Course: BFM 101 Biofuels Fundamentals

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Industrial Watershed Impacts and Agricultural Production Watershed Impacts

Industry has impacted both water quality and quantity. Factories were commonly built near waterways (lakes, rivers or streams) for transportation ease. One of the most famous watershed impact cases occurred in Ohio in 1969 where industrial waste and debris caused the Cuyahoga River to catch fire. The river has since been cleaned; however, industrial waste still makes its way into some watersheds today. This can occur through contamination of groundwater (spills, improper waste management, etc.) or through direct (point source) discharge into surface water.

Not only disposal, but also the removal of water can affect watersheds. Many different industries use water. For example, ethanol and biodiesel plants use an average of 4 gallons of water for every gallon of fuel produced. A plant producing 100 million gallons of biofuel per year uses at least 400 million gallons of water per year, or nearly 1.1 million gallons per day. In comparison, a poultry processing plant uses 2,500 gallons of water per 1,000 pounds of live bird weight processed. An average plant will process 240,000 broilers, weighing 3-5 pounds each, per day and will use 2.4 million gallons of water per day [2].

Crop production requires water. Agriculture is a major user of ground and surface water in the United States, accounting for 80 percent of the Nation’s consumptive water use and over 90 percent in many Western States [3].

Overuse or misuse of water can lead to environmental problems and sustainability issues. Soil erosion, sedimentation, nutrient runoff and pesticide movement into the watershed are potential effects of overuse or misuse of water. Fertilizer timing, application method and rate are factors in nutrient movement. Choice of herbicides (the number one pesticide contaminant of water) should be based on the site characteristics and the leaching and runoff potentials of the herbicide.

Water demand varies with crop and location. Overuse of water can impact the water table, which in turn can impact the watershed through groundwater-fed surface waters. The type of irrigation equipment used (sprinkler vs. drip, ditch vs. center pivot, etc.), the management of irrigation (monitoring needs and uniformity), and irrigation scheduling—all can impact water quantity and quality in the watershed. Nationally, 40 percent of the groundwater withdrawals are for irrigation. For example, agriculture accounts for 3 percent of California’s economic production but consumes 85 percent of groundwater withdrawal.

If irrigation uses more groundwater than is recharged the watershed as well as the aquifer will be diminished. Irrigation practices in the Ogallala aquifer (extending from South Dakota to Texas) have drastically diminished the aquifer by 100 ft. in some areas [4,5,6,7]. Cropping changes may lead to changes in irrigation needs. Bioenergy cropping choices may decrease or increase the need for irrigation.

Resources provided by the eXtension Farm Energy Community of Practice at http://www.extension.org/ag+energy

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