Volume 12 Issue 9 October Washington State Edition
By Kris Polly Many things come together to make irrigated agriculture possible: infrastructure, including dams, reservoirs, and canals; new inventions to promote safe water delivery; education for professionals; and governmental relations work to ensure that legislators understand what farmers need to be successful. The Washington State Potato Commission supports research, promotion, and governmental affairs for Washington State’s $7.5 billion potato growing and processing industry. As Executive Director Chris Voigt tells us in our cover story, irrigation is an essential piece of this industry, as are the water supplies guaranteed by the dams on the Snake River. Also in this magazine, Jeff Sutton, the general manager of the Tehama-Colusa Canal Authority,…
Volume 12 Issue 9 October
By Kris Polly Across the irrigation industry, professionals are planning infrastructure improvements, both large and small; promoting innovation; and training and educating staff. Jeff Sutton is the general manager of the Tehama- Colusa Canal Authority (TCCA), which delivers water to 17 Central Valley Project water contractors that serve 150,000 acres of agriculture. As a member of the Sites Joint Powers Authority, the TCCA is advancing the construction of the proposed 1.5‑million-acre-foot Sites Reservoir. Mr. Sutton tells us about progress on this immense project. Justin Eary, the manager of eastern Oregon’s Horsefly Irrigation District, tells us about the piping projects his district is undertaking to conserve water in its arid environment. …
UPL’s Products and Services for Irrigation and Canal Districts
UPL is the fifth-largest agrochemical company in the world and provides an array of aquatic chemicals to help irrigation districts keep their conveyance structures clean. Not only does UPL manufacture some of the best-known aquatic herbicides in the irrigation business, it also delivers quality customer service. In this interview, UPL’s business lead for aquatics, Jeremy Slade, tells Irrigation Leader about his field of the business and changes in the industry.
Aimee Davis and Ken Quandt: Making Meters Work Smarter and Harder at McCrometer
McCrometer has long been a stalwart in the irrigation industry. Its innovative meter products allow irrigators to properly measure water efficiently and cost effectively. As new technologies and customer demands have emerged, McCrometer has continually innovated in order to keep providing water users with high-quality yet affordable products. The company continues to do precisely that with its new mag meter products. In this interview, Senior Product Manager Aimee Davis and Market Development Manager Ken Quandt tell Irrigation Leader about why McCrometer developed the new mag meters, how it innovated to optimize them for customers’ needs, and the meters’ appeal to both irrigation and municipal water users.
Colton Russon: Using FarmConnect on a Utah Dairy Farm
Colton Russon, who runs a dairy farm and grows barley, corn, and hay in Tremonton, Utah, has recently started using a Rubicon FarmConnect system. In this interview, Mr. Russon tells us about the results he is seeing from the system.
Ronald Leimgruber: Using FarmConnect in the Imperial Valley
Ronald Leimgruber is a third-generation farmer in California’s Imperial Valley who uses a variety of irrigation methods to grow his crops. He has been using Rubicon’s technology for over 10 years.
How Rubicon’s FarmConnect Solution Is Turning Flood and Furrow Irrigation Into an Efficient System
Rubicon Water’s technology helps manage 3.7 million acres of irrigated land. With thousands of miles of canals modernized and more than 35,000 automated control gates and meters sold, Rubicon’s innovative hardware and software is improving the efficiency and productivity of irrigated agriculture worldwide. One groundbreaking example is Rubicon’s FarmConnect solution, which leverages from technologies within Rubicon’s proven irrigation district solutions to provide individual farmers with precise, high-efficiency surface and furrow irrigation solutions. In this interview, Rubicon Business Development Manager Peter Moller tells us about the development and launch of the FarmConnect solution.
Kurt Miller of Northwest RiverPartners: Educating the Public and Policymakers About Hydropower and Irrigation
Dams have the potential to serve many of society’s needs: clean energy, transportation, irrigation, and flood control. But dams and hydropower can also generate controversy regarding conservation and river temperatures, which is often inflamed by misinformation. This often can hinder efforts to integrate hydropower into the renewable energy economy now being required by federal and state mandates. Northwest RiverPartners is a group dedicated to combating misinformation and educating the public about the comprehensive benefits hydropower can provide. In this interview, Northwest RiverPartners’ executive director, Kurt Miller, tells Irrigation Leader about the misconceptions the public often has about hydropower and dams, how dams can help further a clean energy economy in…
Chris Gargan and Joel Irving: Providing Global Screening Solutions at International Water Screens
One challenge that is common to irrigation districts and water users worldwide is the need to remove debris and other substances from water while also protecting fish and other wildlife. Screens that can filter out debris without harming fish are important tools for doing just that. International Water Screens (IWS) is a global leader in the design of fixed and moving screens. Its screens are custom built to customers’ needs, feature state-of-the-art features to filter out debris while preserving fish, and are designed to last. In this interview, IWS Vice President Chris Gargan and Sales Representative Joel Irving tell Irrigation Leader about IWS’s product line and how it is expanding…
Worthington’s Offerings for New Zealand
New Zealand’s Otago region produces top-quality fruit, wines, crops, and livestock, and to do that, it needs water. In recent years, there have been persistent disagreements between the central government, the regional council, environmental interests, and community members about how to manage water in the catchment. Points of contention include how to distribute stored water, how to pay for water infrastructure, and what levels of flow must be preserved in the rivers. Gary Kelliher has addressed these issues from many angles. Himself a farmer, he has also served as the chair of an irrigation scheme and the deputy chair of an independent, catchment-wide strategy group, and he is currently a…
