Life Sciences Commons^™

Water Decision-Making Under Uncertainty, Augustina Yaa Oye Odame

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This dissertation is made up of three separate studies under the unifying theme of “Water Decision-Making under Uncertainty.” The first study analyzed a farmer’s decision to invest in a more efficient irrigation system given uncertainty about future water supplies and his post-investment efficiency. It found the price at which farmers would no longer produce to be a bigger consideration in irrigation investment than previously thought. It also found support for a careful identification and consideration of all significant sources of uncertainty in order to create better policy incentives for irrigation technology investments.

The second study extended the first to allow …

Alfalfa Production As Related To Irrigation Scheduling: An Economic Perspective, Craig L. Israelsen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study analyzed the economics of irrigation scheduling for alfalfa hay in the Cache Valley, Utah area. Yield, evapotranspiration (ET) and irrigation drainage loss, along with the costs and returns per acre attributable to irrigation scheduling, were simulated through the use of a computerized plant growth model. The model created yearly "irrigation schedules" for alfalfa hay based on actual climatic, soil and plant characteristic data from the Utah State University Greenville Experiment Station. The model calculated the irrigation schedules based on a soil-water balance equation which never allowed the available soil water to go below the crop stress point.

The …

Irrigation And Non-Irrigation Alternatives For Reducing Sugar Cane Transportation Costs In Santa Cruz, Bolivia, Lee M. Bailey

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The major objective of this study was to investigate various alternatives for lowering the cost of transporting sugar cane in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. These alternatives included both irrigation and non-irrigation possibilities. Production costs for sugar cane were determined by using studies completed by the USAID-Utah State University study team, budget studies of Senor Carlos Castro of the Guabira' sugar cane mill in Santa Cruz and a study undertaken by Senor Enrique Gomez, a graduate student at Utah State University.

A cane registry commissioned by the National Sugar Cane Commission was used in conjunction with a least-cost transportation model in order …

Estimating Agricultural Production Functions From Experimental Data For Different Crops In Relation To Irrigation, Fertilization And Soil Management In Northern Utah, Subramaniuam Swami Nathan

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Estimates of agricultural production functions from experimental data for four different crops in relation to six variable inputs are calculated by this study. There are four basic sections in the study. The first section covers the review of production function concepts and the procedures and problems that specifically pertain to this study. Also the importance of joint economic-agronomic research efforts, methodologies and applications of agricultural production functions are cited.

The second section includes the presentation data and postulated functional relationships in estimating production functions. Model building programs are used in developing three dimensional figures, which aid in the selection of …

The Secondary Benefits Of Irrigation Water: An Economic Appraisal, Erik Bruce Godfrey

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The secondary or external benefits of increasing the availability of water for irrigation and changing the allocation of an existing water supply was analyzed from a theoretical point of view.

"Input-output" models for Cache County, Utah, and for the state of Utah were used to indicate the intersectoral relationship of water used by agriculture and other sectors in each economy.

The indirect value of water used by agriculture in Cache County was estimated. A method that extended the procedure used in this thesis was proposed that could be used to estimate the value of water in ether sectors. A "water …

Irrigation Water Values In Cache County, Utah, Marlyn Fife

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In Utah all water, both on or below the ground surface, is considered public property. The right to use water is obtained by following certain subsiding procedures of appropriation through the office of the State Engineer. Any right to the use of water may be changed to some other beneficial use with the approval of the State Engineer; however, there must be no interference with other rights, unless proper compensation has been made.

Agriculture still uses most of the available water in Utah; However, farmers' needs for water are not exactly the same. When allocation per acre is the same …