ABSTRACT
Intensive cultivation of crops with surface irrigation along with heavy surface application of fertilizers has affected the environment in several ways (including ground water depletion and pollution with nitrates) and created economic problems in different areas of the world. It is estimated by FAO that the annual increase rate of world fertilizer consumption in the period of 2008-2013 is 2.2% for N, 3.8% for P2O5 and 5.3% for K2O.
Forecasts for world-wide fertilizer consumption in 2013 and 2016 are 184 and 194 million tons of nutrients, respectively. Thus, the only reasonable way to solve this problem is to improve fertilizer and water management using advanced management systems like drip fertigation. The demand for irrigation water has gone up due to increased cultivation. The climatic changes and decline in rainfall further added to water woes of the state in the form of inadequate recharging of ground water.
