Socio-environmental drought response in a mixed urban-agricultural setting: synthesizing biophysical and governance responses in the Platte River Watershed, Nebraska, USA

Samuel C Zipper,Dustin Herrmann,Jiangxiao Qiu,Kelly Helm Smith,Anthony Kung,Betsy Breyer

doi:10.5751/es-09549-220439

Abstract

Ensuring global food and water security requires a detailed understanding of how coupled socio-environmental systems respond to drought. Using the Platte River Watershed in Nebraska (USA) as an exemplar mixed urban-agricultural watershed, we quantify biophysical response to drought in urban (Lincoln NE) and agricultural systems alongside a qualitative analysis of governance response and adaptive capacity of both sectors. Synthesis of results highlights parallels and discontinuities between urban and agricultural preparations for and response to drought. Whereas drought prompted an increase in well installations and expansion of water-intensive crops, e.g., corn, in the agricultural sector, outdoor water use restrictions rapidly curtailed water withdrawals in the urban sector, where water conservation has gradually decoupled total withdrawals from population growth. Water governance institutions at the municipal, district, and statewide levels showed evidence of learning and adaptive management, facilitated by a shared regional identity around agriculture. We conclude that, rather than exacerbating intersectoral conflict, cities may introduce a high-value and flexible water use that can be rapidly curtailed during drought. The ability to rapidly reduce urban water use and thereby avoid limiting agricultural irrigation during drought enables cities to provide adaptive capacity in mixed urban-agricultural watersheds, particularly where crops are highly reliant on irrigation.

Highlights

Agricultural and urban areas are becoming increasingly interconnected, raising the potential for intersectoral conflict over shared water resources
We found that yield of nonirrigated corn decreased significantly in response to drought across the Platte River Watershed (PRW) (Fig. 2a), in eastern Nebraska where rainfed agriculture is more common
SYNTHESIS AND CONCLUSIONS Our analysis shows how interacting coping strategies and governance mechanisms for dealing with water shortages implemented by actors at multiple scales produce a system that managed to avert catastrophic impacts to livelihoods and domestic water supplies during severe drought in 2012

Summary

Introduction

Agricultural and urban areas are becoming increasingly interconnected, raising the potential for intersectoral conflict over shared water resources. Agricultural irrigation is a widespread tool for mitigating negative impacts of drought where available (Ozdogan and Gutman 2008, Wada et al 2012); in many regions, this has led to conflict with both environmental and urban uses of water (McDonald et al 2011, Grigg 2014, Laukaitis 2014, Wanders and Wada 2015, State of California 2015).

Results

Conclusion