Water shortages could force many farmers to revolutionize the way they water their crops.

Jan Kleissel and a team of University of California students are studying ways to help farmers conserve more water by using a scintillometer to measure the amount of water crops lose to evaporation. The researchers hope to help farmers see how efficiently their water is being used.

Water conservation is becoming more of a necessity due to increasing droughts and new restrictions from state and federal governments. 

In California last year, a federal judge ordered that pumping in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta be restricted to protect the delta smelt, a native fish.  The action made water an even greater commodity, and cut into growers’ water supply.

Source:  redOrbit,Technology Could Help Farmers Conserve Water