Design and Optimization of Irrigation Water Distribution System in Northern Nigeria

Most farmers in Northern Nigeria rely on conventional irrigation channels to transfer water from rivers, dams, lakes, or streams to their respective farmlands for irrigation. However, this method of water distribution is not without problems; seepage, evaporation, and transpiration are difficult to prevent, construction and maintenance of these channels take a significant amount of time, and maintaining a steady fall is relatively difficult. In general, the channel distribution system is much less efficient than a system based on pipes. Nonetheless, pipes are relatively expensive and often inaccessible for the riparian and other small-scale farmers in Northern Nigeria. This study aims to propose an alternative water distribution approach that will minimize water loss and deliver the water at a higher level using new (less expensive and readily available) material, which has been used to line water channels. After assessing different materials, a distribution system with a plastic envelope suspended from a taut wire was used, making it possible to accept water at a position, about 2 m, above ground level, and carry it over appropriate distances at minimum fall rates without losses. A means of discharging water from the envelope and distributing it over a cropped area was also developed, thus rendering the system resistant to problems associated with flooding of small basins.