USA
May 7, 2015

News about California's mandatory 25% cut in water usage spread quickly across the nation and the ag industry, in particular. Much of California is currently listed as in a D4 (Exceptional Drought) category, and drought is impacting agriculture across much of the Southwest, Great Plains, Texas and parts of the upper Midwest. Water scarcity and conservation are increasingly becoming a part of our industry's dialogue. 

According to the USDA, agriculture accounts for about 80 percent of the country's annual water consumption. A 2002 Farm and Ranch Irrigation Survey showed that approximately 27 million U.S. acres are under sprinkler irrigation and about 80 percent of those have center pivot systems. As a result, ag is being hit hard by new water restrictions implemented by local and state governments. 

The USDA advises strong irrigation water management practices in order to use water more efficiently and avoid over-saturation of the soil and runoff. Precision technology is emerging to help address water restrictions and shortages of today and tomorrow. 

Years ago, IntelliFarms recognized the challenges the nation would soon face with water resources, and as a result, brought FieldDataManager to the marketplace. The product is a weather station and has the industry's largest wireless soil probe network. The soil probes gather instantaneous data about soil moisture and temperature from the surface to 40" deep, and builds a complete picture for farmers to know the areas of the field most in need of irrigation and which can use a quick pass. Research has shown this sort of irrigtation management can save up to 2" of water per acre - saving 7 millions of gallons of water per 127-acre pivot!

IntelliFarms is continuing to expand FieldDataManager's capabilities to manage and automate irrigation decisions, saving water and saving money for America's farms. The time to start thinking about water conservation and management technology is now. Contact Chance Hager at IntelliFarms (855-206-5612) to discuss how FieldDataManager can bring value to your farm and help efficiently manage your water resources. 

Website: http://intellifarms.com

Published: May 7, 2015