Abstract
Water resources play a vital role in human life and agriculture irrigation, especially for agriculture-dominant developing countries and regions. Improving agricultural water use efficiency has consequently become a key strategic choice. This study, based on Zhangye City’s economic characteristics and data, applies a static Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model with a constant elasticity of substitution (CES) composited water−land resources account to assess the impact of improving agricultural water use efficiency on economy, water conservation and land reallocation. Results reveal that: Zhangye City’s GDP increases by 0.10% owing to an increasing average technical level by improving agricultural water use efficiency; total water consumption decreases by 122 million m3, 69% of which comes from a reduction of surface water use; and land demand increases by 257.43 hectares mainly due to agricultural land demands. With respect to the sectors’ output, export-oriented sectors with higher water intensities in the agricultural sectors benefit most. In contrast, land-intensive sectors contract the most, as the rental price of land rises. Therefore, agricultural water conservation technology should be introduced considering more in surface water. Furthermore, higher demand for agricultural land would reduce land availability for other sectors, thus inhibiting urbanization pace on a small scale.
Highlights
Water resources are essential for human existence as well as for agricultural irrigation [1]
Taking Zhangye City as an example, this paper analyzed the likely impact of an improvement in the agricultural water use efficiency on the economy, water conservation and land reallocation in Zhangye City
The results showed that improving the efficiency of agricultural water use raises the GDP of Zhangye City by 0.10% while conserving water resources of 122 million m3—of which surface water contributes 69% of the reduction in consumption and underground water 28%
Summary
Water resources are essential for human existence as well as for agricultural irrigation [1]. It is widely acknowledged that irrigated agriculture uses almost 70% of the global freshwater [2]. In many developing countries, growing demand for irrigation, as well as increased population and limited management are placing increasing pressure on water resources. To maintain sustainable water use in agriculture and ensure food security, a substantial improvement in agriculture water use efficiency is required [3]. Agriculture water use efficiency is low in China, especially in the Heihe River Basin [4]. As the second largest inland river basin in the arid regions of Northwest China, the Heihe River Basin
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