Estimated use of ground water for irrigation in Wisconsin, 1984

The flow from a sample of 143 irrigation wells from 6 irrigation areas in Wisconsin was measured using an external flowmeter during the 1983-84 irrigation seasons. The measured pumpages were correlated with reported pumpages. The equation that describes this correlation is Q(sub)m = 0.86 x Q(sub)r where Q(sub)m is the measured pumpage and Q(sub)r is the reported pumpage. This equation was used to adjust all reported irrigation pumpage, yielding a more accurate estimate of total irrigation water use. The maximum total irrigation pumpage for 1984 was estimated to be 31,700 million gallons by using the equation and accounting for both reported and unreported pumpage. From 1979 to 1984, irrigation pumpage increased a maximum of 25% and the maximum number of irrigation wells increased 32%. (Author 's abstract)