Paths along the irrigation channels, water veins and basis of life

Water – a precious good in Val Venosta

Val Venosta is a very arid area with annual precipitations of only 500 mm (just as in Sicily). In order to be able to live of agriculture, the farmers had to build irrigation channels over the course of the century so that they could use the glacier meltwater to irrigate their fields at lower altitudes. The „aqueductus irrigande“ was first mentioned in a document in the 12th century, but rights and customary laws are even older.
Most irrigation channels can be found on the southern slopes of Val Venosta, the so-called sun mountain. The German word „Waale“ is probably derived from the Latin word „aquale“ or from the Celtic word „buol“. In 1939, the most important irrigation channels in Val Venosta were counted: there were 225 of them with an overall length of 600 km.

Most of these irrigation channels have been replaced by sprinklers, but some are still in use. These „water veins“ are clearly visible from afar as thin, green and nearly horizontal lines.

Others have become real tourist attractions: the paths along the irrigation channels built for the maintenance of the channels constitute popular hiking paths. The path between Val Senales and the fields of Castelbello with an overall length of ten kilometres attract most visitors.

These irrigation channels are very impressing, even if they have never worked perfectly. But they give us a clear idea about the importance and preciousness of water for agriculture. Water was treasured and never wasted as it was so rare and precious. Nowadays, however, the importance of this natural and vital good is often underestimated despite the fact that the water resources are becoming rarer and scarcer due to the increase in population and our careless consumer society.