Rio Grande Basin Initiative
The Rio Grande Basin is a highly productive agricultural area, with irrigated agriculture claiming more than 85 percent of its water. Population growth and urban water demands in the basin are expected to double in the next 50 years.
The Basin’s agricultural crop industry, comprised principally of cotton, grain sorghum, grapefruit, chilies, pecans, citrus, sugar cane, and vegetables has an economic impact of more than $1 billion annually. By investing in improvements in irrigation conveyance systems and efficient on-farm water use, both urban and agricultural interests can benefit from increased water availability and resulting economic enhancements.
A team of Experiment Station researchers, Extension specialists, and county agents in Texas and New Mexico are working with local irrigation districts, agricultural producers, homeowners, and other agencies to address water issues through the federally funded Rio Grande Basin Initiative.The initiative focuses on increasing available water through efficient irrigation and water conservation.The project is administered by the Texas Water Resources Institute in collaboration with New Mexico State University.
Objectives
- Meet present and future water demand through conservation measures.
- Expand efficient use of available water resources by fostering needed improvements in water conveyance canals and implementing more efficient irrigation systems.
- Create new water supplies, as identified in the State Water Plan.
- Broaden outreach and teaching programs on how to efficiently utilize water resources to agricultural producers and urban water users.
Components
- Irrigation District Studies: Conduct economic and engineering evaluations of irrigation district infrastructure needs and develop data and strategies for efficiently delivering water to facilitate infrastructure improvement projects.
- Irrigation Education and Training: Establish an Irrigation Technology Center to evaluate and demonstrate high-performance technologies and cropping systems.
- Institutional Incentives for Efficient Water Use: Identify legal and institutional barriers that keep irrigation districts and growers from investing in or creating incentives for water conservation and develope better irrigation district management plans.
- On-Farm Irrigation System Management: Deliver tools that improve on-farm irrigation scheduling, maximize efficient water use, and use the most effective irrigation systems.
- Urban Water Conservation: Develop strategies for increased landscape water conservation and reuse of municipal effluent, and provide education for improved in-home water usage.
- Environment, Ecology, and Water Quality Protection: Deliver methods for riparian and aquatic weed control, and produce educational programs that concurrently support healthy wildlife populations.
- Saline and Wastewater Management and Water Reuse: Support the appropriate use of saline and reclaimed water resources to irrigate urban landscapes and agricultural crops.
- Basin-Wide Hydrology, Salinity Modeling, and Technology: Assess impacts of land-use changes on water demands and suggest alternative management strategies for various scenarios.
Collaborators
- Texas Water Resources Institute
- Texas Agricultural Experiment Station
- Texas Cooperative Extension
- New Mexico Cooperative Extension
- NMSU Agricultural Experiment Station
- NMSU Water Task Force
- USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service
- U.S. Bureau of Reclamation
- Regional Water Planning Groups
- Texas Department of Agriculture
- Texas Water Development Board
- Irrigation Districts
- Commodity Organizations
- North American Development Bank
- Border Environmental Conservation Commission
- Selected Consultants
- International Boundary and Water Commission
- Lower Rio Grande Development Council
Funding Agency
- U.S. Department of Agriculture - Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service