Abstract
Water cycles exist in all processes of water resources utilization, including water-saving irrigation. Due to the complex water cycle process of irrigation, the ecological effects and safety of large-scale water-saving irrigation have received increasing attention. This paper analyzed both the positive and negative ecological effects of water-saving irrigation and the scale effects from the plant-scale to the watershed-scale. Based on the Vensim and GMS (Groundwater Modeling System) models, a quantitative evaluation method of ecological safety of large-scale water-saving irrigation was proposed. The case study in Changma Irrigation District in the arid inland river basin of Northwest China showed that the ecological safety of large-scale water-saving irrigation was sensitive to the combination of water source condition, water distribution technology and water-saving irrigation technology in field. In terms of the positive effects, large-scale water-saving irrigation can reduce the percolation loss of irrigation water, increase the environment water flow for the downstream, and slow down the salinity accumulation. As for the negative effects, large-scale water-saving irrigation could reduce the groundwater recharge, decrease the environment water supply in local farmland, and cut down the soil salinity leakage. The research results have positive significance for guiding the sustainable development of water-saving irrigation and conservation of ecosystem in an arid inland river basin.
Highlights
Water is one of the fundamental natural resources for human society and economic development, and is the basic key factor for ecological and environmental systems
In order to control the secondary salinization of the soil and protect the natural ecological vegetation, the ecologically suitable groundwater depth in arid inland river basin is set at 2–5 m
For the canal irrigation district with a shallow groundwater depth, such as the Hetao Irrigation District in the Yellow River Basin, large-scale water-saving irrigation is conducive to reducing the groundwater level and reducing the intensity of phreatic evaporation, which can effectively alleviate the problem of soil salinization in the irrigation district and have a positive effect on the growth and development of crops and natural vegetation
Summary
Water is one of the fundamental natural resources for human society and economic development, and is the basic key factor for ecological and environmental systems. With the rapid growth of population and economic development, water shortage is becoming more and more serious. According to the United Nations World Water Development Report 2018, the global demand for water resources is growing at a rate of 1% per year, current global water demand is estimated to be approximately. 4600 km per year and projected to increase by 20–30% to between 5500 and 6000 km per year by. Irrigation is the largest water consumption over the world, but there is still much room for improvement in agricultural water efficiency. One of the effective ways to alleviate the contradiction between water supply and demand is to develop water-saving irrigation [2]. Jaegermeyr et al [3]
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