Monitoring
Weather, Water & Infrastructure Monitoring
Environmental Monitoring
WIN’s environmental monitoring network encompasses Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Michigan and Western Europe. Data is collected by weather stations that can monitor temperature, relative humidity (RH), rain, wind, solar radiation, leaf wetness and soil temperature and moisture. The networks are run on radio and cellular stations that report to the WIN database at regular intervals.
Along with collecting temperature, RH, and rain for site-specific forecasts and weather monitoring, the WIN network also uses specific sensors in various regions for research projects and pest models that are run by WIN. For instance, temperature and leaf wetness sensors are used in disease pressure monitoring in wheat (DONcast®, WHEATcast™), grapes, sugarbeets (BEETcast™), tomatoes (TOMcast™), potatoes (SPUDcast™), and strawberries. The data can be viewed by subscribers in raw and model form.
Water Management
There are many water monitoring projects that WIN is involved in. These range from stream level monitoring, irrigation pivots, water pressure/valve monitoring, water balance outputs, to flood monitoring.
Specific projects, such as irrigation timing in tomatoes and potatoes use metre deep Capacitance probes that records soil moisture at three depths – growers can watch the moisture life cycle of their soil and when the plants are actively taking up water. The data is accessed online and allows for easier irrigation scheduling. The soil sensors are also used in sugar beets to record temperature and moisture to aid researchers in modeling for diseases that are affected by the soil conditions.
Infrastructure
WIN monitors infrastructure include but are not limited to:
- Temperature and moisture monitoring of grain bins at various levels
- Location and direction of bird bangers
- Temperature inversion towers
- Pipe water pressure
- Wind machines