Texas A&M AgriLife irrigation engineer receives national award
Past winners of award represent a ‘who’s who’ in irrigation
Writer: Robert Burns, 903-834-6191, [email protected]
COLLEGE STATION – The Irrigation Association recently named Dr. Guy Fipps, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service irrigation engineer, College Station, as the recipient of its 2015 Person of the Year award.
According to the organization’s website, the Irrigation Association is the “leading membership organization for irrigation equipment and system manufacturers, dealers, distributors, designers, consultants, contractors and end-users.”
The Person of the Year award was established in 1952, and is given to people outside the commercial irrigation industry who have “made outstanding contributions toward the acceptance of sound irrigation practices.”
“I was a faculty member in biological and agricultural engineering at North Carolina State University, and I knew Guy as a student,” said Dr. Ronald Sneed, Raleigh, North Carolina, one of the nominators for the award. “Guy was one of those very intelligent people who you thought would end up teaching and doing research. Being named Person of the Year is a well-deserved recognition for his dedication of service to the irrigation profession.”
“I started working for Dr. Fipps in 2008, and it has been an interesting and unique experience,” said Charles Swanson, AgriLife Extension irrigation specialist, College Station. “His broad knowledge of irrigation and water management has taken him from teaching irrigators in Dallas about how to conduct a landscape irrigation audit to across the globe in Iraq, teaching Extension personnel about center pivot irrigation.”
Other major awards Fipps has received include the Merriam Improved Irrigation Award from the U.S. Committee on Irrigation and Drainage in 2013, the Award for the Advancement of Surface Irrigation from the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers in 2012, the ICID Best Paper Award in 2011 and AgriLife Extension’s award for Superior Service in 2009.
Fipps helped found the Texas Agricultural Irrigation Association and served as a director from 1991-1992. He also served as associate editor for the Journal of Applied Engineering in Agriculture from 1995 to 1997. He was the founding director of the Texas A&M Irrigation Technology Center.
Additionally, last year, the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers presented Fipps with their award for The Advancement of Surface Irrigation.
Fipps is also known for his development of a combination of irrigation management tools, including the TexasET Network and website, geographic information, land surveys and databases used by irrigators to improve efficiency and reduce irrigation water losses, Swanson said.
Fipps is a member of numerous other professional organizations, including the Irrigation Association, American Society of Civil Engineers, the American Geophysical Union and the American Water Resources Association.
