Author(s): Clifford A. Pugh
Linked Author(s): Clifford A. Pugh
Keywords: In-Stream Flows; Efficiency; Conservation; Operating canal systems; Irrigation; Environmental impacts; Environmental restoration; Fish passage
Abstract: The American West has been progressively developed for farming over the past 100 years. As farmers settled the arid West, it became evident that rainfall didn' t always come at the right time, the right place, or in the amounts needed for homesteaders to thrive and prosper. In 1902, the Bureau of Reclamation was created to help alleviate this problem by storing snowmelt and other water for later use and to create conveyance systems to move water to lands where it was needed. Canals and other water delivery systems are a big part of the total water management picture, yet most irrigation canal systems are still operated as they were 70 years ago. Modern methods of operating irrigation canal systems can significantly improve water use efficiency and make water available for other purposes, but implementation of these methods is not yet widespread on older projects. This paper will discuss modern methods of canal operation and control that making existing projects more efficient, thereby making water available for environmental needs and other uses.
Year: 1999