Water
ABOUT THE COLLECTION
Arizona Cooperative Extension is an outreach arm of The University of Arizona and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS). The repository collection includes current and historical Extension publications on these topics: Animal Systems; Consumer Education; Farm Management and Safety; Food Safety, Nutrition and Health; Gardening/Home Horticulture; Insects and Pest Management; Marketing and Retailing; Natural Resources and Environment; Plant Diseases; Plant Production/Crops; Water; and Youth and Family. Current publications are also available from the Cooperative Extension Publications website.
QUESTIONS?
Contact College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Publications at pubs@cals.arizona.edu.
Recent Submissions
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Guidance for Soil Moisture Sensor Selection: Market Analysis and Decision-Making StrategiesMonitoring soil moisture content is a critical aspect of effective irrigation scheduling. Maintaining optimal soil moisture levels is essential for plant growth and crop yield. Soil moisture monitoring can be accomplished through various methods, including the use of capacitance sensors that measure dielectric properties for volumetric water content assessments. Alternatively, traditional methods such as gravimetric sampling, primarily utilized in research, require weighing soil samples before and after drying to determine moisture content. These methods provide valuable insights for irrigation management, helping growers optimize water use and enhance crop productivity (Gu et al., 2020).
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Evaluating Forage Cover Crop Mixes for the Desert SouthwestCover crops are essential tools to improve soil health and productivity1. Traditionally, cover crops are used as ‘green manures’ where the cover crops are not harvested but incorporated into the ground to boost soil health and fertility. Therefore, it has become a common perception that cover crops are meant to be incorporated into the soil. In the desert Southwest, water scarcity forces the producers to utilize water more strategically, and green manure cover crops may not be an economically sustainable option for farmers in the desert.
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Water Irrigation Efficiency ProgramAgriculture in the American Southwest provides the nation with high quality food, feed, and fiber. Blessed with hot summers, mild winters, and dry climates Arizona has become a center for growing specialty crops of unparalleled quality. In our current climate, one of the most limiting factors to crop production in Arizona is water availability, driving the desire for more conservative use on the farm. State funding has been allocated to assist commercial growers transitioning to more efficient wateruse practices. Reimbursement grants will be awarded up to $1,500 per acre to support infrastructure costs of farms transitioning away from flood irrigation to more efficient technologies, expected to provide a 20% or greater water savings. The University of Arizona Cooperative Extension group is tasked with administering the reimbursement grants and will assist growers with understanding available options and development of best use practices.
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Communicating Research Results to Stakeholders: What Scientists Can Learn from Cooperative ExtensionA key task faced by all members of the water research community is to communicate the results of their research to stakeholder groups. Effective communication involves a range of tactics depending on the audience’s cultural background, level of understanding, and interest (financial, political, or other) in the research topic. Opportunities to communicate scientific results are also varied, ranging from peer-reviewed publications and presentations at scientific conferences, to conversations with community groups, to meetings with elected officials. Successful scientific communication involves gauging exactly what the audience needs to know and how to effectively deliver this information, either verbally or in writing. And yet, though early career water research professionals may leave their undergraduate or graduate studies well-versed in planning and conducting scientific study, upon graduation, their skill in communicating scientific results to stakeholders is often limited to peer-reviewed publications.
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Understanding Ecological SitesToday, land managers are challenged with synthesizing an overwhelming amount of scientific information concerning soils, hydrology, ecology, management, etc. Discrete and arbitrary land ownership boundaries with differences in regulations (or lack of regulations) will often dictate the management goals and objectives for our rangelands (Table 1). Adding to this complexity, natural systems seldom have distinct boundaries with respect to either space or time; therefore, managing landscapes have a certain amount of variability and uncertainty. Ecological sites are a conceptual landscape classification system used to interpret potential across the landscape. The fundamental assumption of ecological sites is that landscapes can be grouped with sufficient precision to increase the probability of success of site-specific predictions, decisions, and management actions (USDA-NRCS, 2011). Ecological sites incorporate abiotic and biotic environmental factors such as climate, soils and landform, hydrology, vegetation, and natural disturbance regimes that together define the site. Each ecological site is identified, differentiated, and described based on the relationships among these environmental factors and how they influence plant community composition and other environmental processes.
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E. coli, Water Quality, Food Safety, and Human HealthEscherichia coli, better known as E. coli, is a type of fecal coliform bacteria commonly found in the intestines of animals and humans (Figure 1). This bacterium lives and grows naturally in the gastrointestinal tract of humans and animals, but if the wrong type of E. coli gets into the wrong place in the body, such as the kidneys or blood, it can lead to severe illness, with symptoms including nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and fever – possibly leading to hospitalization (U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services 2018). It is difficult to control E.coli bacteria because they are carried within all of us, and they are so small they cannot be seen by the naked eye without a microscope (Ingerson and Reid 2011). These bacteria are shed in feces and people become infected when they unknowingly consume food or water contaminated with E. coli; hence the way E. coli is spread is termed the “fecal-oral” route of transmission.
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Common Terms in Water Recycling and Agricultural IrrigationAll water is used and reused naturally in what is called the water, or hydrologic, cycle. There are also many ways to reuse our water supplies using advanced treatment technologies and processes that allow for the safe reuse of water in diverse ways, such as in agricultural irrigation. Thoughtful integration and management planning of all our valuable water resources can minimize environmental impacts and contribute to economic and social endurance, through a concept called One Water. The following glossary covers some of the common terms and concepts used in water reuse and agriculture, technologies and processes, policy and laws, and reflects current regulations in Arizona.
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La Calidad del Agua, E. coli y su SaludPublicación de Extensión de la calidad del agua y la protección de la salud humana.
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Water Quality, E. coli and Your HealthExtension publication on water quality and human health protection.
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What You Should Know When You’re Having Your Septic System Inspected for the Transfer of Ownership ProgramDid you know that in Arizona when you go to sell your house with an onsite wastewater treatment system (septic system), or a property without a dwelling but possessing an onsite system, that you must have it inspected by a qualified Transfer of Ownership Inspector? Did you know that this inspection is required by Arizona law and cannot be waived by the buyer, seller, real estate agents, loaning agency, or title company? What are your responsibilities as the buyer, the seller, the real estate agent? How do you know if you have obtained a qualified inspector? This publication will provide useful information on the Transfer of Ownership Inspection for onsite wastewater treatment systems.
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Arizona Well Owner's Guide to Water Supply, 2nd EditionThis Well Owner’s Guide to Water Supply was written to assist you to learn more about a topic of the utmost importance—your drinking water. Gaining a better understanding about your well, its components and their maintenance, well upkeep, geology, and water quality, will ultimately empower you, the well owner, to be able to better maintain and monitor your well and your water supply.
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Minimizing Risks: Use of Surface Water in Pre-Harvest Agricultural Irrigation; Part III: Peroxyacetic Acid (PAA) Treatment MethodsPeroxyacetic acid (also known as peracetic acid or PAA) is a colorless liquid with a low pH and a strong, pungent, vinegar-like odor. PAA is commonly used as an antimicrobial agent for both non-porous hard surfaces and water in various industries, including agriculture, food processing, beverage, wastewater, hospitals, health care, and pharmaceutical facilities.
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Choosing Large-scale Rain Harvesting for Potable Supply: Guide for Rural Homeowners in ArizonaAs groundwater becomes harder to access in many areas of Arizona, risks and costs associated with groundwater wells have become an important economic consideration for property owners. Groundwater is considered a non-renewable water supply when aquifers do not recover enough from pumping to reliably produce water from the same level through time. Water may refill the aquifer very slowly, so slowly that the groundwater being pumped today may be thousands of years old. Once more water is pumped than is recharged, an aquifer is in overdraft, with multiple potential negative effects, including the water level drops that have affected the water supplies of individual small-acreage landowners.
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Preparing Rainwater for Potable UseRainwater harvesting can provide a realistic source of water for homeowners living in remote areas or those who for one reason or another prefer not to use their groundwater inside the house. Local groundwater may have problems common in many parts of Arizona: high mineral content, naturally occurring elements such as arsenic and fluoride, and contaminants from various sources, such as overflowing septic tanks, and agricultural, industrial or mining activities. Homeowners may have low-yield or seasonally dry wells and wish to avoid trucking in water. They may be unwilling or unable to drill or deepen a well. They may prefer rainwater for its taste, softness or other desirable qualities. In these situations, homesteaders may find large-scale rainwater harvesting a practical alternative. Large systems can provide potable water for an entire household.
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Minimizing Risks: Use of Surface Water in Pre-Harvest Agricultural Irrigation; Part II: Sodium and Calcium Hypochlorite (Chlorine) Treatment MethodsChlorine is a water-soluble chemical disinfectant that is commonly used for microbial disinfection because it is effective, economical, and approved by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for water treatment (EPA, 2017).
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How To Build Your Own Water Well SounderObtaining accurate measurements of changing depths to water in private water wells has been a challenge for private well owners. There are devices manufactured specifically for this purpose, but their costs are typically more than most well owners are willing to pay. A simple device that a private well owner could build themselves would enable them to better track the performance of their well. This publication is intended to help private well owners assemble their own water level measuring device, typically called a water well sounder.
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A Guide For Operating Shared Water Wells In ArizonaShared water wells serving two or more households are the sole source of water for many rural homes in Arizona. There are, however, very few rules, regulations or laws to permit, use, and manage shared wells. Most homeowners on shared wells are not fully aware that they are solely responsible for management and safety of their drinking water supply. There is very little literature available on the proper management of shared wells. This publication is intended to be a basic guide for homeowners and managers of these systems.
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Bovine Trichomoniasis: Health and Economic Impacts on Arizona Cow-Calf OperationsTrichomoniasis (or Trich, as it is commonly referred to in the industry) is a reproductive disease in cattle that can seriously impact the bottom line of Arizona ranches and the cow-calf industry. This disease has been recognized in all major cattle-producing countries and is endemic in the western and southwestern United States, including Arizona. Cattle operations in this region have unique challenges to controlling Trich: cattle graze very large, open tracts of land and because of this are often less intensively managed and unintentional co-mingling is relatively commonplace. Currently, the most effective means of disease control is testing for and culling positive bulls. Most western states have enacted legislation which requires bull testing in an attempt to control the disease. These measures range from only testing bulls being sold for breeding purposes to requiring annual testing for all bulls grazing on public land. In addition to regular testing, taking proactive management steps to prevent the introduction of Trich into a herd is key to decreasing its impact both at the individual ranch and cow-calf industry level.