Water Use in Agriculture

Drip Irrigation: An irrigation method that saves water and fertilizer by allowing water to drip slowly to the roots of plants, either onto the soil surface or directly onto the root zone, through a network of valves, pipes, tubing, and emitters

PROS- Efficient use of water, applied evenly, balanced distribution of nutrients and salts which enhances healthy growth of plants and conserves water which is environmentally friendly.

CONS- Expensive investment, requires frequent maintenance(cleaning through filtration) and constant monitoring

Drip Irrigation Diagram

Sprinkler: Water is distributed through a system of pipes usually by pumping. It is then sprayed into the air through sprinklers so that it breaks up into small water drops which fall to the ground.(Similar to natural rainfall)

PROS- Can work at low pressures, saving energy. Can achieve high uniformity of application, thus water efficient if combined with scheduling system. Easy to apply frequent light irrigation

CONS- Higher capital costs than rainguns. Need to take care in windy conditions that uniformity is not distorted

Sprinkler Diagram

Surface Irrigation: Irrigation where an entire field is flooded, or the water is directed into furrows or borders

PROS- Minimal capital investment or energy costs, less affected by climatic and water quality factors. Easy to see the effectiveness of the system.

CONS- Tend to be less efficient than other systems, labour intensive and sometimes difficult to engineer. Can be higher disease pressure (especially flood)

Surface Irrigation

In consideration of the pros and cons of each irrigation system I think the best system to be used in agriculture is the sprinkler system. Reasons being, it is able to work at low pressures and save energy. In a scheduled system, it can achieve high uniformity of application. It is also the most efficient way to water land quickly and evenly. The only concern to the sprinkler system is that it can be somewhat expensive however the quality and efficiency of the sprinkler outweighs the cons.