Irrigation Mobile Lab
Yolo, Solano, & Colusa County
Resource Conservation
Districts
The Yolo Resource Conservation District (RCD) is a farmer-led
special district working with the USDA Natural Resources
Conservation Service (NRCS) to support local landowners’ efforts
to sustain local agricultural & natural resources. The Yolo RCD
promotes stewardship by demonstrating conservation practices
through cooperative land users, educating the public in resource
conservation & enhancement, and providing technical expertise.
What is the Mobile Water Lab?
Free service offered by the Yolo RCD
Includes:
Irrigation Evaluations
Optional Source Water Quality Testing
Recommendation on Irrigation
Management
Water Quality Management Practices
Application Efficiency and
Distribution Uniformity
A Non-Uniform Distribution can:
• Deprive portions of
the crop of needed
water
• Over-irrigate portions
of the field
Irrigation Evaluations provide:
• Analysis of the system distribution uniformity
(defined as a measure of the uniformity with
which irrigation water is distributed to different
areas in a field)
• Determination of application rates
• Qualitative observations of clogging and emitter
wear
• System map of pressure and flow measurements
• Suggestions for system improvements and
maintenance
District Programs
multi-benefit/water quality
•Water Use Efficiency (WUE) – funding for irrigation
evaluations (through Mobile Water Lab) – 10 more
•NRCS – AWEP (Ag Water Enhancement Program), greater
water quality emphasis in 2010, many practices:
•Pipelines, drip, vegetated systems, sediment traps, etc.
•CARCD – AWEP: many central valley counties
•Glenn, Colusa, Yolo, Solano, Sutter, San J, Stanislaus,
Merced, Fresno, Kings, Tulare, Kern
•Water Use Efficiency vs benchmark 25.5 A-inches
•Tomato, tracking/documenting yield & solids
District Programs (cont.)
multi-benefit/water quality
•Yolo-Solano Conservation Partnerships on working lands:
•Ditch vegetation (with/for irrigation districts)
•Riparian buffers/reveg – filtering irrigation/storm runoff
•Cache Creek Geomorphic Assessment & Local Youth
Stream Monitoring
•Capay Valley Riparian Vegetation Management
•Yolo County Weed Management Area (with Yolo Ag Dept)
•Yolo-Solano Ag Water Quality Support Program
•Grant closed, some money for practices went unused.
Conservation Planning and
Farmland Protection
Watershed Coordination,
Planning, Implementation
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Watershed analysis,
Support for landowner groups
Permit coordination
Safe Harbor agreement
Restoration and Revegetation
Photo credit: Joe DiTomaso
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Invasive weed control
Land management
Conservation projects
Native, beneficial insect, wildlife habitat
Bioengineering
Education and Outreach
• Annual workshop series
• Special events and tours
• School programs
2010 Strategic Plan Priorities
• Water Resources
• Farmland Protection and Agricultural
Sustainability
• Soil Erosion
• Air Quality
• Energy Efficiency and Conservation
• Habitat Protection and Restoration
• Education and Outreach
• District Operations
Geographic priorities:
Headwaters, prime farmland and rural/urban interface,
alluvial soil areas and riparian areas.
Contact
Heather Nichols-Crowell
Yolo Resource Conservation District
530-662-2037 ext .112
Nichols-Crowell@yolorcd.org