace River Athabasca River Beaver River North Saskatchewan River South Saskatchewan River Milk River

5 RIVER Saskatchewan ST. South Saskatchewan River Basin Red Deer RED DEER RIVER BASIN RIVER RED DEER CREEK BERRY RED DEER R. ROSEBUD RIVER Calgary BOW RIVER BASIN ELBOW SASKATCHEWAN R. BOW R. HIGHWOOD R. SOUTH LITTLE BOW R. British Columbia OLDMAN RIVER BASIN WILLOW SOUTH CREEK SASKATCHEWAN RIVER SUB-BASIN OLDMAN R. OLDMAN R. Lethbridge CROWSNEST R. MILK R. Alberta MARY R. BELLY R. WATERTON R. CASTLE R. Montana

6 Hudson Bay Alberta Saskatchewan Manitoba Edmonton Saskatoon Calgary Regina Winnipeg

7 Irrigation in Alberta About 520,000 ha in the 13 organized irrigation districts. About 120,000 ha in private developments About 95% of the water consumed in the basin is for irrigation.

8 A major part of the future water management focus will be on the Irrigation Districts.

9 Water Management Can the irrigation industry justify its allocated water? How effectively does the irrigation industry manage its allocated water? Conservation Efficiency Productivity

10 Alberta Irrigation Growth Year 03 Total Irrigated Area Total Irrigated Hectares (Thousands) Total Irrigated Hectares (Thousands)

11 Water Storage Reservoirs Off-Stream On-Stream On-stream Reservoirs = 5 Off-stream Reservoirs = 50 Total Storage ~ 3.0 M dam 3

12 Conveyance System Improvements From this to this!

13 Irrigation Conveyance Systems Open Channels Conveyance Works ~8000 Km 57% Open channel 43% Buried pipeline Buried Pipelines

14 Pipelines Eliminate water losses. Brings valuable land back into production. Allows for maximum field efficiency.

15 On-Farm Application Efficiencies

16 Irrigation Efficiency Irrigation uses 30% less water to grow a crop today than 25 years ago.

17 Potential Irrigation Efficiency Gains Total Potential Gain ~ 20%

18 20 Potato Yields Yield (Tonnes/acre) Irrigation producers are increasing crop yields while using 30% less water than 20 years ago Five-Year Period

19 Cereal Yields Research shows that irrigated barley yields could reach 190 bushels per acre. Sustained yields of 140 bushels per acre could be achieved by producers.

20 Future Efficiency Gains Water measurement is a key requirement in achieving future irrigation efficiency improvements. Improved water measurement supports better water management - You can t manage what you can t measure.

21 Irrigation District Water Measurement Calgary Infrastructure Measured Canals 147 sites Pipelines 87 sites Reservoirs 18 sites Return Flow 100 sites Remaining 300 sites Medicine Hat Lethbridge

22 Water Measurement Support Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development, through the Irrigation Rehabilitation Program, (IRP) provided about $2 million to assist the Irrigation Districts install water measurement and automated control systems. This is a good investment in achieving longterm improvements in irrigation water conservation and efficiency.

23 Water Measurement Information The Irrigation Districts use this information to help assess and improve water deliveries to water users. Information from these sites is also analyzed by Irrigation and Farm Water Division staff to assess future efficiency gains and irrigation expansion potential.

24 On-Farm Irrigation Measurement At present, about 325 pipeline turnouts to individual producers are being measured. This number is expected to increase in the future.

25 Water flow measurement is an important requirement to assess water quality and nutrient loading on downstream systems.

26 The Future Water measurement will become a more integral part of effective water management strategies in the Irrigation Districts. Testing of water measurement equipment is required to: Validate equipment accuracy; and Assess long-term operational reliability in Alberta s variable conditions.

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