Last month marked the 4th Water Institute Symposium at the University of Florida. This bi-annual event gathers students,
academics, water authority staffers and industry reps in Gainesville to share
research and insight around a specific water theme.
Roving reporter
My tasks were three-fold during the event: attend the talks
most relevant to my interests, manage the twitter presence for Miami-Dade’s Urban Conservation Unit and shoot video for an IrriGator media series currently
in production.
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| All the way up from Miami-Dade County: Jesus Lomeli and Laura Vasquez |
Nothing livens up a symposium like surprises and this one
had several in store. Dr. Kati Migliaccio presented in the Stakeholder
Engagement in Water Demand Management section. While revealing the success of the smart irrigation turf app she and a team have developed (generating data as
good if not better than a weather-based irrigation timer), she also mentioned
that additional apps are in the works.
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| Dr. Migliaccio and the dominating smart turf app results |
In the near future peanut, avocado,
cabbage and tomato growers will be able to supplement irrigation decision-making
using smart mobile devices.
Palm Beach County Water Utilities Department Policy
and Legislation Manager Christopher Pettit was also in attendance.
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| Palm Beach County's Christopher Pettit presents |
During the Water Supply Planning section he mentioned that Palm Beach and Broward Counties have a reclaimed water partnership that sends millions of gallons of treated
water from south to north to help conserve Palm Beach’s potable supply.
With all the disparate players presenting in organized categories, attending a multidisciplinary panel like Water Initiative in Extension was helpful.
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| The Water Initiative in Extension panel |
I learned that Tampa Bay Water has been an innovative force for years in Florida, funding research
around technology and conservation programs that are now the norm. I was also
impressed by Polk County Extension Agent Shannon McGee who redefined for me the
kind of role and impact a knowledgeable agent can have in her community.
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| Our work here is complete: the Dr. Michael Dukes stamp of approval |
When all was said and done I had a mountain of tweets and a
video to show for it. See that work here or below. You can also peruse all the presentations from the symposium here.
On to the next
Lest my entry title be deceiving I should mention that
preparations are currently underway for the first South Florida Landscape Symposium of 2014 - to be held on May 1st in South Miami-Dade. And by
preparations I mean the finishing touches because it is now sold out! If you
were forward-looking enough to register, what can you expect? See this report back from 2013, or view the teaser trailer below.
Stay tuned for future entries about the above and other UF/IFAS water-related work, and for additional content follow IrriGator on twitter.
About the author:
Michael Gutierrez is a water resources technician
with UF/IFAS in the Ag & Bio Engineering Dept.
He tweets, blogs
and also shoots still and video media in South Florida, Gainesville and
anywhere else a camera is handy. (image: IFAS Communications)
