Water has, and always will be, a major part of farming, and drought problems have forced producers to look at ways of saving it.

The Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission (GSWCC) will implement a program in July of this year to assist farmers in that effort. Find out the details July 17 at the Irrigation Station during the Sunbelt Agricultural Exposition's Field Day.

The GSWCC is offering farmers a free efficiency audit, whereby information is collected and analyzed by a computer program already being used successfully in Florida. “We hope to reduce water use through better management of irrigation systems,” said David Bennett, GSWCC deputy executive director.

“The goal is to make sure crops are getting uniform coverage and that the use of water is efficient. The farmer, in turn, saves in energy costs.”

At Field Day, “Buster” Haddock will demonstrate an efficiency audit and show farmers a sample chart produced by the audit. He will outline suggestions for improvement, based on the computer findings.

“Preliminary data indicates that we can achieve a reduction in water use with this program,” Bennett said.