Quantified energy use for agricultural irrigation in the East Snake Plain Aquifer region

Keywords: water-energy nexus, irrigation energy use, irrigation, east snake plain aquifer, Idaho
Session Type: Virtual Poster Abstract
Day: Sunday
Session Start / End Time: 2/27/2022 02:00 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) - 2/27/2022 03:20 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 38

Abstract

The East Snake Plain Aquifer region of southern Idaho is a top agricultural producing region in the U.S. (largest producer of potatoes and farmed trout nationally) and is the economic lifeline of the state. This semi-arid region is home to one of the nation’s largest irrigation operations, responsible for the second highest amount of water withdrawn annually for irrigation, which requires a significant amount of energy to move and distribute water needed to support operations. This region is susceptible to significant impacts from climate change such as drought, reduction of water resources, and increased evapotranspiration rates from warming temperatures. In addition, this region is experiencing significant population growth which is placing strain on a dated infrastructure system. To accommodate irrigation practices an increased load on the electrical grid of up to 30% is needed during irrigation months. This research aims to serve as the precursor to a vulnerability assessment which explores how changes to variables in irrigation, and ultimately the food-energy-water nexus, can have detrimental impacts on agriculture in the region. This sensitivity analysis determines the strength and magnitude by which various factors influence energy use and water use simultaneously in irrigation practices (e.g. irrigation type, irrigation source, crop type, etc.). We use such as water horsepower (whp) in pumps to quantify the amount of energy used in pumps and to explore how changes to key variables impact energy use. The results of this work will be used as the mathematical foundation for a systems dynamics model.