An Allocation LP Model for Planning Dry-Season Irrigation Project

Crop pattern is important information for farmers that used to be the guidelines at the beginning of seasonal cultivation. This paper proposes an allocation LP model that can take into account heterogeneity of water requirement and crop yield of irrigation area for finding optimal crop patterns. A sensitivity analysis of irrigation efficiency in the LP model was accounted for in the study. The proposed model was applied to find the dry-season (Mid December ? Mid April) crop pattern of the Huai-Ang Irrigation Project located in the Northeast Region of Thailand. The records of seasonal flow requested and actual irrigation areas, crop water requirement, crop yield, evaporation, and effective rainfall of the project were used for this illustrative application. Results showed that the proposed LP model is feasible for finding the optimal crop pattern. Heterogeneous character in allocation LP model provided the crop pattern that suitable for cultivating crop on the actual land area. The consideration of various irrigation efficiency in irrigation planning provided the optimal crop pattern that can be given the higher gross benefit.