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overview
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. This ERS
research program investigates water allocation,
water conservation, and water management issues facing irrigated
agriculture. The focus is on irrigated agriculture, but other sectors
are examined for their competitive influence on water supplies and
impacts of water reallocations among agricultural, environmental,
and urban users. It includes consideration of the role of water
markets, producer decisions, institutional adjustments (including
Federal water infrastructure), and water-related policies with respect
to resource costs, water quality, profitability, and environmental
effects, as well as analysis of the adoption of water conserving
technologies. More overview...
features
Agricultural Risks in a Water-Short
World: Producer Adaptation and Policy Directions–On May
24-25, 2004, ERS co-sponsored with the Farm Foundation a workshop
on the economic impact and policy responses associated with the
increasing risk of water-supply shortfalls that limit irrigated
production. The workshop provided a forum for interaction among
those concerned with farm-level responses to water shortages and
those concerned with policy and institutional responses to reduced
water availability.
Irrigation in the
American West: Area, Water and Economic Activity—Examines
irrigation in the American West based on consistent Federal data
sources. Irrigation is discussed using three measures: irrigated
area, water use in irrigation, and the sales value of crops produced.
Water Resources Development. (6/00)
Economic
and Conservation Tradeoffs of Regulatory Vs. Incentive-Based Water
Policy in the Northwest—Water quality, endangered salmon
species, and Native American fishing rights have heightened the
competition for Columbia and Snake River Basin water resources.
This analysis examines both onfarm water conservation and agricultural
economic tradeoffs across five broad regulatory and conservation-incentive
water policy perspectives for the Pacific Northwest. Water Resources
Development. (6/00)
recommended readings
Water Markets:
Implications for Rural Areas of the West—Market transfers
of water from irrigated agriculture are viewed as one of the most
likely ways to accommodate new demands for water supplies. However,
case studies find the impact of these transfers on agriculturally
dependent rural communities to be significant because the costs
accrue to the area of origin and the benefits to the area of new
water use.
Agricultural Resources and
Environmental Indicators, 2003—This ERS basebook contains
a wealth of information covering a broad range of subjects in resource
and environmental economics. Chapter 2 covers water resources (water
use and value, irrigation water management, and water quality impacts
of agriculture).
See all recommended readings...
recommended data products
The data product Western
Irrigated Agriculture summarizes the farm-structural characteristics
for irrigated farms in the 17 Western States based on USDA’s
1998 Farm and Ranch Irrigation Survey.
recent research developments
Meetings, conferences, and activities
of ERS researchers in irrigation and water use.
related briefing rooms
Agricultural Chemicals and Production
Technology
Conservation and
Environmental Policy
questions and answers
Important research questions and answers about water
use and management. New questions about characteristics
of western agriculture by farm size.
related links
USDA/NRCS—Maintains
an irrigation website with technical water management information
and links to irrigation-based search engines and many other websites
of irrigation interest.
USDA/NASS conducts the Farm
and Ranch Irrigation Survey, a primary source of irrigation
and water management information.
See all related links...
glossary
Brief definitions of irrigation systems
and land treatment practices, water use terms, and irrigation water-use
efficiency terms.
maps and images gallery
poll
Are there other irrigation & water use topics not addressed
here in which you would be interested?
email us...
for more information, contact:
Noel Gollehon
web administration: webadmin@ers.usda.gov
page updated: August
17, 2004
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