1. Georgia Agricultural Metering Program
Marjie Dickey
Agricultural Metering Project Manager
Cliff Lewis
Agricultural Water Withdrawal Program Manager

2. Agricultural Water Withdrawal Program
Regulatory Timeline
1988 – Law establishes withdrawal permitting for farm uses, first permits issued; function under Water Resources Branch (Water Resources Mgmt.)
2003 – House Bill 579: Water use meters to be installed by Georgia’s Soil & Water Conservation Commission on irrigation sources after
July
2004 – First Agricultural Water Use Meters began being installed.
– Completion of Georgia’s First Ever State Water Planning Effort. .
Evaluates agricultural surface and groundwater withdrawal permit proposals > or = 100,000 gpd, Investigates permit compliance issues, SF vs Non SF real quick
The water withdrawal permitting program is a state regulatory process designed to properly manage the water resources of the state and to ensure adequate water supply for human use, agriculture, and industries. There is no federal law associated with the water withdrawal program.

3. Georgia’s agricultural Water Regulated Community
General farming
Foragers
Aquaculture
Turf/sod producers
orchards, tree & ornamental nurseries
water supply for farm animals
processing of perishable ag products
the irrigation of recreational turf
Over 100K a day users
Ag Water Users with capacity to use 100,000 gallons per day

5. Since 2003, the state has installed over 12,000 flowmeters throughout the state. A map of flowmeter installation locations illustrates the widespread implementation of the Agricultural Metering Program.
As the picture demonstrates, the Agricultural Metering Program covers a very large area, including the LFRB, Upper Flint River Basin, and Chattahoochee Basin. Although the meters are installed throughout the ACF Basin and the state, the primary focus of the Agricultural Metering Program has been the Flint River Basin. Consistent with this priority, initial flowmeter installations during 2004–2007 were concentrated on agricultural irrigation in Southwest Georgia. By the end of 2009, the GASWCC monitored agricultural withdrawals from a network of 7000 annually read flow meters at water-withdrawal-permit locations in southern Georgia. Today GA’s network has grown to over 12,000 and continues to expand.

6. Georgia’s Agricultural Metering program
“. . . to obtain clear and accurate information on the patterns and amounts of such use, which information is essential to proper management of water resources by the state and useful to farmers for improving the efficiency and effectiveness of their use of water.”
The GA Agricultural Water Metering Program, which deploys water flowmeters at the sources where water is pumped in the producers’ production fields is one of the most effective and large scale water conservation programs that has been implemented. This initiative is critical to successful implementation of basin-wide and state-wide water management plans.

7. Metering Program Implementation
In 2004, the GA General Assembly passed and the Governor signed HB 579.
In December 2016, EPD assumes control of the state’s Agricultural Water Metering Program via Governor’s Executive Order
This past legislative session, the GA General Assembly passed and the Governor signed SB 451, codifying EPD’s management & implementation charge for the Ag Water Measurement Program.
All flowmeters in the Agricultural Metering Program are read on an annual basis at the completion of the growing season.
State of Georgia has also committed to read a sample of meters on a monthly basis.
In 2004, the Georgia General Assembly passed and the governor signed HB 579 requiring all permitted irrigation withdrawals in Georgia to be metered.
All flowmeters in the Agricultural Metering Program are read on an annual basis at the completion of the growing season. These annual readings provide reliable data regarding total agricultural water use for the six-month period from approximately April 1 to October 1, during which most irrigation occurs. Given the need to understand not only annual withdrawal amounts but withdrawals during particular months of elevated levels of irrigation, the State of Georgia has also committed to read a sample of meters on a monthly basis. This provides even better information regarding withdrawal amounts and water use patterns during months of lower streamflow, especially during the late summer and early fall.

8. The flowmeters deployed for the Agricultural Metering Program are equipped with readout gauges to monitor flow rates.
The flowmeters deployed for the Agricultural Metering Program are equipped with readout gauges to monitor flow rates (Picture). These propeller-type flowmeters are known for their accuracy and durability, and have been used widely in agricultural irrigation in other states.

9. Data Collected On Metered sites
Individual Metered Use reading(s)
Date of the meter reading
Meter Location Coordinates
Meter Serial Number
Source type for each meter (well or surface water)
Unique identifier of the fields irrigated by each meter
Acres irrigated by each meter
Crop types for the irrigated acres

10. Metered Data benefits to Georgia’s water resources management
By installing, reading, and maintaining meters over a large scale, state agencies like Georgia EPD are better able to monitor water application to produce commodity crops in different regions in the state. For example, this program allows the state agencies to determine how much water is applied for agricultural irrigation using groundwater or surface water or from other sources (Figure) which enables the state to better assess, plan, and manage water resources.
Percent metered irrigation water use by freshwater source (left) and amount of irrigation water applied using three water resources (right) in the Upper Flint River Basin. This data was obtained as a result of Georgia’s Agricultural Metering Program.