Water quality calculator available online

With a new Water Quality Calculator now available on the internet, managing irrigation water quality to sustain crop production and deliver positive environmental outcomes is in sight.

Developed by CSIRO Plant Industry and the Cotton Catchment Communities Cooperative Research Centre, the Water Quality Calculator allows irrigators to assess the quality of their water and take steps to improve it.

According to CSIRO Plant Industry's Dirk Richards, irrigators often use multiple sources of water to irrigate their paddocks.

"The Water Quality Calculator can determine the salinity, Sodium Adsorption Ratio and pH of the irrigation water supplied when different sources of water are combined," he says.

"Irrigators can then compare these figures with the Australian and New Zealand Water Quality Guidelines to determine if the water is suitable for different irrigation purposes and if there are any potential detrimental effects on crop or pasture yield.

"Irrigators can then make decisions on use of water, how to mix water from different sources to reduce any potential impacts, and begin to develop long-term strategies for farm irrigation management."

Released in February 2006, the Water Quality Calculator was developed following requests from cotton industry extension officers and irrigated producers in Central Queensland.

"The Water Quality Calculator was initially developed with cotton in mind and will be helpful to cotton irrigators across the Australian industry but it also can be used to determine potential effects in a number of other irrigated crops including pasture," Mr Richards says.

The Water Quality Calculator can be found on the web at http://www.cotton.crc.org.au/CottonLOGIC/WQC/. It is free for users once they have registered. Users can then create their own water sources and compare different combinations to assist with managing their irrigation water.

Users may also access the "WATERpak guide for irrigation management in cotton' and other irrigation information resources at http://www.cotton.crc.org.au/Publicat/Water/index.htm

The Water Quality Calculator was developed with support from the Cotton Research and Development Corporation and Cotton Catchment Communities Cooperative Research Centre. Dr Vivienne McNeal, Queensland Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Water, provided additional expert advice.