Study highlights economic trade-offs in irrigation design

Abstract

The recent drought and growing conflict amongst users given water scarcity have put the need for efficient water-use in the agriculture sector firmly in the spotlight again. To optimise water-use and remain economically sustainable producers are increasingly looking at ways to do more with less water. In future, farmers will need to produce higher yields through beneficial water use, especially given rising input costs and more erratic weather patterns emerging. Water use issues are compounded by the fact that demand outstrips supply in many parts of the country. Besides the growing demand for water for socio-economic growth, other factors, such as ageing water-supply infrastructure and variable rainfall, are adding to emerging water pressures in South Africa. Between 1991 and 2008 the WRC invested in several research and technology exchange projects to develop models for calculating irrigation costs and testing application in practice, reports Dr Gerhard Backeberg, WRC Executive Manager: Water Utilisation in Agriculture.

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