Course: GFM 103 Exterior Environmental Management

Reading and Audio-Visual Assignments

(1/2)
Advancements in Irrigation Efficiency

Advancements In Irrigation Efficiency – Saving Water in the Landscape (courtesy of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in cooperation with the Irrigation Association) is one of the most accurate and to-the-point presentations on today’s landscape irrigation status-quo.

An irrigation system is not an appliance:

- It is a systems integration process;
- Knowledge of hydraulics, electricity, water resources, plants and soils are a must;
- There is no substitute for experience;
- Site visits are a must before, during, and after construction;
- “When the water is cut off, the green industry closes its doors.” – Ron Eberle, discussing 2002 Colorado drought (described by many as the worst state drought in 300 years);
- The people are more important than the (irrigation) products.

Irrigation Association’s Best Management Practices (BMP):

1. Assure overall quality of the irrigation system;
2. Design the system for the efficient and uniform distribution of water;
3. Install the irrigation system to meet the design criteria;
4. Maintain the irrigation system for optimum performance;

Manage the irrigation system to respond to the changing requirement for water in the landscape.