History, it is said is the greatest teacher of the mankind. Study of the history of irrigation, development of irrigation technology, sustainability of the old irrigation systems provides an insight into the factors that have sustained the outcomes over the generations.
ICID in pursuit of its mission, in addition to advocating the use of latest technology for development of irrigation encourages making use of ancient wisdom. The Working Groupwith the support of a number of National Committees has compiled the History of Irrigation, Drainage and Flood Management in different river valleys, regions, and countries.
Follow ICID on:. Irrigation in Ancient Times Water is the most important input required for plant growth for agriculture production. The Noria provided the ancient world with its first non-human operated lifting device. The "Hanging Gardens of Babylon," one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, were created under King Nebuchadnezzar in Mesopotamia. What is lost to history is how the gardens were watered although it is known they were irrigated. A Qanat was built by first digging a vertical well into sloping ground.
Once the well was completed a tunnel was dug nearly horizontal to the lower end of the well. The natural slope would allow well water to travel by gravity down the tunnel and emerge some distance down slope from the well. Construction of Qanats was labor intensive and vertical openings were placed every meters to allow the tunnel diggers to breathe and to remove the debris from the tunnel. Once the tunnel was completed, the area had a constant source of water.
Qanats are still in use today and at least 20, still operate from China to Morocco. The first use of what is now called a pump. This device was an endless series of pots on a rope which ran over two pulleys. The oxen-powered device powered a cogged wheel allowing the pots to enter the water supply, fill and then be raised and emptied.
While visiting Egypt the Greek scholar Archimedes created this device which consisted of a screw inside a hollow tube. The screw was turned and as the bottom end of the screw rotated, it scooped up water. The water traveled up the length of the screw until it poured out the top of the tube. Today the principal is used in transporting granular materials such as plastic granules used in injection moulding and in moving cereal grains.
When the first use of a windmill occurred is unknown, although drawings of a water pumping windmill from Persia current day Iran exist. This design had vertical sails made of bundles of reeds or wood which attached to a central vertical shaft.
Irrigated acreage worldwide reaches 19,, acres. This compares with an estimated ,, acres today. Residential Sprinkler. It is unknown if this sprinkler went into production. Residential Hose Nozzle. This garden hose nozzle was first patented on Oct.
The later patent date was on June 2, The formative years of irrigation in Australia were in the 19th Century and the major irrigation developments occurred initially in the Murray-Darling Basin, where the conditions were the most conducive to such development. Initially, the technology of large scale irrigated agriculture was introduced to Australia through two avenues, either via British experience in Egypt and India or through developments in western North America.
The latter proved to be the more important source of irrigation technology in the long term, as the social and economic climate of the western United States more closely resembled that of Australia. Most of the early information flow to Australia was channelled through Victoria and, with few exceptions, the most significant events associated with the emergence of irrigation in Australia resulted from Victorian efforts. Irrigation settlement design concepts, water allocation systems and irrigation administration machinery spread from Victoria to the other colonies.
The early emphasis was on engineering technology, and for advice the colonies turned initially to British engineers from India, which in the 19th Century was regarded as the premier theatre of irrigation initiative.
The first instances of irrigation in Australia were in the form of initiatives by private individuals aimed at increasing production on their farms. The Hobart Town Almanac of records what would appear to be the first essay in irrigation, which was implemented by Governor Arthur.
The scheme involved reclamation of marshland along the Derwent Estuary, and utilised tidal fluctuations to irrigate the land via a series of sluices. In the mid's a rudimentary dam was constructed in the Clyde River which permitted irrigation of the property 'Raths', commencing about This property appears to have been irrigated on a continuous basis since then, and almost certainly has the longest continuous record of irrigation in Australia.
Other schemes for irrigation commenced in the latter half of the nineteenth century. Goulburn Weir , constructed from to , was the first major diversion structure built for irrigation development in Australia.
A major drought in Victoria from to prompted Alfred Deakin, then a minister in the State Government and chairman of a Royal Commission on water supply to visit the irrigation areas of California. There he met the Canadian brothers George and William Chaffey who had worked on irrigation schemes in California. Prior to federation in , each Australian Colony managed its own water resources. In the Federal Constitution the primary responsibility for these resources remained with the States, although it gave powers to the Australian Government that related to meteorology.
Furthermore, interstate trade became a responsibility of the Australian Government and this had implications for river navigation. Section 96 of the Constitution provided the power to make grants to the States for specific purposes, and this has enabled the Australian Government to play a major role in the development of the nation's water resources.
This funding role was enhanced by the actions of the Australian Government in to become the sole collector of income tax throughout the nation. The first major instance of Commonwealth involvement in irrigation was through participation in the River Murray Waters Agreement, which was ratified in by the parliaments of the Australian Government, and the States of New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia.
The agreement provided for the creation of the River Murray Commission to manage the operation of works and the distribution of waters to each State. Dethridge Wheel. The wheel was invented by John Dethridge in Australia in Zybach began developing a self-propelled irrigation system after observing another farmer irrigate crops by using a tractor to systematically tow a long pipe, outfitted with sprinklers, across the field.
By , the device included five towers with pipes running on wheels and could irrigate 40 acres. Zybach then added water valves for siphoning pressurized water from the main pipe to drive the wheels and maintain tower alignment.
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