Abstract
Desalination for sustaining agricultural production is conceived as an alternative water source in some Mediterranean countries faced with climatological and hydrological constraints. Although high costs are often cited as limiting factors, how farmers discern desalinated water has not been discussed in-depth in the literature. This paper aims to deepen how desalination is perceived by irrigators, what driving factors are affecting irrigation communities’ decision-making processes, and what learnings can be drawn from their experiences regarding desalination acceptance or rejection. Eleven irrigation communities have been selected from Alicante and Murcia regions (South-East Spain), which account for more than 60,000 irrigators and 120,000 ha. Questionnaires were conducted between March and December 2019. Results highlighted the main advantages (water availability and supply security) and disadvantages (high price affecting profitable crop options, high-energy consumption, water quality standards, the production capacity of desalination plants, no seasonal variation in water production, and shortages due to technical problems) of using desalinated water. Additionally, through the analysis of regional and national press news, it can be concluded that socio-political aspects, such as corruption, cost overruns, and political disputes are also considered.
Highlights
The widely heard warning that ‘the war will be a water war’ reveals that the issue of water conflict is expected to be one of the major threats to human life [1]
The second block asked about water concession and desalinated seawater use in eight questions: water sources and volumes, water scarcity strategies, connection to the desalination plant, water concession and cost, and reasons for using desalinated water
The last block contained nine questions about future scenarios motivating the use of desalinated seawater: reasons to increase the use of desalinated water, the maximum cost of desalinated water, environmental impacts clearly detected, measures to increase irrigators’ acceptance of desalination, and climate change adaptation
Summary
The widely heard warning that ‘the war will be a water war’ reveals that the issue of water conflict is expected to be one of the major threats to human life [1]. Water stress, which refers to the pressure on the quantity and quality of renewable water resources, is recognized as one of the most urgent environmental challenges facing humanity. By 2070, 20% of existing water will be diminished and the surface area under conditions of water stress will increase from 19% to 35% due to climate change [2]. About 60% of the global population currently lives in conditions of severe water scarcity for at least one month per year [3], and over one-third of the world’s population lives in water-stressed countries, while by 2025, this figure is predicted to rise. Agriculture is the sector most affected by water scarcity, as it accounts for
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