The Faucet

At the California Conference of the Water Reuse Association in March 2009 in San Francisco, a new overview of the state of the practice of using wastewater to irrigate vineyards was presented, reporting that “the development of saline conditions in soils over the long-term due to irrigation is a significant issue for sustainable use of recycled water.”  The report also concluded that “the long term application of sodium-rich recycled water may threaten the structural integrity of the soils and the viability of irrigated vineyards.”

Studies have shown use of recycled water for irrigation of vineyards in the Great Western Region of Australia has resulted in increases in salinity and sodicity.  One such study compared soil properties in vineyards which had been irrigated for varying periods of time with recycled water with soil properties in samples from nearby unirrigated pasture land with comparable soil types.

The data indicated a general trend of increasing electrical conductivity (EC) or salinity in samples of topsoil taken from irrigated vineyard areas in comparison with the samples from pasture land, and in some areas the subsoil also showed an increase in salinity.  Similar studies involving the McLaren Vale and Barossa Valley areas of South Australia have shown increased levels of potassium in vineyards irrigated with recycled water.

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