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US: Classroom on wheels on display at annual Potato Conference

Fresh Plaza (Netherlands)

January 22, 2009

Thanks to a nearly $30,000 federal grant channeled through the Washington State Department of Agriculture, the Washington State Potato Commission and other dedicated partners have developed a mobile chemigation training unit. “We wanted to develop a comprehensive chemigation training program that integrates classroom instruction, applied activities and in-field experiences,” says Tom Hoffmann, Technical Assistance Specialist with the Washington Department of Agriculture. “And the best way to enhance the skills of individuals who conduct chemigation applications is to conduct the training on-site and in familiar surroundings.” Chemigation is the process by which a chemical is injected into irrigation water and applied through the system to the crop or field.

The chemigation training unit is going to be on display at the 48th Annual Washington State Potato Conference at the Three Rivers Convention Center in Kennewick January 26 - 28. What began as a grant for a piece of equipment turned into a much more comprehensive project. “We realized we needed the ability to deliver a hands-on experience working with an injection pump and simulated irrigation system with the ability to take it to sites where training could be delivered more efficiently,” says Chris Voigt, Potato Commission Executive Director, who wrote the grant for funding from the USDA Specialty Crop Program. That launched a drive to outfit a travel trailer to house demonstration equipment and educational materials. The work of fabricating and outfitting the mobile training unit was undertaken and completed by Leonard Lyon and his staff at A&L Supply in Othello.

Partners providing support included Washington State Potato Commission, A&L Supply, TKI NovaSource, AMVAC, Taminco, Simplot Grower Solutions, CHS-Sun Basin Operations, Ranch & Home Trailer Sales-Kennewick, and Signs Now of Moses Lake. The team also realized that the trailer presented an opportunity to inform the public that the training was going on. WSPC staff worked with an artist and with Signs Now of Moses Lake to create an outside wrap of attractive photographs, the name of the unit and recognition for the partners involved.

Chemigation is a common method of application used among agricultural producers, greenhouse and plant nursery operators, and golf course and turf farm managers. In the production of agricultural crops, it is estimated that 8,000 to 9,000 irrigation systems are used to chemigate, and that chemigation is practiced on nearly one-half of the 1.82 million acres of irrigated land in Washington State.

Currently, a comprehensive training program does not exist in the United States with the purpose of developing knowledge and core skills of people who operate chemigation systems. In addition to the mobile training unit, funds are being used to develop educational modules that include applied case studies and real-life problems which are typically encountered when performing chemigation applications.

The chemigation training program, conducted by the Washington Department of Agriculture and administered by the Potato Commission, familiarizes operators with chemigation devices and irrigation practices, and promotes awareness of site limitations, on-site hazards and incident response procedures. It also provides instruction on management practices and equipment operation to prevent handler and bystander exposure and pesticide misapplication.