Wind Effects: A clearer understanding of the drift, evaporation, and distortion of sprinkler patterns is needed for improving the design and operations of sprinkler irrigation systems.

Energy Efficient: The inefficient use of energy leads not only to increased production costs but also competes with other energy needs.

Irrigation Databases: Readily available data bases providing information on soils, water supplies, crop water requirements, and climatic conditions are needed for the design and operation of efficient irrigation systems and transfer of improved technology. All knowledge bases need to be reviewed and reformatted as new technology is developed.

Crop-Specific Water requirements (turf, ornamental, agricultural): The design, and scheduling, of irrigations require that timing and amount of water be specified for all crops grown with irrigation. Research data on crop water requirements need to be developed for different climates and crop conditions to improve many of the computer models for irrigation scheduling.

Temperature Control Methods: Irrigation systems have the potential for use in crop cooling and prevention of freeze damage, and these capabilities must be properly designed and managed.

Humid Area Irrigation Practices: Schemes for irrigation in humid areas need to be improved. Specific irrigation practices, systems, and recommendations are needed where rainfall can exceed the annual irrigation application amount.

Group II: Wastewater Utilization on Irrigated Land. Develop economical irrigation technologies that utilize biological and chemical wastes to prevent environmental degradation and wasted natural resources.

Rural, Residential, Municipal, Food Processing and Industrial Wastes: Disposal of these wastes is often accomplished by using irrigation systems dedicated specifically to this purpose. It is important to determine the design, management and operation criteria for each application.

Animal Manure Systems: Animal manure in solid form is often applied to he land directly, and animal manure liquid is typically applied through irrigation systems. Design criteria are required to prevent the degradation of both the surface and ground water sources.

Aesthetic and Health Considerations: Waste disposal often can cause unsightly and other unpleasant conditions. Understanding and development of systems that can be integrated into the surroundings is required. Consideration of insects, odors, and other health affecting issues require added databases and management criteria.

Air and Water Pollution Control Systems: Irrigation systems may offer solutions to controlling air and water pollution as well as providing ways to rehabilitating polluted conditions. Increased information is needed for appropriate selection and management of these systems.

Nutrient Management Considerations: In addition to system design criteria, improved management of irrigation systems is important for the proper utilization of wastes to prevent environmental damage and provide a beneficial use of nutrients contained in the wastes.

Group III: Irrigation Standards and Evaluation Guidelines. Irrigation standards and evaluation guidelines are needed to improve performance, operator safety and management of all irrigation systems (turf, ornamental, and agricultural).

Uniformity of Water Applications: Criteria are needed for evaluation procedures that appropriately compare water application, techniques and methods for all irrigation systems.

Optimization of Chemical Applications: Chemicals are often applied with surface, sprinkler, and micro-irrigation systems. The economics, efficiency and environmental safety of chemical use are not clearly understood. The amount of each chemical and its safe use are important issues and need extensive research for each chemical applied with irrigation water.

Development of ANSI / ISO / EC Standards: The ability to compete in the market place and provide for the interchangeability of like components can be accomplished only with appropriate standardization. The development of standards is important to the industry and can be greatly enhanced with assistance of university and government scientists. Proper Standards can increase ease of maintenance, safety and operational efficiency for the end user.

Operator Safety Requirements: Safety must be an important aspect of all irrigation operations. The dangers of working with electricity, mechanical devises, and chemicals all must be considered in the design and operation of irrigation systems.

Equipment Safety Requirements: In addition to initial cost and performance, different materials, chemicals, water qualities, and operational environments need to be understood for evaluating different components of systems, and need consideration in the safe and effective design life of systems.

Long vs. Short Term Performance Requirements: Crop and ornamental plant growth may influence the operation of a system. This may yield non-representative results when comparing operational systems to design conditions.

Seasonal vs. Single-Event Evaluation Methods: Many irrigation systems are evaluated at a single point in time. Because a system is used many times during the season, this evaluation may not be representative of overall system management. Uniformity of application over the full growing season is a major issue.

Total Area vs. Inappropriate Subset Evaluations: Often evaluations are made with a sub-sample under an irrigation system. Because of edge effects and system non-uniformity, the sub-sample may yield significantly inaccurate overall performance data. Criteria for evaluating total areas are needed to account for system soil and micrometeorological conditions.

Material Suitability Requirements: The operating environment in terms of water quality, chemical application, and animal pressures is an important consideration in selecting the most appropriate materials. Since most irrigation systems distribute chemicals, standards should be set for chemical interactions and concentrations.

Interchangeability / Compatibility Requirements: The maintenance and operation of systems are much easier when repair parts are compatible and readily available. This also enhances maintenance and operational efficiency of an irrigation system.

Group IV: Irrigation Sensors, Controls and Information Technologies.  Adapt and promote adoption of new computer technologies for irrigation scheduling, system control and operation, and precision irrigated agriculture. These must be consistent with current economic and environmental constraints and must improve collection, processing and management of data by today’s irrigation community.

Field and Remote Sensors: Additional data, which can be sensed automatically and retrieved in real time, can provide the necessary input to automated and computer controlled irrigation systems. Crop conditions, soil water status, climatic conditions, and water availability are important parameters that potentially can be monitored and improve irrigation management.

Computer Technologies: Personal computers provide an economically available means to process data and can be programmed for the control and operation of irrigation systems. These technologies can also be adapted to special uses and applications with irrigation systems.

Automated Control Systems: The efficient use of irrigation systems depends on the timely control of the water and chemicals being applied. Improved control can reduce human error or ability to control the system appropriately, thus improving operational efficiency.

Cost Effective Communication Systems: Sensors and computers are ineffective if data can not be readily transferred between them and to automatic controllers. Reliable communications technology is required.

Geographic Information Systems (GIS): Areas being irrigated are not necessarily uniform. GIS systems provide a technology to process data over space and time. These systems can provide the necessary outputs to permit differential control of the application of water and chemicals and their efficient use.

Global Positioning Systems (GPS): Many remote-sensing options can be more readily accomplished by scanning large areas rapidly. GPS technology can be used to resolve the location of remotely sensed data for direct input to a GIS system and its subsequent use in both design and operation of irrigation systems.

Precision Irrigation Databases: Cooperation by industry, growers, university, states and federal research institutions are needed to develop quality databases for precision irrigation. Readily available databases providing information on soils, water supplies, crop water requirements, and climatic conditions are needed before the design of irrigation systems.

Group V: Irrigation System Manufacturing and Recycling. Develop efficient, economical environmentally sound manufacturing, recovery and recycling techniques for irrigation systems and components.

System Component Requirements: Compatible materials must be used in manufacturing, design and installation of irrigation systems. Irrigation manufacturers should also account for the recovery of obsolete equipment using appropriate recycling and material disposal techniques.

Manufacturing Process and Disposition Requirements: Pollution of water and air must be minimized during the manufacturing process. It is important to recognize the problems associated with the abandonment of obsolete piping materials, structures and other irrigation equipment, which can be addressed with proper design.

Respectfully submitted by the Research Committee for Board Review and adoption at the 2000 November meeting in Phoenix, Arizona.

Committee Members:

Dale Bucks, USDA-ARS 

John Chapman, Retired

Freddie Lamm, KSU 

Todd Trooien, SDSU

Jack Butler, Roberts Irrigation

Terry Howell, USDA-ARS

Dale Heermann, USDA-ARS

John Replogle, USWCL

Craig Malsam, Valmont Ind. Inc.

Al Dedrick, USDA-ARS

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