The Causes of Waterlogging from Irrigation Essay

In the event that erosion has become an extreme issue farmers have begun to watch more it much more closely. Ways to protect the water have been put into use

Forty percent of the earth’s land cover is classified as either arid or semi-arid environment (Clark Davis & Kay 1983), in which, billions of people mainly from developing countries, live and work. Many of the arid zone environment is classified as to dry to grow crops (Creswell & Martin 1998). Still, crops like sorghum, millets (CONSORTIUM 2011) and cashes (Creswell & Martin 1998) are grown with reasonable success, as the plants or farmers have been able to adapt to the dry environment (Creswell & Martin 1998).

After intense search we were able to find different types of irrigation systems that represent different forms of irrigation which are also the most commonly used in their category and generally here in the central valley. There are three categories that form the irrigation system: flood, sprinkler, and drip. Flood irrigation providing us with furrow irrigation, sprinkler irrigation having the center pivot irrigation, and drip irrigation having its own beneficial water conservation uses, each which waters our crops but not all in the most effective way possible. Furrow irrigation for example tends to flood the crops with water in order to water them, which is not good for the crops as they will be taking in too much water and drowning. When farmers use furrow irrigation they use as much water at once in

Water is the most relied upon resource on earth and if it disappeared life could not and would not exist on this planet. So if one of our main sources of water in South Australia, The Murray Darling-Basin, becomes unusable then we would need to find the problem and do everything possible to stop it or counteract it. This report investigates on salinity in the Murray Darling-Basin, using the issue question “Is there enough being done to counteract the effects of salinity in the Murray?” as the focus. Salinity is a key significant environmental challenge which the Murray faces and if left unmanaged it could cause serious implications for water quality, plant growth, biodiversity, land productivity, infrastructure and could lead to a loss of

The water in urban wellfields is contaminated with saltwater since the water flow had changed direction. The water also contains high levels of nutrients (particularly phosphorous) because of runoff from the developed areas.

As we all understand, the Earth has many landmarks and it is these physical features that create an abundant and organized system within which we thrive. One of the most abundant natural resources on the planet is water and the importance of this element is as crucial as any other. For the fortunate few who get to utilize it, this amazing reserve provides us with our necessity for daily consumption as well as our ability to grow just about anything we please. Common irrigation practices are essential for gathering water into a contained area to grow crops that would not typically survive in areas without heavy rainfall. As a matter of fact, “irrigation is an ancient practice that originated along the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in what is now Iraq” and is now the result of an estimated 40 percent of all crops grown around the world (Water Encyclopedia). This tactic has provided many different cultures with numerous varieties of crops as well as growth in crop yield which in turn dramatically advances human civilization. As we develop into a more progressive society, the tools and systems used to grow our crops also become more intelligent as well as sustainable

Severe water scarcity could be imminent in the not so distant future. Flooding crop furrows has been an inexpensive irrigation method for over six thousand years. Though traditional, it is very wasteful. An excessive amount of the water evaporates into he air, or soaks into the ground while the plants receive very little. The excess water drains into rivers and underground aquifers. The water running from the furrows is polluted with fertilizers. The constant use of flooding creates erosion, waterlogging and salinization of the soil. 40 percent of the world’s food grows on irrigated soil.

The water shortages in California are causing hardships on the agricultural industry. There isn’t enough fresh water to support both the human population and the natural environment. One way to prevent water shortages would be to improve the irrigation systems the farmers use. Instead of using various types of irrigation systems that waterlog the soil, they should increase the use of a drip-irrigation system.

Saline environments tend to hinder agricultural production by lowering crop yields, often quite substantially. The traditional response to the threat of salinity-induced crop yield reductions is to apply water in excess of plant requirements so as to leach the salts out of the root zone. (Letey and Dinar, 1986).

The Murray Darling river travels through many states in Australia including NSW and Queensland making it the biggest and most important source of water in Australia. The Murray Darling is largely affected by salinity in the water and soil. Salinity is a reoccurring problem in Australia especially in The Murray Darling Basin, as salinity dates back to 140 million years ago when seas dried up and left salt on the sea floor, When the Murray Darling was discovered, traces of salt were found in the water and in the soil. Salinity in the Murray Darling makes the inhabitable for some species. Salinity is caused in many ways including Irrigation and clearance of deep-rooted native vegetation with shallow-rooted introduces plants. Both these points

(Hasan and Özay 2002, 73-74). As Albiac (2008) reports, development of pipe network distribution and drip irrigation methods in other countries led the farmers to have remarkable irrigation efficiency in drought (143). Such technologies have already been used in China, but they are not widely spread in China’s agriculture. One investigation in China on rice paddy irrigation systems development was performed and it revealed that using the fry-foot paddy irrigation (when no water flooded the field) instead of flooding irrigation (when the rice field is completely flooded) significantly (40-60%) reduces water consumption (Xiaoping, Qiangsheng and Bin 2004, 351). Furthermore, drip irrigation method was applied in arid Northern China and it raised the water usage efficiency (Du et al 2007). However, introduction of new irrigation technologies faced some difficulties in China. As Hodstedt (2010) noticed in his article, the water saved by these technologies such as drip irrigation systems was simply spent on more food production and, therefore, did not reduce the water shortage. Also, as he reported, this caused two other environmental problems. Firstly, the water, which was the supply for underground water and aquifers as it was lost by deep percolation and leakage, became unavailable after the water-saving technologies were introduced and this strengthened the aquifers depleting along with its overpumping. Secondly, after

Deforestation in Australia What is the issue? Australia is among one of the wealthiest nations. It has a small population of almost 24million but has a high rate of extensive deforestation and degradation since the later 18th century during European settlement. Most of Australia, around 7.6million

The natural concentration for salt in soil, differentiates between a multitude of different levels, varying from 3-10 mmhos (unit used to measure salt level in soil), so it is hard to tell exactly how much concentration is exactly needed for the plant to grow, but with the way that we are using the salt, and how much the plant growth rate goes down, based on the amount of salt we used, it is easy to tell that as humans we have caused a lot of damage to the soil. Every day, we use much more then we need, causing the environment harm.

Saline intrusion is the movement of saline water into freshwater, which can lead to contamination of drinking water sources and other consequences. This is a serious issue that we face today, but with the right actions the public can put an end to it. Salinization on the coast can lead to the increase of sodium ions in soil and water. This is important because high salt levels can affect osmosis, the process by which some organisms, such as plants, take up or give away water. As the number of salt ions in the surrounding environment increase, water will flow out of an organism towards the higher concentration, causing dehydration and death (Molly Webster, 2007).

Plants in natural environments are being exposed to increasing amounts of salinity. One-third of the land being irrigated worldwide is affected by salinity, but salinity also occurs in non-irrigated land (Allen et al., 1994). There are large areas of primary salinity, but secondary salinity can be detected within one hundred years of settlement on an area of land. Drought and salinity are connected because in many regions, raising plants requires irrigation. The irrigation water contains calcium, magnesium, and sodium (Serrano et al., 1999). As the water evaporates and transpires, calcium and magnesium