Abstract
This paper examines the differences in agricultural water application per crop ton output in semi-arid jurisdictions in the Jordan Basin, focusing on Israel and Jordan, with some analysis relevant to Palestine. In order to understand differences in water application, it delivers a nationally averaged assessment of applied water application for 14 key regional crops, with most cases suggesting Israeli best practice in water application per unit crop. The paper draws on a secondary assessment of agricultural water intensity and primary data from farmer interviews to demonstrate differences in applied water productivity and agricultural context. The analysis suggests a conservative estimate that a difference of 168 Million Cubic Meters (MCM)/yr (33% of agriculture and 18% of national total) exists in terms of water application for a given crop production in Jordan when compared with Israel. The paper then proposes further work required to establish how differences in water application might translate into differences in agricultural water productivity, and thereby potential water savings that might enable growth of production within current agricultural allocations, allowing new future resources to be allocated to other economic and social needs. The paper also delivers a preliminary analysis of the political and institutional landscape for implementation, assessing the challenges of institutional silos and overlap that some policy stakeholders see as hindering cross-sectoral progress. The paper concludes by examining the limitations of the analysis, and it proposes future work to deepen the robustness of results and examines some of the challenges facing improved agricultural water productivity and changing farm behaviour in the region.
Highlights
Jordan, Israel, and Palestine are three of the most water-scarce jurisdictions in the world
This paper focuses on agricultural water productivity as a mechanism for understanding the potential savings that could be achieved in the region if agricultural best practice decoupling, and seeks to take a first step in understanding the potential savings that could be is targeted
It is towards Israeli levels of agricultural water productivity, two key instances are highlighted for suggested that savings might accrue to Jordan if it moved towards Israeli levels of agricultural water further research where thetwo opposite might beare true
Summary
Israel, and Palestine are three of the most water-scarce jurisdictions in the world. Israel in particular has demonstrated that four mechanisms, comprising diversification, food imports, agricultural water productivity, and non-natural water supplies (desalination and wastewater reuse), have enabled it to experience significant economic, population, and agricultural growth, while recently starting to redress decline in the environmental condition of freshwater resources. Land 2018, 7, x FOR PEER REVIEW (desalination and wastewater reuse), have enabled it to experience significant economic, population, and agricultural growth, while recently starting to redress decline in the environmental condition of on agricultural water productivity as a mechanism for decoupling, and seeks to take a first step in freshwater resources. This paper focuses on agricultural water productivity as a mechanism for understanding the potential savings that could be achieved in the region if agricultural best practice decoupling, and seeks to take a first step in understanding the potential savings that could be is targeted. It is towards Israeli levels of agricultural water productivity, two key instances are highlighted for suggested that savings might accrue to Jordan if it moved towards Israeli levels of agricultural water further research where thetwo opposite might beare true
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