Restricted Research - Award List, Note/Discussion Page
Fiscal Year: 2023
303 The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (142191)
Principal Investigator: Almeida,Rafael
Total Amount of Contract, Award, or Gift (Annual before 2011): $ 299,296
Exceeds $250,000 (Is it flagged?): Yes
Start and End Dates: 6/1/23 - 5/31/25
Restricted Research: YES
Academic Discipline: Sch of Earth Env & Marine Sci
Department, Center, School, or Institute: Sch of Earth Env & Marine Sci
Title of Contract, Award, or Gift: Co-locating irrigation and solar power infrastructure to bolster freshwater sustainability in a semi-arid agricultural region
Name of Granting or Contracting Agency/Entity:
U.S. Department of Agriculture
CFDA: 10.31
Program Title: Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive Grants Program
Note:
SAMs 1.1.1--This research project proposes to address the necessity to improve irrigation water conversation in dry-climate agricultural regions. One emerging solution to address this issue is to suppress evaporation through the deployment of solar panels on top of water surfaces such as uncovered irrigation storage and conveyance systems. We propose to develop a preliminary analysis of opportunities, benefits and challenges associated with covering irrigation reservoirs, human-made ditches, and natural channels (i.e., ancient secondary river channels) with solar panels in the underserved Rio Grande Valley (RGV). Situated near the Texas-Mexico border, the RGV is a semi-arid agricultural region that is home to >1.3 million people. Irrigation is largely required to sustain agricultural productivity and accounts for ~80% of total freshwater withdrawals in the RGV. Yet high irrigation needs—together with climate change and a burgeoning population growth—are straining the RGV’s water resources to their limits. For instance, as of August 2022, the most critical water source for the region (Falcon International Reservoir) was at just 10% capacity. Our long-term goal is to concurrently advance freshwater and energy sustainability in the RGV. Through this Grant, we will 1) map and consolidate data on irrigation storage and conveyance systems; 2) develop scenarios with solar energy generation potential and limitations for co-locating irrigation and solar power infrastructure; and 3) assess irrigation water losses and quality to gage the potential magnitude of co-benefits from irrigation-solar co-location. Fulfilling these grant activities will position our team to pursue follow-on funding for a larger, broadly scoped project that further evaluates specific co-benefits, engages water- and energy-related stakeholders, and encompasses logistical, social, and economic dimensions of co-locating irrigation infrastructure and solar power. Our project theme is aligned with AFRI’s goal of funding research that addresses water availability issues and the mitigation of impacts of climate variability, and our Grant intersects with two priorities of the Water Quantity and Quality Program Area: 1) reduction of the use of freshwater and improvement of agricultural sustainability by innovative approaches, tools and technologies; and 2) conservation of surface and groundwater quantity.
Discussion: No discussion notes