Pressure on water consumption by the expansion of fruit crops in Melipilla, Metropolitan Region of Chile

Abstract

This study investigated the expansion of the surface of five fruit crop species between 2004 and 2020 and the magnitude of their water consumption, for three communes in the Province of Melipilla, Metropolitan Region of Chile. The statistical information about the crops was obtained from the fruit crop cadasters of the Region, and their spatial information was taken from the Rural Territorial Information System (SIT), while various sources of secondary information were used to approximate the water requirements of each species of interest. The results detail the cartography of expansion and increase in water consumption of the species on the dates of interest, which, in a context of mega-drought persisting since 2010, translates into a strong inverse correlation between consumption and water supply in the lower basin of the Maipo River. On the other hand, the magnitude of these water consumptions represents a significant proportion of water uses within the Maipo River basin, surpassing the combined uses of rural drinking water, forestry, livestock, and mining, and encompassing 22 % of urban drinking water consumption in the Metropolitan Region. As the relationship between availability and water deficit narrows, the absence of sustainable water management that could ensure water security within the country's most populous basin becomes palpable.