Baja California Sur’s agricultural secretariat SEPADA (the state food, agriculture, and fisheries ministry) has installed drip irrigation systems on 15,000 of the state’s 38,000 agricultural hectares. The expansion represents a major push to conserve water in one of Mexico’s driest states, where annual rainfall averages less than 200 millimeters in most areas.
Over 100 Million Pesos in Infrastructure Since 2022
SEPADA head José Alfredo Bermúdez Beltrán said the state has invested more than 100 million pesos ($5.6 million USD) in hydroagricultural infrastructure since 2022. That spending has gone toward modernizing irrigation networks across the peninsula’s farming valleys, replacing older flood irrigation methods with drip systems that deliver water directly to plant roots.
Drip irrigation reduces evaporation loss and cuts water consumption by as much as 50% compared to traditional flood methods. In a state that depends almost entirely on underground aquifers for its freshwater supply, the technology directly addresses chronic overdraft concerns that also affect residential water users in cities like La Paz and Los Cabos.
Comondú Leads State Agriculture
Bermúdez Beltrán identified the municipality of Comondú, on the Pacific side of the peninsula roughly 400 miles south of Tijuana, as the state’s agricultural powerhouse. Comondú dedicates 28,500 hectares to crops including asparagus, citrus, and alfalfa. The town of Ciudad Constitución serves as the commercial hub for the region’s farming operations.
Alfalfa is among the most water-intensive crops grown in Baja California Sur. Because it requires year-round irrigation, converting alfalfa fields from flood to drip systems yields some of the largest per-hectare water savings. Asparagus and citrus, both significant export crops for the state, also benefit from precision watering that improves fruit quality and yield consistency.
The 15,000 hectares currently under drip irrigation represent about 39% of the state’s total farmland. Bermúdez Beltrán did not specify a target date for converting the remaining 23,000 hectares, but the pace of investment since 2022 points to continued expansion. The state government published the irrigation data on its official website, according to a report by the BCS state government press office.