Irrigation in the U.S.

• The latest Census of Agriculture that was conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) revealed that the U.S. had a total of 55.8 million acres of irrigated cropland in 2012.
• Agriculture is a major consumer of surface and groundwater in the U.S.
• It accounts for about 80% of the country's consumptive water use.
• This value is above 90% in most Western States.
• Since the 1997 Census of Agriculture, the major pattern of increased irrigated land in the U.S. shows a shift from the Western States to the Delta and Southeast (except for Florida).
•  Atlases released by the USDA and the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) reveal that most of U.S. crop irrigation occurs in:
• "The Columbia and Snake River Basins found in the Pacific Northwest". 
• "The Mississippi Delta region". 
• "The High Plains Ogallala region". 
• "The Californa Central Valley". 
• In the U.S., crop irrigation is dynamic. Irrigated area differs with time due to various factors. These are local or regional water supply/demand and agronomic conditions, climate change, and export/domestic crop market demands.
• The 13 states that lead in irrigation in the U.S. from the highest to the lowest are:
• Nebraska with 8.3 million acres -(14.9%).
• California with 7.9 million acres -(14.1%).
• Arkansas with 4.8 million acres -(8.6%).
• Texas with 4.5 million acres -(8.0%).
•  Idaho -(6.0%). 
•  Kansas -(5.2%).  
•  Colorado -(4.5%). 
•  Montana -(3.4%).  
•  Mississippi -(3.0%). 
•  Washington -(2.9%). 
•  Oregon -(2.9%). 
•  Florida -(2.7%).  
• This data is based on 2012 from the latest Census of Agriculture that was conducted by the USDA's Economic Research Service.
• Data from the USDA reveals that these top 13 states make up for 78.8% of the total irrigated acres in the country while the remaining 37 states make up for the remaining 21.2%.