Decision Support Tools and Innovative Soil and Water Management Strategies to Adapt Semi-arid Irrigated Cropping Systems to Drought

Effective use of irrigation water in semi-arid agricultural regions is increasingly critical due to groundwater decline, growing competition for a limited water supply, and increasing frequency of drought. The Central and Southern Great Plains face some of the most extreme risk for sustainability of future water supply and innovative cropping systems that increase resiliency to drought are a critical need in this region. Through key public and private partnerships, this project will demonstrate synergistic soil, crop, and water management practices that adapt irrigated cropping systems in the Central Great Plains to drought and improve water use efficiency. The project will also develop a farmer-friendly decision support tool that empowers producers to plan and evaluate water conserving practices into site and management specific approaches while considering the effects of drought and climate change. Activities include: (1) conduct field demonstrations of synergistic soil, crop, and irrigation management practices that conserve water and improve system adaptation to drought; (2) modify the COMET-Farm decision support tool to include drought intensity input and crop water productivity output; and (3) carry out comprehensive information and technology transfer through field days, fact sheets, a web site, and the development of a technical water management guide for NRCS.