Evaluation of Al-Ishaqi Irrigation Project: A Case Study Eastern Canal of the Project

Abstract

An evaluation the performance of the irrigation system for the Al-Ishaqi irrigation project for the Eastern Canal was conducted to identify management strategies that can be used to improve the operation and performance of the irrigation system. The study area is located in Salah al-Din G.0overnorate, Iraq. The field work included determining the moisture content of the soil before and after irrigation, measuring the inflow of the field to find the depth of the applied water, field monitoring, and measuring the depth of the root zone for each irrigation process. Field measurements showed that the average efficiency of water application for the two fields (A, and B) are 59.81% and 38.6%, respectively. The results of the efficiency of water application showed that farmers use water more than the actual demand, so it was possible to increase the efficiency of field water use by controlling the quantities of water that supplied and controlling the irrigation time and water distribution within the irrigated land. The results also showed that the storage efficiency of the two fields (A, and B) ranged between (39.1% to 68.28%), and (41.80% to 79.8%), respectively. As for the efficiency of water distribution, the average distribution efficiency for fields (A) and (B) was about (99.54%) and (99.33%), respectively. The irrigation efficiency evaluation done in the Al-Ishaqi Irrigation Project revealed that farmers utilize more water than is required, resulting in a substantial amount of water being lost in the fields observed in this research owing to inefficient use. If the current scenario continues, groundwater levels would undoubtedly rise, putting the irrigation system's long-term viability in jeopardy.