Abstract
Understanding human behavior is a complicated and complex endeavor. Academicians and practitioners need to understand the underlying beliefs and motivations to identify current trends and to effectively develop means of communication and education that encourage change in attitudes and behavior. Sociological research can provide information about how and why people make decisions; this information impacts the research and extension community, helping them formulate programs and present information in a way that increases adoption rates. Life cycle assessment can document how plant production impacts the environment. Production of ornamental plants (greenhouse, container, and field produced flowers trees and shrubs) accounted for 4.4% of the total annual on-farm income and 8.8% of the crop income produced in the United States in 2017, representing a substantial portion of farmgate receipts. Greenhouse and nursery growing operations can use this information to increase production and water application efficiency and decrease input costs. Information related to the environmental impacts of plant production, derived from life cycle assessment, can also inform consumer purchase decisions. Information from water footprint analysis quantifies the relative abundance and availability of water on a regional basis, helping growers understand water dynamics in their operation and informing consumer plant purchases based on water availability and conservation preference. Economics can motivate growers to adopt new practices based on whether they are saving or making money, and consumers modify product selection based on preference for how products are produced. Specialty crop producers, including nursery and greenhouse container operations, rely heavily on high quality water from surface and groundwater resources for crop production; but irrigation return flow from these operations can contribute to impairment of water resources. This review focuses on multiple facets of the socioeconomics of water use, reuse, and irrigation return flow management in nursery and greenhouse operations, focusing on grower and consumer perceptions of water; barriers to adoption of technology and innovations by growers; economic considerations for implementing new technologies; and understanding environmental constraints through life cycle assessment and water footprint analyses. Specialty crop producers can either voluntarily adapt practices gradually to benefit both economic and environmental sustainability or they may eventually be forced to change due to external factors (e.g., regulations). Producers need to have the most current information available to inform their decisions regarding water management.
Highlights
In the developing world, water is typically considered available and abundant, until there is a drought or another form of water crisis [1,2]
We focus on the socioeconomic facets of water use, reuse and irrigation return flow management in specialty crop production including (1) consumer and grower perceptions of water; (2) life cycle assessment and water footprint analysis; (3) economic considerations; and (4) regulations and policy considerations
This review focuses on specialty crop production in containers, much of what is discussed in this review is directly applicable to agriculture in general and urban and suburban stormwater management
Summary
Water is typically considered available and abundant, until there is a drought or another form of water crisis [1,2]. Nursery and greenhouse crops, is likely to be at the top of the list of industries whose water use is evaluated by the government and general public in terms of limiting the quality and quantity of freshwater resources allocated. These industries will likely have to adapt water use to lower quality sources, reduced water quantity, or both. We focus on the socioeconomic facets of water use, reuse and irrigation return flow management in specialty crop production including (1) consumer and grower perceptions of water;. This review focuses on specialty crop production in containers, much of what is discussed in this review is directly applicable to agriculture in general and urban and suburban stormwater management
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