Water Resources Overview

On June 14 and 15, the Auburn University Water Resources Center hosted the Water Resources Conference.

The Water Resources Center’s main goal is to bridge the gap among science, people and policies. The center, which was established by Auburn University President Dr. Ed Richardson in 2007, is a part of the Auburn University Natural Resources Management and Development Institute.

According to the center, water is the source of life and may soon become the country’s most sought-after and fought-over natural resource. Water also could become more important to our national security than oil.

Problems such as water scarcity and poor water quality directly affect our ability to grow food and fiber, produce energy and protect the health and well-being of our citizens and society.

According to Larry Fillmer, executive director for the institute, 12 percent of all the fresh water in the United States flows through Alabama.

“Such abundance in the face of looming global scarcity demands that we take the steps necessary to manage our water resources as prudently as possible with an eye toward conservation and increased productivity,” Fillmer said.

The keynote speaker for the conference was Sandra Postel, the director of the Global Water Policy Project in Amherst, Mass. Postel’s work is dedicated to the preservation and sustainable use of Earth’s freshwater ecosystems.

Other speakers included James E. Hook, a professor at the University of Georgia, and Marlon Cook for the Alabama Geological Survey. Hook specializes in crop and soil sciences, as well as soil, water and waste managements.

Hook spoke on the economic benefits and opportunities for irrigation in the Southeast. Cook spoke about groundwater sustainability in Alabama.

While Alabama and the Southeast are rich in water resources, the region is not immune to these problems. The quality and supply of clean water in Alabama are increasingly jeopardized and may be inadequate in the future.

According to Graeme Lockaby, director of the center, human activities have increased in the Southeast, and, as a result, levels of contaminants in surface water and groundwater have risen accordingly.

“The hydrology of streams and rivers has been modified (both intentionally and unintentionally) by extraction of water for cities and agricultures, as well as by impoundments for recreation and other purposes,” Lockaby said. “As a result, both water quality and quantity issues have increased.”

Lockaby added that beyond these cumulative impacts, water and other resources along Alabama’s coastline also are under direct, localized pressure from increased urbanization and other land uses that apply additional burdens on water resource supply and quality.

Hook focused much of his lecture on crop production and irrigation.

According to Hook, crop production requires “man-made” input, such as irrigation systems, along with the natural resources of air, sun, soil and water.

“A good farmer is one who manages dollars and cents, as well as the resources he is given,” Hook said.

According to Hook, center pivot irrigation systems are most commonly used for farming in the Southeast. However, drip irrigation is increasing in Georgia.

A center pivot is a moving irrigation system (lateral) that rotates around a fixed point (pivot). The application rate is the inches of water that the irrigation system applies per hour. The application rate of a center pivot varies laterally because the center pivot lateral covers more area per unit length toward the outer end. This characteristic of the center pivot complicates its design. With proper design and installation, a center pivot sprinkler system can achieve high irrigation uniformity.

Drip irrigation (sometimes called trickle irrigation) works by applying water slowly and directly to the soil. The high efficiency of drip irrigation results from two primary factors. The first is that the water soaks into the soil before it can evaporate or run off. The second is that the water is only applied where it is needed (at the plant's roots), rather than being sprayed everywhere.

“Lacking rainfall results in inefficiencies for farmers,” Hook said. “Profit margins disappear during droughts.”

Hook added that the Southeast is important because there is so much competition for farmers.

“The competition is high for growers, and water is key to production in the Southeast,” he said.

According to the center, only an estimated 109,000 acres of Alabama farmland, less than 9 percent of the state’s total row-crop acreage, are irrigated.

Cook’s lecture focused on groundwater sustainability in Alabama’s five major hydrogeologic provinces.

According to Cook, the Appalachian Plateau in North Alabama is the poorest place in the state for sustainable quantities of groundwater.

Auburn is located in the Piedmont province, and Alabama’s coastal plain makes up the largest province in the state.

“Alabama is a very diverse geological state, which means we have a very diverse system of groundwater storage,” Cook said.

Cook added that Southeast Alabama has the highest diversity of geology and aquifers in the state, mainly in the Dothan area.

“Dothan is constantly looking for new groundwater sources,” he said. “They produce 15 to 20 million gallons of water per day.”

According to Cook, there are two major types of groundwater recharge: shallow and deep.

Recharge is the process by which groundwater is replenished. A recharge area is where water from precipitation is transmitted downward to an aquifer. Most areas, unless composed of solid rock or covered by development, allow a certain percentage of total precipitation to reach the water table. However, in some areas, more precipitation will infiltrate than in others.

“Shallow groundwater recharge is the only thing keeping Alabama streams flowing,” he said.

According to Cook, there is a growing demand for groundwater.

“Everyone wants to know where the 55 inches of rainfall we get a year goes,” he said. “That rainfall goes into the public water supply, as well as the agricultural water supply.”

According to Fillmer, the well-being of Alabama is dependent upon our water resources.

“That dependency will be underscored in the near future,” he said. “We have the capabilities at Auburn University to avoid many of the threats to water that exist throughout the United Sates and to take proactive measures to not only maintain but increase the availability of clean water in our state.”

Written by Tess Hollis, Extension News and Public Affairs Assistant.

Posted by Jim Langcuster at June 21, 2007 03:46 PM | TrackBack