Location: Soil and Water Management Research
Project Number: 3090-13000-016-079-S
Project Type: Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Aug 1, 2024
End Date: Dec 31, 2026
Objective:
This agreement supports the Ogallala Aquifer Program, an ARS led research-education consortium addressing problems arising from declining water availability from the Ogallala Aquifer on the Central and Southern High Plains. The current objectives of the related in-house project and this agreement are:
1) Develop tools for evapotranspiration (ET) yield and crop water productivity determinations, and management in irrigated, dryland and mixed precipitation dependent/irrigated cropping systems.
2) Develop sensors, technologies, and models that facilitate site-specific irrigation management.
3) Develop water management decision support tools and databases to facilitate better water allocation and irrigation scheduling decisions under limited irrigation.
Approach:
To meet the needs of a growing world population, agricultural productivity must increase. Further agricultural production increases from much of the Great Plains region may not keep up with increases in demand because declines in aquifer levels and precipitation combine with increases in temperature and variability of rainfall to reduce our ability to meet crop water needs. Mean annual precipitation provides 40% to 80% of crop water demand; the remainder being supplied by irrigation from the Ogallala Aquifer. A host of water management strategies must be evaluated for their economic feasibility and effectiveness in prolonging the life of irrigated agriculture on the Central and Southern High Plains (C&SHP). These strategies include shifting to less water-intensive crops, shortening the irrigation season through judicious choice of crop (e.g., forages rather than grain crops), allocating water among portions of a field, and developing economically viable dryland cropping systems. The congressionally mandated Ogallala Aquifer Program (OAP) is part of project 3090-13000-016-000D, and is led by the ARS location in Bushland, Texas. The OAP objectives are in line with those of the parent project. The aim of these objectives is to develop knowledge and technologies to reduce the dependence of agriculture on groundwater from the Ogallala Aquifer on the C&SHP; and to provide knowledge and tools for water policy makers so they can make better decisions about ground water conservation practices based on science.
In this agreement a multi-disciplinary research approach is conducted on the lab bench, in small and large field plots, and with data from remotely sensed platforms operating at scales from plots to fields to regions. Field conditions vary from dryland cropping systems to marginally and fully irrigated plots and fields. Measured parameters are compared to traditional methods that have been used previously. Data from sensors and weather stations are compiled and integrated into irrigation schedules that are tested for their performance. Similarly, management protocols for dryland farming are tested initially at limited time and spatial scales and those that support either higher yields or reduced risk are investigated at larger spatial and temporal scales. Crop growth and yield are measured and assessed in the context of water consumed. Economic implications of research outcomes and alternative practices are assessed. Four universities contribute to the OAP: Kansas State University, Texas A&M University, Texas Tech University and West Texas A&M University. All four universities use similar methods as the in-house project. However, the four universities have access to field plots that differ from Bushland in soil type and climate. In addition, each university has expertise and resources in agricultural economics and technology transfer that are not available at the Bushland ARS location.
This agreement describes West Texas A&M University’s contribution to the OAP.
