Irrigation Innovation Consortium Headquarters in Fort Collins, CO.
Overhead view of IIC HQ with fields highlighted and labeled to show crop planting and irrigation strategies used during the 2020 growing season.
IIC HQ, located at the intersection of Prospect Rd. and Interstate-25 (Above;Lat. 40.557270,Long. -105.004932), includes 38.5 acres of land that is surface irrigated from multiple water sources: i) a 450 gallon per minute (gpm) Coffin well, ii) Sand Dike Lateral Co. water shares, iii) Lake Canal Co. water shares, and iv) Colorado-Big Thompson (CBT) shares. Irrigation water from these sources totals
A.J. Brown is the IIC assistant director and station director of IIC HQ. Greg Stieben, the custom farmer for the site, has a labor agreement with CSU to share garage space in exchange for farm services such as planting, tillage, and harvesting. In 2020, three undergraduate research assistants were hired as student employees to provide part-time assistance for research activities and farm management at IIC HQ. Other IIC Staff supported activities throughout the season as well, including Dr. Allan Andales (IIC Principal Investigator), Dr. Tim Martin (IIC Executive Director), Amy Kremen (IIC Project Manager), and Susie Hutton (IIC Communications Specialist).
Crops planted during the 2020 growing season include corn and sorghum. West Field and East Field 1 were planted to irrigated grain corn (Enogen; G02K39-3120.0-EZ1). East Field 2 was planted in dryland sorghum.
Goals for the IIC HQ:
Develop a state-of-the-art, instrumented location to showcase technologies
Provide hands-on training in new irrigation
technologies to diverse clientele
Provide on- or near-site evaluation of
irrigation systems and technologies
Provide a clearinghouse of current irrigation information
Provide training and outreach to regional
irrigated crop producers
Develop certification training and continuing
education for irrigation practitioners
Establish an instrumented hydraulics lab to certify and test gates, meters, and sensors, and offer training for industry personnel, students, and visitors
(Well Certification Student learns well
auditing skills at IIC HQ Fort Collins, CO.)
Location, Layout, & Demographics
Overhead view of IIC HQ with fields highlighted and labeled to show crop planting and irrigation strategies used during the 2020 growing season.
IIC HQ, located at the intersection of Prospect Rd. and Interstate-25 (Above;Lat. 40.557270,Long. -105.004932), includes 38.5 acres of land that is surface irrigated from multiple water sources: i) a 450 gallon per minute (gpm) Coffin well, ii) Sand Dike Lateral Co. water shares, iii) Lake Canal Co. water shares, and iv) Colorado-Big Thompson (CBT) shares. Irrigation water from these sources totals approximately 120 acre-feet per year. The in-farm irrigation ditch length is 2900 feet. An office, garage, and hay shed are also located on-site. This property is owned by CSURF, which has established a 10-year lease agreement with IIC (2018 – 2028) which enables IIC to use and develop the site during this period with $0 in annual payment, with the lease value of approximately $1M serving as an in-kind, non-federal source of funds that IIC can match with FFAR dollars.
