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Irrigation Systems in Arizona
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Recommended: Irrigation Systems in Arizona
Professor Moore
English 101
November 20, 2013
Yuma: Beginning Anew
What do many people typically think when they hear of Yuma, Arizona? The vast majority of people would think that Arizona itself is just a desert region that greatly resembles an old western movie. On the contrary, however, Arizona -especially Yuma-, is a beautiful place that has invaluable history with the Native American tribes in the area and military history going back to WWII with General Patton and his troops with the Yuma Proving Grounds and Yuma Air Station. Not to mention that because the weather is warm and sunny year-round, many different kinds of produce can be grown here for personal use or for commercial use across the U.S. While Yuma may sound like it is only a desert town to the casual observer, it is actually a place booming with life and potential growth for all areas of business.
An interesting fact that most people may not know about Yuma is that it has the Guinness World record for being the sunniest city on earth. When looking at the annual weather report, one see that Yuma normally has 305 days of sunshine with 3 inches of rain annually. This may lead some to think that "the Southwest is the hottest and driest region in the U.S., where the availability of water has defined its landscapes, history of human settlement and modern economy" (Davis). It is amazing to think of how water has indeed shaped the way Yuma has succeeded in industries like agriculture. To keep expectations up, farmers have been developing creative irrigations systems for the crops to better adapt to the desert heat.
For some people irrigation systems may not sound interesting or useful, however; they play a huge role in keeping produce alive and well-watered. Be...
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...se every day performing various duties when not in training. The lure of beauty from the mountains and the desert brings tourists from all over to hike the terrain to watch the snow birds. When looking for a change of pace or a new beginning in life, Yuma, Arizona is a great place to start living.
Works Cited
Davis, Tony. "Climate to stress crops." Arizona Daily Star. 1990. Web. 05 Nov 2013. .
Stewart, Monty and Cecilia Valenzuela . "Yuma, Arizona." My-Arizona-Desert-Living.com. 2007. Web. 05 Nov 2013. .
Womer, Sarah. "Spirit of Yuma: MCAS a major influence." YumaSun.com. 9 Jan 2013. Web. 4 Nov 2013. .
Let us begin in the 1500’s this was when Arizona was first explored by the Spanish. In 1539 Arizona was claimed for Spain by Marcos de Niza. The first Spanish settlers were established in 1752 in Tubac. There were many revolts from two tribes Pima and Papago. In 1821 Mexico acquires military control over Arizona. The United States won the Mexican war in 1848. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo gave the United States most of Arizona. The rest of the state was given to the United States in 1853 by the Gadsden Purchase. Arizona discovered Copper in 1854. Arizona became a state on Valentine’s Day in 1912. This states name comes from the "Spanish word Arizonac. This term means little spring" (Bright, 2004, p. 47). The states motto became “Ditat Deus” which translates to “God enriches”.
Landscaping techniques, such as drip irrigation and xeriscaping can reduce California's use of water immensely. Eighty Percent of the state’s developed water supply is used on agriculture, but much of that eighty percent is wasted because of sprinkler systems. The water sprayed from sprinkler systems often evaporates, and more water is wasted to water the plants. A drip system is specifically placed at each plant and lets the water seep into the roots, so no water can be wasted through evaporation. This would require less water to be used on plants, because more is actually reaching the roots, saving the rest of the water for California. Xeriscaping is a type of “dry landscaping.” This means that materials and plants, such as native plants, succulents, gravel, and water flowers are used to design a beautiful outdoor space, instead of using grass which consumes an average of about fifty-seven inches of rain per year. Grass needs to be watered frequently, using up California’s water supply, but a dry landscape would use little to no water, benefiting California. Farmers and Homeowners can employ these landscaping techniques to reduce the use of California...
As Jensen points out, farming and industry accounts for the vast majority of total water usage in the world (477). The increasingly scarce resource is a necessary ingredient when growing food. Technology continuously improves to make it easier for farmers to grow crops while using less water. Scientists at the University of Georgia utilize what they term “variable rate irrigation” to let farmers automate the current systems of irrigation to water only the crops that need it (Gies). This is an example of retrofitting current farms, but there is a new way of farming coming to cities that reuses practically all of its water and stakes claim much less acreage in the process. The future of agriculture belongs to vertical and urban farming. These types of farms reduce the use of water, chemicals (such as pesticides, herbicides and fungicides), soil and space (The Economist). These farms are so cutting edge that they are mostly in the experimental stages. Firms like Famgro farms are testing “stackable” farming systems that can scale with demand, even further reducing waste. Famgro’s stackable farms are ideal for cityscapes where land is at a premium; furthermore, reaping the added benefit of being in close proximity to the customers that they serve. Customers will enjoy high quality, fresh produce at only a slightly
Irrigation aids the leaching of chemicals used in the production of grapes into the environment. The shift towards drip irrigation has been positive for the environment. It has minimized the quantity of water used in irrigation thus minimizing chemical leaching.
...breathing and feel the warm air dance across her bloody face. After a long time the eight men and she started walking towards a hill, slowly and quietly, in a single line formation. Behind the hill was the forty-eight state of the United States, Arizona. It was still dark as they climbed up, so they knew they had to be careful with each step they took. As they reached the peak they climbed down under trees and bushes. Taking the first steps on the Desert of Arizona.
...11). They were cliff dwellers and built adobe homes, hunted, grew crops, formed villages and learned to make pottery mostly in the Mesa Verde region from around 1050. They are essential to history as they are some of the first developers of the great cliff dwellings as well as the land amongst Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Arizona. They left Colorado, thanks mainly to drought and war. However, they have returned numerous times since their disappearance in the 1200’s and their history continues on through their descendants (Abbott, Leonard, Noel, 2013, pp. 12).
Anazazi- built communities in New Mexica an d Arizona; cultivated crops to feed the urban community
If you're looking to get away from the noise and chaos of the big city, look no further. With a great number of Ahwatukee homes for sale, your opportunity has arrived. Despite being located just off the I-10 major freeway, Ahwatukee has relatively few access points and so is known as the world's largest cul-de-sac. Since there are so few roads into Ahwatukee and there's very little there to draw a crowd, many people remain completely unaware that the town even exists, making it a perfectly remote and isolated place for a private, peaceful home. It's also a great place to reconnect with nature and experience the wild beauty of the Sonoran Desert, but also remains close enough to the city that you can easily have access to all the benefits of the Phoenix major metropolitan area.
As I drive along the roads of Flagstaff, a few things immediately dawn on the mind; it seems like a place that would be used as some sort of cinematic scene in a movie. The air smells as though it would be something from a local garden; scenery that would be portrayed in a painting. The colors are seen as bright and vivid, with all different kinds of hues sprawled across the land for what seems like an infinite plane. Trees fly by at breakneck speeds as I drive by. Trying to focus on one thing seems impossible as all of the landscape speeds by in an instant, just to be replaced by something else. Flagstaff seems as though it is a place that was never intended for an automobile. I grab my bag setting out for my next
Texas has a total land area of 261,914 square miles- making it the second largest state in the United States. Combined with a diverse geography, Texas has one of the most varied climates of any state. As the amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere increases year by year, causing an increase in the Earth’s average overall temperature, changes in our climate are inevitable. We will investigate how those changes will affect the life of the everyday Texan - from our water resources, to our cities and why they are important issues that need to be addressed by our society.
The earliest indigenous cultures of Arizona most likely lived in the region as early as 25,000 B.C. A later culture, the Hohokam who lived around 500–1450 A.D. were pit dwellers and built irrigation systems. The Pueblo culture built many of the cliff dwellings that still stand. Later, the Apache and the Navajo came to the area from Canada around 1300 A.D.
Situated in the south central part of the United States, Texas is the second largest state in the U.S. It is also the third fastest growing state and holds a number of the most populous cities in the nation [US Census,2013] and number one in the nation in producing greenhouse gasses [EPA, 2013]. Stress in water resources can be seen in rapidly populated and over populated areas, where the water demand is high and availability is limited. This is particularly magnified in Texas due to climate change. It is important to identify different factors that shape Texas’ climate before characterizing its implication on water supply in the future.
The Grand Canyon holds many interesting secrets from the past people who have made the canyon their home. The Grand Canyon has kept these secrets for many years through the generations of people who have lived in those areas and the stories that these generations have told younger generations. I find it interesting how people have lived in those areas for so long, they have dealt with the changes of their home. I also find it interesting how the people who lived in these conditions and the items they used to cook and storage items are items that we are finding today. Their items have survived through years of season changes, they may be broken or scattered within an area but they have for the most part stayed intact. The Grand Canyon holds history and stories of the people who lived their lives there, to think that under the sand that has blown and covered these areas was a town or homes to people. The people who lived there had an understanding of the plants and animals of the area they lived; they learned by trial and error that in itself is interesting. They were not afraid of being wrong, they learned from their mistakes. They lived by hunting and living outdoors, as people in our society it seems weird to think of living the way the natives have lived their lives. As stated in the article the natives possessed an understanding of the seasons and the area that they lived in that is beyond our grasp (Coder 2000:6-7). They were interesting people from what they knew to how they lived. I find it interesting how times have dramatically changed, the natives that lived in the Grand Canyon lived with what they could make with their hands, and eat what they could hunt, and they had the necessities whereas we today go to a s...
When you love the Desert Southwest, sometime, somewhere, you will stumble into the writings of Ed Abbey. Like me, Ed was not born there; he discovered his love of the place while riding a boxcar through it on a trip across the US; I discovered mine on a trip through myself. His writings helped lead me home, for that is what the desert southwest is to me: home. I don’t live there for one simple reason, i.e., I have not yet been able to put myself in the financial situation I need to be in. For now, I visit when I can, mostly during my long vacations at Christmas.
Sandra Postel, on the other hand, has a different opinion than Danielle’s. She proposed that “without increasing water productivity in irrigation, major food-producing regions will not have enough water to sustain crop production”.