BMPs for Phosphorus Management Idaho's Water Water is a finite resource essential to life. Water sustains Idaho's fish and wildlife, agriculture, industry, mining, forestry, hydropower generation, recreation, and growing population. Idaho is renowned for its rivers and lakes which support water recreation and provide some of the most spectacular natural scenery in the world. Water is precious, and its management determines the quality of Idaho's environment.
Water is the lifeblood of Idaho.
Over 22 billion gallons of water are used each day in Idaho. More than 97 percent of this water is used on 4.1 million acres of irrigated farmland. Currently, the quality of water used in Idaho is very good. Commercial fertilizers and pesticides are two of the major technological breakthroughs of the 20th century. They have given us a means to make soils more productive and to combat pests that threaten our crops.