PUB00041

• Year: 1998
• Title: Western Irrigation Economic Benfits Review
• CWCB Section: Finance
• Author: Family Farm Alliance
• Description: White paper on the role of irrigated agriculture in the 21st century.
• Publications - Doc Type: Tech Report

I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I

4.11.

Irrigated Agriculture ACf('{IJ.:C' alld Productioll Value.

Irri~at('d agricultun production '-alu(' is dCH'rihcd \\ilhin this paper hy t'stimating
acreage and crop farm-g:ltc or salc.. values for 199.t. The dctaill.'d estimates by crop :md
slalc an: illdUllcd \\ ithin .\ppcndi\. A. Olher rdalt:d production values an' discussed. stich
as fHn'i~n n:pnrt '-allies :lnd im'rcasl'" 10 IlnHluctioll during t!ll' pa..t fc\\ lh.'l,::ltks.

4./. Irrigated Agriculture Acreage.

The W('stern slalcs hm.t ahout 38 million irrig:ltcd :Il'f('S that include crops and
gra/iug lands. Of this irrig.Hell land. about 3.t million :len's arc har-H'sted croplands. In
thl' U.S.. Western irrigatt:d cropland comprises ahout 52'% of :111 h:lrnslcd irrigated
cropl..nd~ (farm_, th:ll hoth irrigatl' (lml han' non-irrigatiull production). :tnd ahout 15'% of
:III harn'sted noplalld~ ((ot:11 irrigation ;Ind nnn~irrig:ltion prodUl'tion). In the West.
irri~:ttion produl'tioll n..'llI'c~c.'nt~ :Ihou( 7oo/., uf :111 cropland production value. The states
farming thc.' largest allwunt of irrigatcd ;ll:reage :Ire.' Californi;l. Idaho. :'iehraska. and
Texas (see Figure I).

\\'estern in-ig:tted agri('ulturc includes a witle nlllge of water users. Irrigators arc-
scrn,'d by U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (l.1SBR) prHjc.'c-tS. pri\'ate irrig.ltion companies
delinring water from re.'scrvoirs. stre.lnls. or decp wclls. and SOlllC :Irc indcpendent.
privatc Ilurnpns using wc.'ll~. reservoirs. I)r rinrs for their water sources. The USBR
projech conr ahout 10 million acres or ahout thirty percenl of the \Vest's irrigated
ground. The lJSBR projects. as wcll as man)' pri\'ately owned projc.'c..ts. raise :1 number of
high~value crops. including fruits, potatoes. wine gnlpes. :lIld specially~crop ng(.t:lhles;
and the projects nlhe fn'd for dairy and meat linstock. F:lrm man:tgcll1ent and operating
c:tpital is typically from private sources.

4.2.

Irrigation Production Value.

For 1995. the cstimatc.'d value of irrigation production from the \\'estern states
exceeded S31 billion. not taking into account some portion of \'alue contrihutio", from

Economic5 Benefit Review/Page-IO