A new study shows the importance of irrigation for Alberta agriculture as widespread drought hits crop production.
The study commissioned by the Alberta Irrigation Projects Association found that every dollar invested by the province in irrigation generated three dollars in added revenue to Alberta and Canada.
It also showed that irrigated lands contribute about 20 per cent of Alberta’s agricultural GDP but take up only 4.7 per cent of the cultivated land.
Association chairman Erwin Braun said the study shows Alberta farmers are using water more efficiently with modern irrigation producing more food with less water.
Braun said the government should be investing more in irrigation and water storage to help deal with future droughts as climate change brings more extreme weather to the province.
He added that farmers in irrigated parts of the province have been able to weather an especially dry year in the Prairies that is expected to take overall crop yields down 25 to 30 per cent below the five-year average.