Volume 3 Issue 10 November/December 2012
“We’re coming to your meeting,” said Craig Simpson, general manager of the East Columbia Basin Irrigation District. “I told my board, this Operations and Management Workshop in January is the meeting we are always trying to have in the hallways of every conference we go to.” Craig is absolutely correct in his description of […]
Volume 3 Issue 9 October 2012
The very best part of my work is the many great people I am able to meet, spend time with, and learn from. Additionally, the most import mission of Irrigation Leader magazine is to help our readers share ideas and learn from the examples and experiences of others. Sonia Lambert, general manager for Cameron […]
Volume 3 Issue 8 September 2012
How many jobs have the responsibility of ensuring public safety, promoting the economic vitality of regions, managing numerous staff, and maintaining the efficient operation of expansive infrastructure, all under the direction and guidance of a relatively small board of directors? Many important positions have one or two of the above-listed responsibilities; however, few jobs […]
Volume 3 Issue 7 July/August 2012
“How has the water business changed in the last 30 years?” That was one of the questions I asked Jim Broderick, executive director for the Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District, in the featured interview of this issue. Jim’s answer was, “drastically,” and he is right. The water business has changed drastically in the last […]
Volume 3 Issue 6 June 2012
“Will you really have enough to write about?” That was a question asked when the idea of the Irrigation Leader magazine was first pitched to one potential advertiser. “Yes, there is plenty to write about. The magazine will focus on solutions and provide a forum for district managers to share ideas. The challenge […]
Volume 3 Issue 5 May 2012
Traveling the southwest of the United States, one is struck by the vastness of the desert and the seemingly inhospitable nature of the land toward anything but the most hardy of desert plants. Rainfall in the Yuma, Arizona, area is just over 3 inches a year. However, with irrigation the area has some of […]
Volume 3 Issue 4 April 2012
The history of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) is muddled. Though passed with the greatest of intentions to save jeopardized plant and animal species in 1973, surprisingly few species have actually been recovered. Instead of serving as a catalyzing force towards the promotion of environmental stewardship, the ESA has become nothing short of a […]
Volume 3 Issue 3 March 2012
When I was in my early teens, the machinery we had on our family farm in southwestern Nebraska took 22 hours to disc 160 acres of ground. For those a bit more removed from farming, 160 acres is one-quarter of a square mile and is commonly called “a quarter.” Twenty-two hours is a lot […]
Volume 3 Issue 2 February 2012
The Administration’s fiscal year 2013 budget request for the Bureau of Reclamation was released on February 13. Reclamation’s budget request is nearly $1 billion, as it has been for several years. Considering the state of the federal budget in general, that figure is probably generous. Considering the needs of our aging infrastructure and the […]
Volume 3 Issue 1 January 2012
Nothing demonstrates the value of water like a drought. The consequences of the current Texas drought are shocking: over $5 billion in agriculture losses so far. Should 2012 prove to be equally dry, Texas will experience a new record drought, worse than during the 1950s. Jim Parks, President of the Texas Water Conservation Association […]