Green Industries Best Management Practices manual

GREEN INDUSTRY IRRIGATION BMPSThe principal BMPs for all of the Green Industry include:• Call before you dig. Call 811 for free Sunshine StateOne Call locator service.• When possible, the application of fertilizers, herbicides,or other chemicals that needed to be watered,should coincide with an irrigation event.• Proper cultural practices (such as mowing) to promotehealthy, deep root development and reduce irrigationrequirements.• Account for the nutrients in reclaimed water whenmaking fertilizer calculations. Knowing the nitrate levelsin reclaimed water can reduce your fertilizer purchases.The application of 1 inch of reclaimed watercontaining 20 ppm nitrate-Nitrogen adds about 4.5pounds of nitrogen per acre (lb. N/acre) to the soil.If you irrigate 40 inches per year, that works out to alittle over 4 lb. per 1,000 square feet.• Repair any irrigation devices broken while servicing asite. Replacement parts should have the same characteristicsas the original components.Figure 11. Water gushing from broken head.• ASABE Standards–2007. Standards, engineeringpractices, and data developed and adopted by theAmerican Society of Agricultural and BiologicalEngineers. 2007. American Society of Agricultural andBiological Engineers, 2950 Niles Rd., St. Joseph, MO49085. Telephone (269) 429-0300. http://www.asabe.org/standards/searchpur.html.• Florida Building Code—Plumbing, Appendix F.International Code Council 900 Montclair Rd.Birmingham AL, 35213-1206 (205) 599-9871http://www.floridabuilding.org/BCISOld/bc/default.aspor http://www.iccsafe.org.• National Engineering Handbook Series 210-VI. November1997. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural ResourcesConservation Service, Washington D.C., 20013.http://directives.sc.egov.usda.gov/.• Standards and Specifications for Turf and LandscapeIrrigation Systems, Fifth Edition. December 2005. FloridaIrrigation Society, (800) 441-5341, Address: 9340 56thStreet N. Suite 105, Temple Terrace, FL 33617 , Florida.http://www.fisstate.org/standardsrevision3.pdf.• Turf and Landscape Irrigation Best Management Practices,April 2005. The Irrigation Association. (703) 536-7080,6540 Arlington Blvd., Falls Church, VA 22042-6638http://www.irrigation.org.• Visually observe site problems associated with irrigation(i.e., wet, dry spots, excessive weeds in specificlocation) or system components (leaks, broken equipment)and report problems to the client.• When leaching salts, which is necessary in some soilsdue to poor water quality, always wait until the nutrientlevel in the soil is depleted to avoid leaching offertilizer nutrients with the salt.Additional BMPs for those with ownership/managementresponsibility:• Group plants by similar water requirements (i.e.,Hydrozones)• Irrigation controllers/timers should be reset seasonallyto account for plant growth requirements and local climaticconditions.• Properly calibrated flow meters, soil moisture sensors,rain shut-off devices, and/or other automated methodsshould be used to manage irrigation.• Irrigation rates should not exceed the maximum abilityof the soil to absorb and hold the water applied inany one application.• Implement a preventive maintenance program toreplace worn components before they cause water,fertilizer and chemical waste.• Perform weekly (or at each site visit) visual inspectionsto identify leaks, broken rain sensors or sprinklerheads, and other system malfunctions.• Replace or repair all broken or worn componentsbefore the next scheduled irrigation.• Distribution uniformity should be checked annually.Department of Environmental Protection – Revised DECEMBER 200819