Irrigation volume is the ...

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Irrigation volume is the issue with turf. The application and duration of irrigation water is higher than the capacity of the turf or "soil" to hold. The ecology of the turf areas would most likely process the nutrients if left in a natural state. High irrigation rates and shallow soils do not allow the roots to absorb the nutrients or grow deeper.

Water cleaning and processing can be done prior to the application in wetlands and ponds which would then be the collection points of outfall, with no need for discharge. The irrigation system should be a closed loop with ecological services of plants and organisms metabolizing and breaking down the compounds. TSE sources should not be trusted and easily used with prior filtering through natural systems in ponds or large tanks. One note: dry land use of irrigation leave a desert level of evaporation higher than precipitation. Over time the salts will build in the soil system. Another good reason to run the TSE through a plant based extractive system.

Take care,

Daniel

 

1 Comment

Thanks Daniel for your observations. I agree entirely with your assessments and in an 'ideal world' this would be a 'design standard'. In less than ideal existing designs, be it stadia or golf, then poor quality water, poor maintenance and leachate discharge into groundwater are just facts and we seek to understand simple technologies that can be installed to achieve better quality turf and reduce impacts to groundwater. In developing countries for example where professional sportsturf maintenance is just beginning to be understood and agrochemical products of lower quality there is a need for education from soup to nuts but also using technology whilst this is ongoing. Thanks again !

Published by Jonathan Pendry, Director of Agronomy at Bernhard and Company Ltd

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