Why is the USDA conducting this survey?

Local irrigation organizations make critical investments and operational decisions with a large influence on agricultural water management.  The Survey of Irrigation Organizations will provide a greater understanding of the choices that these organizations make, the constraints that they face, and how this influences agricultural drought resilience.

Over the last several decades, many aspects of local water management institutions have changed, including the number and size of irrigation organizations, the pricing structures used for cost recovery and the reliance on new sources of water quantity data, with an expanded emphasis on groundwater management.

Increasing demands on the Nation’s limited water resources has heightened the need for information on local management decisions and infrastructure systems that can improve agricultural drought response. Limited data on how water-supply management entities at the local scale respond to water scarcity is an impediment to water-related research and analysis and knowledge transfer among local water managers in particular.

What are “irrigation organizations”?

Survey Results Usage

The results of this survey will help identify challenges and constraints facing irrigation organizations.  Survey findings will inform government, industry, and policy makers on local irrigation supply infrastructure and practices and their impact on drought resilience.

The findings should be particularly valuable to irrigation organizations in promoting knowledge transfer on water-supply management strategies at the local level.

Government and industry policy is also shaped by these data.

Visit The Survey of Irrigation Organizations to learn more or to take the survey.