Irrigation Project Checklist
Everything an irrigation scheme has to resolve before tender — from water rights and source yield to hydraulic design, energy, automation and commissioning tests.
Irrigation Project Checklist
An irrigation project checklist works through water rights and source yield, water analysis, soil and topography, crop water demand, system selection, hydraulic and block design, pumping station, filtration and disinfection, fertigation, automation, energy supply, civil works, and commissioning with uniformity testing. Design starts from peak crop water demand, not from the equipment list.
13 sections · 55 line items · free, no email gate
Quick answer
An irrigation project checklist works through water rights and source yield, water analysis, soil and topography, crop water demand, system selection, hydraulic and block design, pumping station, filtration and disinfection, fertigation, automation, energy supply, civil works, and commissioning with uniformity testing. Design starts from peak crop water demand, not from the equipment list.
1. Water rights & source
- Abstraction licence, quota and renewal date
- Source type (borehole · river · canal · reservoir · treated · desal)
- Sustainable yield at peak season (m³/h)
- Seasonal reliability and drought restrictions
- Backup or secondary source
2. Water analysis
- EC, pH, TDS, sodium, chloride, bicarbonate
- Iron, manganese, hydrogen sulphide (clogging risk)
- Suspended solids, algae and biological load
- Lab report date and sampling protocol
3. Soil & topography
- Soil texture, infiltration rate and water-holding capacity
- Salinity and required leaching fraction
- Topographic survey and elevation differences
- Field block layout and access roads
4. Crop water demand
- Crop, planting density and rotation
- Peak ETc (mm/day) and monthly profile
- Effective rainfall contribution
- Design irrigation hours per day
5. System selection
- Drip · micro-sprinkler · sprinkler · pivot · subsurface
- Emitter flow, spacing and pressure compensation
- Target distribution uniformity (DU / EU %)
- Phasing across hectares and seasons
6. Hydraulic design
- Number of irrigation shifts / blocks
- Mainline, submain and lateral sizing
- Pressure requirement at the critical block
- Air valves, flush valves and pressure regulation
- Pipe class, material and burial depth
7. Pumping station
- Duty point (flow and head) and pump curve margin
- Variable frequency drives and staging
- Standby pump and redundancy policy
- Suction arrangement, priming and surge protection
8. Filtration & disinfection
- Filter type (sand · disc · screen) and micron rating
- Automatic backflush and flush water disposal
- Chlorination, acid or peroxide dosing for clogging control
- UV or ozone where recirculation applies
9. Fertigation
- Injection method and number of channels
- EC / pH control and accuracy tolerance
- Stock tank sizing, bunding and chemical storage
- Backflow prevention to the water source
10. Automation & monitoring
- Controller, valve count and communication type
- Soil moisture and weather station integration
- Flow meters and leak detection
- Remote access, alarms and data reporting
11. Energy supply
- Grid connection capacity and tariff structure
- Diesel or solar-hybrid pumping option
- Annual energy cost per hectare estimate
- Standby power for critical irrigation windows
12. Civil works & installation
- Reservoir or storage tank volume and lining
- Pump house, fencing and security
- Trenching, road and canal crossings
- Installation scope: supply-only vs supervised vs turnkey
13. Commissioning & handover
- Pressure and flow test per block
- Uniformity test result against the design target
- As-built drawings and operating manuals
- Spares kit, warranty terms and service response time
- Operator training and maintenance schedule
Once the checklist is complete
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FAQ
- What should an irrigation project checklist include?
- Water rights and source yield, water analysis, soil and topography, crop water demand, system selection, hydraulic and block design, pumping, filtration and disinfection, fertigation, automation, energy supply, civil works, and commissioning with a uniformity test.
- What is the first step in designing a commercial irrigation system?
- Confirming the water balance: sustainable source yield at peak season against peak crop water demand. If the source cannot meet peak ETc plus the leaching fraction, the design changes before any equipment is selected.
- Why does water analysis matter before buying drip irrigation?
- Iron, manganese, bicarbonate, suspended solids and biological load determine the filtration train, the dripper type and the chemical maintenance programme. Selecting emitters before the analysis is the most common cause of clogging and early system failure.
- What performance test should be in an irrigation contract?
- A distribution uniformity test per block measured against the design target, plus pressure and flow verification at the critical block, before final acceptance and release of retention.
- Is this checklist free to download?
- Yes. No login or email gate — print it, save as PDF, or download the plain-text version.