Abstract
Smart irrigation systems are relatively new technologies that optimize irrigation schedules in residential landscapes, thus leading to reduced irrigation water use and potential contamination. To promote the use of such technologies, the landscape services industry has introduced innovative features such as the integration of local weather data into irrigation controller systems or mobile phone control and alert notifications that help to facilitate usability and prevent over-irrigation. Very few studies have addressed homeowners’ preferences for outdoor irrigation technologies. This study investigates homeowners’ preferences for smart irrigation systems for residential landscapes. We utilized online survey data to examine how homeowners’ knowledge and perceptions influence their preferences for specific features such as automatic failure alert and notifications, mobile control, integration with weather-based and soil-moisture sensor-based irrigation, home automation, and touchscreen displays. Results estimated by the rank-ordered logit model revealed that knowledge and perceptions of smart irrigation controllers are significantly correlated with homeowners’ preferences for water efficiency features. The results offer practical implications for policymakers and the residential irrigation industry as they develop and promote smart irrigation technologies to conserve water resources.
Highlights
IntroductionIndustry and agriculture utilize the majority of water resources, the percentage of residential use in overall water consumption ranges from 10% to 30% in developed countries [1]
Water scarcity is becoming a global environmental issue
Among specific technology features, such as automatic failure alert and notification, mobile control, integration with local weather data or soil moisture information, home automation, and touchscreen displays, we focused on finding out which features homeowners will prefer more
Summary
Industry and agriculture utilize the majority of water resources, the percentage of residential use in overall water consumption ranges from 10% to 30% in developed countries [1]. Smart irrigation systems are relatively new technologies that have the potential to optimize irrigation schedules in residential landscapes and reduce irrigation water use and potential contamination. Smart irrigation controllers have been developed and promoted in an attempt to reduce excessive irrigation as part of the broader residential water conservation programs [5]. Initiatives such as the Florida WaterStarSM Program provide water conservation certifications for indoor fixtures and appliances, landscape designs, and irrigation
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