Microbiological Quality of Subsurface Drainage Water From Irrigated Agricultural Land

Smith, J.H. and Douglas, C.L. and Bondurant, J.A. (1972) Microbiological Quality of Subsurface Drainage Water From Irrigated Agricultural Land. Journal of Environment Quality. 1(3):308-311.

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Abstract

Irrigation and subsurface drainage waters sampled from an
82,150-hectare (203,000-acre) irrigation district in southern Idaho
were evaluated for bacteriological quality. The soils in the district
are wind deposited over fractured basalt, calcareous, and have a pH
near 7.8. Drainage, where needed, is provided by horizontally
mined tunnels or by tile drains connecting shallow relief wells that
flow the year around. For the 12 months ending September 30,
1969, a 2-meter (6.5-foot) depth of water for the entire irrigation
tract was diverted, and 50% of the water passed through the soil
becoming subsurface drainage. The irrigation water and seven subsurface
drains were sampled at 2-week intervals during the summer
of 1969. Coliform, fecal streptococci, starch hydrolyzers, and
bacteria able to grow at temperatures from 0 to 55C were counted.
The diverted irrigation water contained from 140 to 3,300 coliform
per 100 ml, but 86% of the subsurface drainage samples contained
5 or fewer conforms per 100 ml. Numbers of other microorganisms
were also low in the drainage waters. The outflow samples were
oxygen saturated and the temperatures were 13.0 ± 1.1C for all
samples. Percolation through the soil improved the water quality
almost to domestic water standards.

Item Type:	Article
NWISRL Publication Number:	0194
Subjects:	Irrigation > Furrow irrigation > Drainage water (see Percolation water) Mass Import - autoclassified (may be erroneous)
Depositing User:	Dan Stieneke
Date Deposited:	20 Nov 2010 21:51
Last Modified:	24 Feb 2017 19:49
Item ID:	207
URI:	https://eprints.nwisrl.ars.usda.gov/id/eprint/207