Location: Soil and Water Management Research
Title: Aquifer health and irrigation prospects in the Southern High Plains, Southeast, and Mid AtlanticAuthor
|
Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only Publication Acceptance Date: 7/9/2024 Publication Date: 7/10/2024 Citation: Evett, S.R. 2024. Aquifer health and irrigation prospects in the Southern High Plains, Southeast, and Mid Atlantic [abstract]. American Peanut Research and Education Society (APRES) Annual Meeting, Beyond the Dust Bowl: Peanut Production Challenges from the Ground Up, July 9-11, 2024, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Paper No. 27. Interpretive Summary: Technical Abstract: Although two thirds of U.S. peanut acreage is grown without irrigation, irrigation does provide much of the highest quality and quantity of production. Net returns above variable production cost average $278 for irrigated versus $109 for non-irrigated peanuts and yields average 4,700 lbs/acre for irrigated compares with 3,400 lbs/acre for non-irrigated peanuts. With climate change there is an increase in long term and flash droughts in the Southwest, Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions for which irrigation is an effective mitigation strategy. Aquifer declines are, however, becoming important limitations on irrigation water supplies. Wells in the southern Ogallala aquifer region that flowed at 1,000 gpm when drilled are now delivering 100 to 150 gpm if they have not gone dry. Declines in the Pennsylvanian and Southeastern Coastal Plain aquifer systems are affecting water supplies in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions, and inter-state surface water disagreements are bringing curtailment to surface water supplies in some areas. Nonetheless, improvements in peanut genetics and management, including irrigation management and technologies, have substantially increased the crop water productivity of peanut production systems, and have the potential to reduce aquifer withdrawals when combined with effective public policy. |
