Status: Active
Funding Status: Funded
Dates: 01/01/2012 - 12/31/2100

The partners in the Community Water Dialogue developed the idea to create a wireless irrigation network (entitled Project WIN) in the Pajaro Valley to help growers improve irrigation efficiency. Today’s irrigation management tools allow growers to safely conserve water without jeopardizing crops or their bottom line. Many growers in the valley have and are using irrigation management systems to measure water efficiency in their fields through probes and wireless towers. The towers involved with this technology, if purchased by individual growers, present a sizable and redundant investment. Through private donors, existing users and a grant from the Santa Cruz RCD, these communication towers have been purchased to create a valley wide network, the WIN Project. This network allows growers to simply rent or purchase the field monitoring equipment, making this technology accessible to everyone. The WIN Project uses the Hortau, Inc towers and connects with technology to measure soil tension in real time via the internet. Soil tension measures direct water availability and plant stress. This real time information allows growers to anticipate when to irrigate and for how long; keeping crops growing in optimal conditions. The RCD SCC also has available rental probes for growers to trial the technology.

Goals

Project goal is to achieve valley wide water savings of 1,000 to 2,000 AFY: Estimated yield assumes 10 to 20% reduction of water use is associated with the system, that 50,000 AFY of water is used for agriculture, and that 20% of agriculture demand will use this new system.

Programs

• Agriculture
• Water Conservation
• Water Supply

Funders

• DWR
• Landowners and community contributions
• USDA OASDFR

Contact

Lisa Lurie
831-464-2950 x 27
llurie@rcdsantacruz.org
Project website

Websites & Documents

• Community Water Dialogue

Photos & Images