Water Flow Technology for Water Conservation: Air Injection Irrigation

Farm operations, forestry and landscape/recreation managers are using advanced water technology in the areas of communications and automatic control systems, global positioning systems, pumping, filtration, piping, and plant and soil operations. Water efficiency rates increase from approximately 40% to over 70%, and in some cases up to 85%, with the use of advanced water flow technology and management. For example, air injection irrigation systems represent a recent technological breakthrough. They create tiny bubbles that mix throughout subsurface drip irrigation water. The injected air results in an improved soil environment and increases in root masses and crop yields. Tests of the new technology revealed a 39% increase in crop yield. The Center for Irrigation Technology at California State University, Fresno is working with the Central California Futures Institute, the Fresno Business Council, the University Business Center and the Great Valley Center to partner with water technology companies in research development, education and market development of water flow and process technology.

Source: Central California Futures Institute, April 2001

Groundwater Replenishment (GWR) Project

The new Groundwater Replenishment (GWR) water purification project in Orange County is a state-of-the-art water purification project that takes highly treated sewer water that is currently released into the ocean and purifies it using the same technologies that purify baby food, fruit juices, medicines and bottled water.  When the project's Advanced Water Purification Facility is complete in 2007, it will produce 70 million gallons of purified water per day, enough water to provide for 144,000 families annually.