SOIL INFILTROMETER STUDY TO MINIMIZE THE IMPACT OF IRRIGATION ON WATER QUALITY AND TO MAXIMIZE WATER CONSERVATION

With increasing concern regarding climate change and its impacts on natural resources comes the need for examining our uses of water and the effects of those uses. Irrigation is the leading use of freshwater supply worldwide and the second in the United States. Moving forward, improvements of traditional agricultural practices are necessary to ensure long term sustainability and water quality protection. The purpose of this study is to analyze different farming methods to maximize water conservation and determine the level of adverse effects of irrigation. Using Soil Infiltrometers developed by Cornell University on various agricultural plots at the Hudson Valley Farm Hub located near Kingston, New York, on-site tests are conducted to determine equilibrium infiltration capacity of soils as well as the turbidity of runoff. These values are used to find the amount of water needed to saturate the top, root-bearing land and quantitatively compare the difference in erosion rates for tilled versus non-tilled plots of land. Runoff from tilled land is found to have approximately 17.5 times the amount of turbidity of runoff from non-tilled land, meaning that the rate of erosion for these plots is 17.5 times greater. Grain size analysis is conducted for different soil samples collected from different plots using a sieve shaker to find the relative composition of sand, silt, and clay particles. All plots tested, including tilled and non-tilled for corn, broccoli, and beans contain clay-loam soil. The average equilibrium infiltration capacity for land cover is 59.5 cm³/min which indicates that the maximum rate of irrigation should be in that range. The findings of this study, if implemented on a large scale, would have long-term beneficial impacts on water quality and conservation.