Abstract
In response to the increased competition for water, the Chinese government has determined to promote water-saving irrigation (WSI) followed by a range of institutional arrangements and policy goals. Three management mechanisms are analyzed in this study in terms of effectiveness, including the top-down regulation mechanism using direct control or economic instruments, the design-bid funding mechanism mobilizing local governments by competitive grants program, and the bottom-up participation mechanism transferring more irrigation management responsibilities to end-users. Although the WSI management has achieved notable improvements by the combination of different mechanisms, conflicts among different policy goals, uneven distribution of financial resources, and insufficient participation from water users caused the difficulty in aligning stakeholders’ incentives. Approaches are needed to enable sustainable management by coordinating incentives from different stakeholders in the management, as well as incorporating end water users to assist decision-making.
Highlights
China encompasses almost 20% of the world’s population with only 6% of the world’s fresh water [1], leaving it with much less water available per capita than most other countries
This design-bid mechanism in the water-saving irrigation (WSI) management is quite different from the top-down regulation, as local governments have the autonomy to decide whether they would like to apply for the funds or not
WSI policies have been implemented by the combination of all these three management mechanisms, which involves top-down regulations through the administrative hierarchy, design-bid funding for local governments’ competition, and bottom-up participation by irrigation water users
Summary
China encompasses almost 20% of the world’s population with only 6% of the world’s fresh water [1], leaving it with much less water available per capita than most other countries. Over the past few decades, expanding agricultural production, increasing industrial output and growing population with more water-intensive lifestyles have all exacerbated the scarcity of China’s available water resources [2]. Faced with growing competition from urban and industrial sectors, the agricultural sector is likely to experience serious water scarcity problems in the near future. These problems are aggravated by the low economic output per cubic meter of water. In response to the increased competition for water, there is great potential for water-saving irrigation (WSI) to achieve sustainable water use while maintaining agriculture development in China
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