Land suitability assessment for optimum management of water consumption in precise agriculture

Abstract

Optimum irrigation management is an important factor in precise agriculture. The main objective of this research is to compare different irrigation methods based upon a parametric evaluation system in an area of 41,200 ha in the Rasht region, north Iran. Once the soil properties were analyzed and evaluated, suitability maps were generated for surface, sprinkler and drip irrigation methods using a geographic information system and remote sensing. Parametric methods including Storie and Khidir, were used for land suitability evaluation to propose suitable irrigation system. Khidir method was more accurate than Storie method. The obtained results of khidir method showed that for 40,487.3 ha (98.3 %) of the study area the drip irrigation method was suitable. Capability ratings were the highest in all soil series for drip irrigation. The results demonstrated that by applying drip irrigation method instead of sprinkler and surface irrigation methods, the arability of 40,487.3 ha in the Rasht region would improve. The comparison of the different types of irrigation revealed that drip irrigation system was more effective and efficient than the surface and sprinkler irrigation methods and improved land suitability for irrigation purposes. It is of note, however, that the main limiting factors in using surface, sprinkler and drip irrigation methods in this area were drainage and soil texture.