Graziano Ghinassi

ON FARM IRRIGATION
[Link]@[Link]

IAO - Florence, 2014

 On Farm Irrigation
Course programme

•Principles of irrigation: soils, water quality,

crops, climate, crop water requirements, water
balance

•Basic hydraulics

•Selection, design and operation of irrigation

systems

•Maintenance and evaluation; benchmarks and

performance indicators

•On-farm conveyance schemes

Preliminary remarks
Water & Agriculture
 2 % POLAR
ICE CAPS

97%
OCEANS 1%
AVAILABLE
FOR USE
Icid, 2010
Two thirds of the
world’s population

WILL BE AFFECTED BY
WATER SHORTAGES
BY THE YEAR 2030
To sustain the rapidly growing world
population, agricultural production will
need to increase, yet the portion of fresh
water currently available for agriculture is
decreasing. Hence, sustainable methods to
increase crop water productivity (CWP) are
gaining importance in arid and semi-arid
regions.
Medium variant
Water use by sector
RISING WATER DEMAND FROM SECTORS

(Source: FAO 2009)

Growth of world population
Region wise Irrigated Area (World=100%)

(71.8%)

(15.6%)

(4.7%) (7.9%)

Icid, 2014
 World water withdrawal and
consumptive use by sector (%)

Source: FAO
 WATER USE BY REGION (% by use)

Asia and Oceania

 Water needs for food production

Product Unit Equivalent water

(m3/unit)
Cattle head 4,000
Sheep and goats head 500
Fresh beef kg 15
Fresh lamb kg 10
Fresh poultry kg 6
Cereals kg 1.5
Citrus fruits kg 1
Palm oil kg 2
Pulses, roots and tubers kg 1
Virtual water for some important products
?
 WATER FOOTPRINT

Water Footprint is quite simply the volume of water used. At the

individual level, this is expressed in litres. But at the national level, this
becomes complex - The water footprint of a nation is equal to the use
of domestic water resources, minus the virtual water export flows, plus
the virtual water import flows.
The total ‘water footprint’ of a nation is a useful indicator of a nation’s
call on the global water resources. The water footprint of a nation is
related to dietary habits of people. High consumption of meat brings
along a large water footprint. Also the more food originates from
irrigated land, the larger is the water footprint. Finally, nations in warm
climate zones have relatively high water consumption for their domestic
food production resulting in a larger water footprint. At an individual
level, it is useful to show the footprint as a function of food diet and
consumption patterns.
 Water footprint of countries
8000

7000

6000
Litres per person per day

5000

4000

3000

2000

1000

0
Egypt France Pakistan Thailand Turkey USA Iran Global
Average

(Bron : Chapagain en Hoekstra)

Water footprint according to diet
 Every year (on average)

-lost (at harvest, not used as food, ….) 1,300 million ton of
food;

-reducing food losses up to 50% means the saving of 1,350

km3 of water per year;

-food waste (loss) can affect the

efficient use of irrigation water?

FAO, 2012
 1,350 km3 of water is

-4 times the annual rainfall on Spain;

-16 times the water stored in the Assuan lake;

-19,853 times the water stored in Bilancino lake (the lake

of Florence).

FAO, 2012
Rainfed agriculture,
1237 million ha
(81%)

Irrigated
Agriculture,
297 million ha
(19%)

Icid, 2013
 Rainfed and irrigated cropland

19% of total agricultural land area supplies about

40% of the world’s food

81% of total agricultural land area supplies about

60% of the world’s food

Crop productivity values:

- Rain fed 1.0-2.0 tons/ha
- Irrigated 3.0-5.0 tons/ha

ICID, 2010
 IRRIGATION EXPANSION
2.5
2.3 %

2
1.3 %
1.5
1.0 %
% increase
1
0.6 %

0.5

0
1970-1980 1980-1990 1990-2000 2000-2025
 World-wide Coverage of Irrigation

Total irrigated area = 297 Mha

Rice irrigated Area Sprinkler, Micro irrigation,

91 Mha, 31 % 43 Mha, 21% 11 Mha, 5%

Irrigated area of other crops Gravity irrigation,

206 Mha, 69 % 152 Mha,74%
 Irrigation methods in different
world Regions (%)

Source: FAO AQUASTAT, 2003

Sprinkler irrigation
43.3 million ha
(80%)

Micro irrigation
10.8 million ha
(20%)

Icid, 2013
 Irrigation water supply and application systems

The purpose of an irrigation system is to supply water to a

crop for food of fibre production. The infrasstructure required
to make this possible usually includes the following
components, applicable to the different levels of water
management:
•An in-field irrigation system to apply the water to the crop
(via the soil)
•An on-farm water conveyance system to convey the water to
the field edge
•An on-scheme water distribution system such a canal or
river, shared by a number of water users to convey the water
to the farm edge
 Irrigation water supply and application systems

The purpose of the in-field irrigation system is to apply the

right amount of water at the correct application rate to all the
plants in the field with as little non-beneficial consumption
(losses) as possible.
Timing of applications, application rate (accuracy) and
distribution uniformity is therefore characteristics of an in-field
system that should be considered.
 Irrigation water supply and application systems

The purpose of the on-farm conveyance system is to convey

the water from the source to the field at the lowest possible
energy requirement.
Operational economy and conveyance efficiency of the system
components are therefore of importance
 Irrigation water supply and application systems

The purpose of the on-scheme system is to be a reliable and

sustainable source as well as conveyance system of water.
Quantity and quality of the water delivered by this system will
therefore be important aspects of the system, as well as
operational economy and conveyance efficiency.
 Irrigation water supply and application systems

Optimisation of the performance of the any component of

these systems furthermore requires careful consideration of
the implications of decisions made during both development
(planning and design) and management (operation and
maintenance) of the component.
Optimisation through management alone will be severely
limited in its potential if the infrastructure was not developed
with technical, economical and environmental efficiency in
mind.
 Irrigation water supply and application systems

Every decision that we make when developing and managing

water supply and application systems has an effect on the
water and energy demand of the system.
Every level of the management system should be optimised to
serve its specific purposes in an integrated manner so that
synergy is achieved.
Levels of agricultural water management systems
 94%  of the global
94%  of the global
Micro irrigated area
Micro irrigated area

Icid, 2010 43
Icid, 2010 44
Crop and irrigation
• A crop develops under optimal conditions when the
water need is met during the growing time.
• Irrigation is (1) the human activity that results in
supplying water, in addition to precipitation, to
encourage crop growth (ICID).
• Irrigation is (2) the application of water
supplementary to that supplied directly by
precipitation for the production of crops (Proceedings of the
Consultation on Irrigation in Africa, Lomé, Togo, 1997).

• Irrigation water is supplied to the soil in different

ways. Most of them greately improved during time.
Some criteria for selecting an irrigation system

• Pay attention to:

¾ Land morphology and shape;
¾ Soil type and characteristics;
¾ Crop features;
¾ Water availability;
¾ Quality of the irrigation water;
¾ Labour;
¾ Cost (opening and manteinance);
¾ Impact on the environment.
 9 Each method and version has pros and cons, depending on
specific conditions (i.e., agronomical, social, farming,
environmental, market, etc.). Such conditions will support
Criteria for selecting the method

the final choice.

9 There is no optimal solution (i.e., method or version) able

to satisfy all situations (i.e., agronomical, …).

9 The final choice should consider other than the specific

features of each method/variant (i.e., technological
characteristics, agronomical performance, etc.) and the
system design capacity. First, highlight the main target to
which the irrigation plan must cope with.
 Selection should be composed of (Keller e Bliesner)
five steps:
1. Identification of the objectives;
Criteria for selecting the method

2. Determination of the physical and institutional

characteristics of the realization site;
3. Pre-selection of one or more suitable plan;
4. Design and economical analysis of the selected plan(s);
5. Comparison of the results in order to select the most
suitable solution to achieve the objectives.
 Constraints and objectives
9Objectives are economical in many cases (i.e., selection of
the solution maximizing the cost/benefit ratio), in many
cases under some kind of constraints (i.e., economical,
social, environmental).
Criteria for selecting the method

9For example, one should question whether drift from

surface to pressurized irrigation (or from fix to mobile
system) is always the best solution when on-farm labour is
exuberant.
9Availability of starting capital might hamper the use of low
working cost plans (i.e., fixed).
9Environmental constraints (i.e., need to reduce surface
runoff and deep percolation, enhance wetlands, aquifer
recharge, strong wind).
9Social objectives (improvement of the working conditions).
9Preference of farmers and technicians among the selection
criteria.
 Relevant characteristics

ECONOMICAL: capital availability, credit admittance, labour

Criteria for selecting the method

cost.
SOCIAL: management skills of the irrigation manager, repair
and maintenance, qualified staff operating on technological
advanced devices.
INSTITUTIONAL: constraints or prohibitions, required
licences, existing financial incentives and support.
 Field supply of irrigation water (ICID)

• Surface irrigation
Application of water to the soil surface via furrows, border
strips, basins, wild flooding.

• Sprinkler irrigation
A method of irrigation by applying water under pressure (…)
as droplets or spray so as to uniformly wet the soil.

• Micro irrigation
A method of irrigation whereby water is applied in small but
frequent quantities, in such a way as to maintain the most
active part of the soil at a quasi-optimum moisture.
Surface
Surface
Sprinkler
Sprinkler
Sprinkler (mechanized)
Micro
Micro
 Water sources

¾Many irrigation systems are supplied with water from

large irrigation schemes, underground bores, dams,
creeks and rivers.

¾In all situations the potential impacts of the irrigation

system on the local environment (i.e., landscape,
biodiversity, erosion, etc.) should be considered and
understood.
 continued….

It is of paramount importance to identify the water source

and collect data including total annual volume, maximum
withdrawal rate and key water quality parameters such as
pH and salinity, and any other factors that might impact
on scheduling and use of the irrigation system.
Water sources

¾Inefficient irrigation systems that contribute nutrient rich

drainage water to downstream water resources (surface
runoff, deep percolation) can have major adverse
environmental impacts, and in some cases, severe health
impacts.
Impact on landscape and ecosystem
Furrow – soil erosion
Furrow – salt accumulation
Micro – soil erosion
 Outflow and contamination

Particles

Surface outflow

Nitrates
Ground outflow
 Factors affecting crop water use
CLIMATE:
-temperature
-relative humidity
-radiation
-wind

PLANT:
-type
-growth stage

SOIL:
-texture
-structure