Farmers save energy in Grande Ronde Valley with management, technologies, incentives

Grande Ronde Valley, OR: Electricity and fuel are significant expenses for growers in the Grande Ronde Valley, where irrigation is necessary to grow crops such as grass seed, mint, alfalfa, wheat, and sugar beets. However, growers are using a variety of management practices and technologies to mitigate these costs, reduce energy use, and provide other natural resource benefits.

After a professional energy audit, local grower Phil Hassinger learned that conventional irrigation pumps are sized for the grower’s maximum water needs, and operate at that horsepower regardless of the size of the irrigation job. “With a regular pump, you use almost as much energy to run one wheel line as you would need to run four wheel lines,” Hassinger explains.

Hassinger added a smaller pump at one site to lower his energy use for smaller irrigation jobs, and is currently installing a more efficient pump motor and a variable frequency drive (VFD).

Hassinger’s neighbor, John Cuthbert, has also upgraded to an efficient motor and VFD. The variable frequency drive is a computer that runs the pump at the horsepower needed to do the job – and no more. This arrangement more closely matches the cost of electricity to the amount of water applied.

“With the variable speed drive, you enter the pressure you need for the type of equipment you’re using,” Hassinger explains. “The drive starts the pump at an idling speed, and gradually builds the water pressure needed. When I start the old pump, it starts at a very high speed to force the water pressure up. Not only will the new system reduce energy use by about a third, it will eliminate problems with water hammering and burst pipes from that first burst of pressure the constant speed pump created.”

The cost of the pump and drive was much greater than a conventional pump, but several incentives helped make the project possible for the Hassingers. They received a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development agency for about 25% of the pump cost and also received a Business Energy Tax Credit from the state of Oregon.

Hassinger is also very complimentary of the incentives available from the local power company, Oregon Trail Electric Cooperative. “They have cost-shared energy audits and offer rebates for maintenance activities that save energy, like replacing nozzles and couplers on pivots.” These simple management practices save electricity and also help ensure that growers apply the correct amount of water to their crops.

Fuel-saving management practices have also translated to other natural resource benefits on the Hassingers’ fields. “Over the last five years, I’ve seen diesel prices increase from 63 cents to $3.50 per gallon,” says Phil Hassinger. “At that price, farmers are aware of the cost of every pass they make over the field. I’m willing to leave the seed bed more course than I used to.” The Hassingers have reduced tillage of the soil, enhancing soil organic matter and quality while lowering their fuel use.

To save fertilizer, which requires significant energy resources to produce, the Hassingers test their soil for major nutrients and apply fertilizer according to soil test results. They are also using a variety of integrated pest management practices such as scouting, predatory mites and wasps for crop pests, which reduces the number of trips across the field needed with a sprayer.

The Hassingers’ careful management of soil tilth, nutrient applications, and pesticide applications, as well as other management practices, allowed them to enroll in the Conservation Security Program, a USDA program which rewards growers for a high level of natural resources stewardship.

Hassinger, who enjoys birding and fishing, appreciates the benefits to fish and wildlife as well as the cost savings of his energy efficiency projects.