TCHULA, Miss., Sept. 14, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- C Spire, on a
mission to move Mississippi
forward through technology, is teaming up with farmers and smart
equipment manufacturers to test new automated irrigation techniques
that promise to boost crop yields and conserve declining ground
water levels in the Mississippi Delta.
Aided by mobile coverage from its wireless unit widely regarded
as the best in the region, the Mississippi-based telecommunications and
technology firm is working with JF Phillips Farm and PrecisionKing
to learn if new water management techniques can increase selected
row crop yields and conserve groundwater resources.
While the full results won't be known until the end of the
growing season this fall, the plan is to compare standard
irrigation practices on row crops such as corn, soybeans and cotton
with the new automated system that features moisture sensors
monitored from a computer, smartphone or tablet.
"Agriculture is the state's No. 1 industry sector and we need to
help growers embrace precision farming practices and Internet of
Things (IoT) systems that can increase efficiency, boost yields and
conserve ground water resources," said C Spire President
Stephen Bye. "Automation and
analytics are the key factors that will help us deliver on that
promise."
Preliminary results in the Phillips trial are encouraging.
Water usage already has been reduced by up to 53 percent for corn
fields and from 50 to 65 percent for soybean plots, according to
Nick King, president of the
Yazoo City-based PrecisionKing.
"We're optimistic this approach will save water and improve overall
productivity and crop yields," he said.
Growers like Jack Phillips said
working with C Spire and PrecisionKing on technology solutions is
critical to future success. "Row crops like corn and soybeans
have lots of variables that need to be closely managed," said
Phillips, owner of JF Phillips Farms, a row crop farming operation
in the lower Mississippi Delta.
Recent research shows IoT can increase yields by up to 15
percent and revenue by $100,000
annually for a typical 1,000-acre farm. Mississippi has more than 36,200 farms
covering 10.7 million acres, much of it in the Delta, producing
products ranging from cattle to catfish, poultry to pecans and
horses to horticulture, according to the Mississippi Development
Authority.
In recent years, declining groundwater levels have been of
growing concern in the Mississippi Delta. Gov. Phil Bryant and other state leaders and federal
agencies formed the Delta Sustainable Water Resources Task Force in
2014 to tackle the problem and develop solutions to ensure future
sustainable ground water resources in the region.
King said managing water resources will help an industry that
employs 29 percent of the state's workers and generates over
$7.6 billion annually for
Mississippi's economy. "We
need to do more with less and IoT technology-based innovations will
help farmers deliver on that promise."
C Spire is uniquely positioned to help smart farming prosper in
rural Mississippi, especially in
the environmentally sensitive Delta region, Bye said, noting that a
robust mobile broadband network and partnerships with ag IoT
providers like PrecisionKing ensure that precision agriculture has
a bright future in the Magnolia state.
"We have the network, resources, partnerships and professional
expertise to help farmers be successful as they transition from a
labor-intensive, high-risk, low-reward industry to one that relies
on 21st century technology to feed the world and
conserve our precious natural resources," Bye said.
C Spire reinforced its commitment to innovation last fall by
launching the C Spire Tech Movement initiative designed to leverage
the company's technology leadership and investments to help
transform its service areas. Precision agriculture, smart
farming and the agricultural Internet of Things are key elements of
its focus on technology innovation to move the state forward.
To learn more about the C Spire Tech Movement, visit
http://www.cspire.com/cms/wireless/tech-movement/.
About C Spire
C Spire provides a full suite of world-class, customer-inspired
wireless, 1 Gigabit consumer Internet access and related home
services for consumers and dedicated Internet, IP Voice, data,
managed IT services, cloud services, value added resale and mobile
communications for businesses. This news release and other
announcements are available at www.cspire.com/news. To learn more
about the Tech Movement initiative, visit cspire.com or follow us
on Facebook at facebook.com/cspire or Twitter at
twitter.com/cspire.
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SOURCE C Spire