NMPWRC December Webinar | Plant growth, ion dynamics, and microbial communities in soils irrigated with treated produced water

​Plant growth, ion dynamics, and microbialcommunities in soils irrigated with treatedproduced water for sustainable agriculture​

​featuring ​

​Adrianne Lopez and Punhasa Senanayake Ph.D. ​

​Using treated produced water (tPW) for irrigation is becoming a morepopular idea in dry regions, but we still don’t fully understand how itaffects plants, soil, and the tiny organisms living in the soil. This studytested plant growth and soil conditions over nine months in the PermianBasin (Texas), using two types of soil and different salt levels in the water.The results show that tPW can be a good option for irrigation as long asthe salt levels are kept under control and the buildup of ions and changesin microbes are carefully monitored. This helps protect soil and crophealth and supports long-term productivity.​

​Adrianne Lopez is the Research and Development Manager at TexasPacific Water Resources (TPWR), where she leads the company’sdesalination and water-reuse program. With over seven years at TPWR,she has worked in treatment, water quality, construction, projectmanagement, and produced-water reuse. She helped develop a first-of-its-kind desalination system for the oil and gas industry and continues toadvance new uses for treated produced water while working with Texasregulators on related policy.​

​Punhasa Senanayake, Ph.D., is a Postdoctoral Researcher at NewMexico State University specializing in membrane-based treatment ofbrackish and produced water. His work aims to generate fit-for-purposewater while reducing energy use, lowering costs, and supporting scalablereuse solutions.​