Water Management

As leaders of water management in Quebec, cranberry producers have greatly improved their practices over the past ten years by adopting innovative practices and becoming an inspiration for other cultivators.

• 90%  of cranberry farms function on a closed-water circuit
• The installation of a closed-circuit water system is necessary to obtain an authorization permit from the Minister of Sustainable Development, Environment and Parks (MDDEP) 
• A closed-circuit water system consists of laying water reservoirs during the earliest stages of implementing a new cranberry farm. During this development period, the reservoirs fill with water from rain and the run-off of melting snow.  The accumulated water is preserved in reservoirs to be used for field irrigation, flooding during harvest and icing during the winter.
• After flooding the fields, the water is redirected toward the reservoirs to be recycled and saved for future use.
• The closed-circuit water system functions by gravity and pumping which guarantee a sufficient water supply for field operations. During the season producers re-use the accumlated water without having to aquire water from other sources.
• As with the cultivation of other fruits and vegetables, cranberries need to be sprayed with water to protect their buds against frost in the spring, the fruit against frost in the fall and to maintain a proper level of moisture.
• Though we often see pictures of cranberries during harvesting when large quantities of water are necessary, the plants do not grow in water and therefore need no more water than what is needed to grow grass.

It is true that cranberry cultivation requires a large amount of water movement, but this precious resource is managed efficiently so that these reservoirs, often small lakes containing enough water for all operations related to cultivation. As producers rely less and less on adjacent sources to fill their reservoirs during the implantation of a cranberry farm and as these water plans improve, they are becoming more and more favorable habitats for aquatic wildlife.

Closed-circuit water system plan