For more than 100 years, the Bureau of Reclamation has brought water to arid lands to support agriculture and economic development. Today, Reclamation’s 8,000 miles of canals deliver water across the Western United States, serving over 30 million customers and 10 million acres of farmland that produce 60% of the nation’s vegetables and 25% of its fruits and nuts. These canals are impacted by aquatic vegetation that can obstruct water flow, degrade water quality, and limit access for canal inspection and maintenance. More extreme growth can increase operating elevations and risk of canal failure. Existing methods for managing vegetation (primarily mechanical and chemical) have various drawbacks. Mechanical methods are costly, labor intensive, can disrupt embankments, and create debris and sedimentation issues. Chemical options are limited for aquatic environments and while less labor intensive than mechanical methods they can also be costly, present safety risks and undesirable downstream effects. The Veg Out Challenge aims to reduce the cost and labor of aquatic vegetation management in canals while minimizing undesirable impacts to water quality or downstream users. The challenge seeks to identify, develop, and test novel, sustainable, scalable solutions that can be used across a range of canal types.
Partner Organization: Bureau of Reclamation
Award: $345,000 in total prizes
Open Date: October 12, 2022
Close Date: January 11, 2023
For more information, visit: https://www.herox.com/VegOut