ARS | Publication request: Strategies to Maximize Income with Limited Water

Submitted to: Proceedings of the Central Plains Irrigation Conference
Publication Type: Proceedings
Publication Acceptance Date: February 27, 2007
Publication Date: February 27, 2007
Citation: Trout, T.J. 2007. Strategies to Maximize Income with Limited Water; 19th Annual Proceedings of the Central Plains Irrigation Conference.PP 48-52

Technical Abstract: The best economic strategy for water limited agricultural production will often be maximizing income per unit of water available. This requires information about the crop response (yield) to water applied, ways to maximize the effectiveness of rainfall and efficiency of irrigation, forecasts of future weather, the costs and value of production, and strategies to optimally allocate the limited water supply. Growers can make better decisions if they can predict at the beginning of the cropping season what crops and how many acres to plant. Then during the season, they need to know where and when to apply their limited water supply for the next week and the remainder of the season. They also could benefit from understanding the economic risks that result from inaccurate forecasts of irrigation water supply, weather, and crop and input prices. This is a very complex problem best solved with the help of Decision Support Systems that incorporate simulation models of crop growth; projections of weather; and inputs of available irrigation water, production costs, and crop prices.