Irrigated Agriculture's Future with Increasing Food Demand and Growing Water Scarcity - EWRI PIAIP Task Committee Report

A Task Committee of the On-Farm Irrigation Committee was formed to develop a mechanism to help put irrigated agriculture in perspective in the context of its use of fresh water and its role in world food production. At the 2005 EWRI Congress the task committee organized a series of technical sessions that dealt with the implications of irrigated agriculture with growing water scarcity, increasing food requirements, environmental sustainability and changing climate. A task committee report on the topic, written as a resource for policy makers, scientists, engineers and the popular press to aid in the understanding of these complex issues, is now in preparation. This paper summarizes the approach and initial findings of the report.