CERTIFICATION
this is because individuals who get certified are making a commitment to the industry that they have achieved a specific level of knowledge and skills. They will work to maintain and improve that knowledge and skill, and they will conduct themselves with integrity while working in the industry. Certified individuals take great pride in their certification and work consistently to maintain their certification through continuing education units.
One of the messages I give them is to look for certified individuals as they choose others to work with, for multiple reasons. A certified irrigation designer understands how to design an irrigation system with the best components that is going to meet the crop water demand and operate efficiently for many years. When bidding on irrigation systems, they will cost out the operation expenses for the system. These designers are not just looking at the initial upfront cost of the system
but projecting out the operating costs based on the energy requirements. Many times, the system may be a little more expensive upfront, but the added expense will pay for itself in several years because it operates more efficiently and applies water more uniformly. They also have the training and skill to provide growers the best system for their crop.
Many growers are hiring consultants to do irrigation scheduling for them. I encourage these growers to use a certified ag irrigation specialist. These individuals have the knowledge and skill to take all parameters into account when scheduling irrigations. They are also equipped with the ability to evaluate the effectiveness of the application of water by determining the application efficiency (total beneficial water/total applied water). This valuable data allows schedulers to refine their applications to better meet crop water requirement. A certified ag irrigation
specialist can answer both “When do I irrigate?” and “How long do I irrigate for?” and they can give you the why behind the answer to both of those questions.
In the current agriculture climate with scarce water supplies and tight margins on many crops, having education and being certified or hiring a certified individual is going to keep growers profitable. Water is a precious resource to life and we owe it to everyone to manage it wisely. If you are thinking about becoming certified, I encourage you to take the plunge, study hard and take the test. We owe it to our growers and producers to be the best water stewards we can.
Charles Abee, CAIS, is an agriculture technology and irrigation professor at the College of the Sequoias, Visalia, California, and was a recipient of the Irrigation Association’s 2022 Excellence in Education Award.
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irrigationtoday.org Summer 2023 | Irrigation TODAY 27
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