Researchers at the University of Montana analyzed decades of data across 221 basins in the Colorado, Columbia, and Missouri river systems. They found that 75% of the water used for irrigating crops is drawn from the rivers and streams flowing throughout the vast study area, which spans 10 Western states.
Agricultural areas using efficient irrigation practices can impact streamflows even more than climate change, said David Ketchum, a hydrologist who led the study. He called these findings an “irrigation efficiency paradox.”
“Very efficient irrigation systems tend to use almost all of the water that they extract from the river and then apply to the field. That doesn’t leave any water to return to the river,” Ketchum said.
This is happening most glaringly in the Snake River basin, which is primarily in Idaho, and San Juan River basin in the Four Corners area, according to the study.
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Categories: Missouri, Crops, Weather