Annual Withdrawal Research Articles

Using Remote Sensing Data to Improve Groundwater Supply Estimations in Gujarat, India

Abstract India is the greatest groundwater consumer in the world, with estimated annual withdrawals exceeding 230 km3. More than 60% of irrigated agriculture, 85% of drinking water supplies, and 50% of urban and industrial water needs are dependent on sustainable groundwater management. Regardless, groundwater overextraction is a growing problem in many regions. Predictions of groundwater resource availability in India are problematic in part because of a limited number of monitoring sites and insufficient data quality and quantity. Regional groundwater assessments are further complicated because of sporadic and low-frequency data. To help overcome these issues and more accurately quantify groundwater resource availability, scientists have begun using satellite-derived remote sensing data. In this study, the authors used seasonal and annual hydrologic signals obtained by NASA Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellites and simulated soil moisture variations from land data assimilation systems to show groundwater depletion trends in the northwest state of Gujarat (surface area of 196 030 km2), India. Results were evaluated using direct measurement data from 935 wells. Remote sensing generated results compared favorably with well data (e.g., r2 = 0.89 for Gandhinagar, a representative highly urbanized district in Gujarat: confidence interval (CI) = 0.05 and P = 0.002). Results show that remote sensing is an effective tool to compliment and interpolate observed regional groundwater well data and improve groundwater storage estimations in Gujarat, India. Properly implemented, the method will supply reliable science-based information to enhance management of groundwater resources in India and other geographic locations.

Assessment of Groundwater Resources in Jaffna Limestone Aquifer

This study is centered on quantitative estimation of groundwater resources of a selected study area in a limestone aquifer, which is the main resource for agriculture, domestic use and water supply in Jaffna Peninsula. Inflow to the system includes groundwater recharge from precipitation and irrigation and outflow to the system includes lateral groundwater outflow and groundwater extraction. Results showed that the total average annual withdrawal from the study area (0.66 MCM) exceeded the total average annual recharge (0.57 MCM), implying that the system is in deficiency indicating unsustainable water withdrawal. A further recommendation is the establishment of an institution for a groundwater regulatory frame work to optimize the usage of groundwater and to arrest negative groundwater balance. Tropical Agricultural Research Vol. 23 (2): 177-185 (2012) DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4038/tar.v23i2.4649

Methodological Challenges in Volumetric and Impact‐Oriented Water Footprints

SummaryThis work identifies shortcomings in water footprinting and discusses whether the water footprint should be a volumetric or impact‐oriented index. A key challenge is the current definition of water consumption according to which evaporated water is regarded as lost for the originating watershed per se. Continental evaporation recycling rates of up to 100% within short time and length scales show that this definition is not generally valid. Also, the inclusion of land use effects on the hydrological balance is questionable, as land transformation often leads to higher water availability due to locally increased runoff. Unless potentially negative consequences, such as flooding or waterlogging, and adverse effects on the global water cycle are considered, water credits from land transformation seem unjustified. Most impact assessment methods use ratios of annual withdrawal or consumption to renewability rates to denote local water scarcity. As these ratios are influenced by two metrics—withdrawal and availability—arid regions can be regarded as uncritical if only small fractions of the limited renewable supplies are used. Besides neglecting sensitivities to additional water uses, such indicators consider neither ground nor surface water stocks, which can buffer water shortages temporally. Authors favoring volumetric indicators claim that global freshwater appropriation is more important than local impacts, easier to determine, and less error prone than putting complex ecological interaction into mathematical models. As shown in an example, volumetric water footprints can be misleading without additional interpretation because numerically smaller footprints can cause higher impacts.

Selected environmental and sustainable development indicators for the Kingdom of Bahrain

A selected set of indicators were highlighted based on the criteria of the UN-Commission for Sustainable Development. Data were collected from the Central Information Organisation in Bahrain and relevant ministries and twenty measurable indicators were identified. The results of this study are divided into three main groups: the first included data on indicators that meet the definition laid down by the Commission, such as: emission of CO2, arable and permanent crop land area, annual withdrawals of groundwater and mortality rate of less than five years of age. The second group needed further extraction, formatting and interpretation and these included: use of fertilizers, annual catch by major species and protected area as percentage of total area. No adequate data was available for the third group of indicators. These included: coastal water quality, change in surface water discharge, and threatened plant species as percentage of total known plant species. The indicators used were those belonging to the first two groups. It is recommended that more environmental and sustainable development indicators for Bahrain should be established through supporting databases. This duty should be assigned to a specified organization and/ or a national multiparty committee. A yearly book on the indicators should ideally be issued, revised and approved. Non-governmental agencies participation in setting up the indicators and data collecting is essential. Technological knowledge and tools such as Geographical Information System should be utilized in order to manage the environmental and sustainable development indicators.

On the Relationship between Water Withdrawal and Income: Smooth Transition Regression (STR) Approach

The Purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between annual water withdrawal (AWW) and income in some countries. To achieve this end, a smooth transition regression (STR) model on cross section data of 163 countries in 2006 was used. The findings support the nonlinearity of the link between AWW and income. The findings, further, reveal the income elasticity of AWW as a bible-shaped curve. Hence, the policies and management processes in water sector including water allocation between activities and reigns should take into account the development degree and also focus on income level, water scarcity and the economic, social and ecological structure in each country.

Revisiting Retirement Withdrawal Plans and Their Historical Rates of Return

This paper examines the historical record of the so-called 4% rule, the popular guideline for sustainable real annual withdrawals in a self funded retirement. Our findings indicate that a withdrawal plan following this rule (“4R”) carries an historical risk of failure for a long retirement that is much higher than generally acknowledged. For example, we find that 15% of the historical 35-year retirements failed when funded with equal parts of stocks and bonds. The “real” withdrawal plans that generated no historical failures were all less than 4%, sometimes far less, when retirements exceeded 25 years. The historical failure rates that we find for a 5R plan are higher than a 4R plan by a factor of at least three for all retirement periods. The historical failures are not random. Rather they occur in clusters of years in which the majority of new retirement withdrawal plans fail. A key driver of these failures was a rapid, significant and lasting increase in the rate of inflation - this event increased withdrawals and contributed to a declining real rate of return that was ultimately unable to support the withdrawal plan. Although TIPS bonds and inflation-adjusted annuities are both too new for historical analysis, we note they may offer an opportunity to curtail income plan failures in the future. This is because they (1) offer a known real rate of return and (2) adjust for inflation close to the time at which inflation impacts withdrawals. Our review of the prior literature and a detailed description of the methodology used in the study appear at the end of the paper, after the Summary and Conclusions section.

Management and evaluation of withdrawal ground water for agriculture in hamdan directorate-Yemen

The aim of this research was to evaluate and determine ground water withdrawal for agriculture in hamdan directorate. The research was done by using random sample to measure and read the requirements data of agricultural hamdan wells. Associate professor, Agric. Eng. Depart., Fac. of Agric, Sana'a Univ. Yemen. abdallayaya87@yahoo.com Annual ground water withdrawals were compared with both of annual renewable ground water and actual crops water requirement in hamdan. Actual crops water requirements and irrigation scheduling, and quantity of water to be applied using surface and drip irrigation systems were done depending on data each of hamdan climate, crop coefficients and soil type by using a computer program (FAO). The results showed – as sample:- In hamdan directorate, the volume of annual groundwater recharge was found 3.341 MCM per year, while annual withdrawals volume of groundwater from all agricultural wells was found more than 99 MCM per year for irrigating only 5737ha. Thereby annual withdrawals of ground water was exceeded the renewable ground water by 29 times, So annual decrease of ground water level was found 3.4 m/year. About 90% of wells were not increased the distance among them on 500m. The distance average among wells in all directions was found 710m. The average of ground water amount for each hectare in hamdan was found more than 2.5 twice and twice of the actual water irrigation requirement for both of drip and surface irrigation systems respectively. So if drip irrigation system will be used in hamdan, it can be kept 47 MCM per year, which is now nearly 50% of withdrawal ground water. The time period of irrigation was found three times of calculated actual irrigation period average. Amount of irrigation water was found more with 7% and 38% than calculated actual amount average of irrigation water for each of surface irrigation and drip irrigation system respectively. The result was indicated that pump power was found excrescence on request (lost) with 54 KW/pump, so there was run-over power equal more than 900 pumps with power 43 KW, which can be provided from hamdan's pumps. Also, motor's power was found excrescence on request (lost) with 40 KW/motor, so there was run-over power equal more than 500 motors with power 58 KW. 42% of families in hamdan had been owned in agricultural well, while 58% of hamdan population (not own) could be used of agricultural wells.

EVALUATION AND MANAGEMENT OF WITHDRAWAL GROUND WATER FOR AGRICULTURE IN NIHM DIRECTORATE-YEMEN

The aim of this research was to evaluate and manage ground water withdrawal for agriculture in Nihm directorate, by studying random sample to measure and read the requirements data of agricultural Nihm wells. Annual ground water withdrawals for agricultural irrigation were compared with both of annual renewable ground water and actual crops water requirement in Nihm. Actual crops water requirements and irrigation scheduling, and quantity of water to be applied using surface and drip irrigation systems were done depending on each data of; Nihm climate, crop coefficients and soil type by using a computer program (FAO). The results showed – as sample:- that the annual volume of groundwater recharge was 21.813 MCM per year, while annual withdrawals volume of groundwater from all agricultural wells was found more than59 MCM per year for irrigating only 3118 ha. Thereby annual withdrawals of ground water was 270% the renewable groundwater, so annual decreasing rate of ground water level was found 0.3 m/year. In about 47% of Nihm wells the in-betweens distance among them were below 500m, Where, the distance average among wells in all directions was 560m. The total quantity of groundwater withdrawals for agricultural irrigation increase by 45% (26.4MCM) comparing by actual irrigation requirements calculated for cultivated crops in Nihm (about 32.57MCM) under surface irrigation system (60%efficiency). In addition, results shows that each one hectare receive 18922m3/year of withdrawal groundwater, as about 200% average actual irrigation required to irrigate one hectare by surface irrigation system or 250% average actual irrigation required to irrigate one hectare by modern irrigation systems. If drip irrigation system was applied with efficiency of 90% in substance to surface irrigation system to irrigate qat and grape, and also, if sprinkler irrigation system was applied in substance to surface irrigation to irrigate wheat, so the actual irrigation water required and withdrawal form groundwater will decreases from 32.57MCM/year to 22.887MCM/year, this resulting in saving 36.118MCM/year (62% of the annual groundwater withdrawal).

Patients’ perspective of botulinum toxin‐A as a long‐term treatment option for neurogenic detrusor overactivity secondary to spinal cord injury

To evaluate patients' perspective on whether they would consider botulinum toxin-A (BTX-A) injections as a long-term treatment option for managing their neurogenic detrusor overactivity (NDO) secondary to spinal cord injury (SCI). In all, 72 patients with SCI and urodynamically confirmed NDO refractory to anticholinergics, who have had at least one or more injections with BTX-A were invited to participate in a 5-min telephone questionnaire covering various aspects of their treatment. Questions about patient satisfaction were rated on a scale from 1 to 10 (1, not satisfied; to 10, very satisfied). Of the 72 patients surveyed, 48 (67%) were still actively undergoing repeat BTX-A injections. The mean patient satisfaction score was 6.2. Of the 48 patients, 43 (90%) replied that they would consider continuing with BTX-A injections as a long-term treatment option. Only seven (15%) of patients still having BTX-A injections would consider an alternative permanent surgical option in the next 5 years. Of those patients considering a one-off permanent surgical solution, younger patients were likely to consider this at a later interval than those in an older group (Spearman's correlation coefficient, -0.52, 95% confidence interval -0.78 to -0.10, P = 0.02). The annual new patient recruitment rate was high (mean 14.4) and the annual withdrawal rate was low (mean 4.8). With high satisfaction and low annual withdrawal rates, there are increasingly many patients on BTX-A. Most consider continuing BTX-A injections in the long term, increasing the future demand for this service. There is an urgent need for further research into optimizing the current delivery of an intradetrusor BTX-A injection service for patients with NDO.

A New Strategy to Maximize Retirement Withdrawals Using TIPS and Longevity Insurance

Previous studies suggest that retirees face the risk of financial ruin even with (real) withdrawal rates as low as 4%. This paper proposes a new retirement investment strategy using Treasury Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS) and longevity insurance products that would permit annual withdrawal rates in excess of 5% without any risk of ruin; this strategy does not require retirees to irrevocably commit their entire savings in an annuity at retirement. The strategy can be implemented at minimal cost by retirees and their financial advisers. Institutional providers can adapt this strategy to design and develop products that provide inflation adjusted lifetime annuities, while allowing retirees to retain control over most of their savings in retirement.

Estimating Groundwater Withdrawal in Poorly Gauged Agricultural Basins

A method is presented for estimating the annual groundwater withdrawal based on water balance resulting from surface and groundwater hydrological considerations. The unknown groundwater losses of the aquifer are estimated from the groundwater level fluctuations, the specific yield and the groundwater withdrawal prior to the installation of the irrigation network. The meteorological and hydrometric data are used in the Sacramento hydrological conceptual model for the estimation of the stored groundwater volume, via minimization of the difference between the simulated and measured stream discharge. Following the installation of the network due to poorly kept field records, an initial estimation of the groundwater withdrawal is made based on the fluctuations of the groundwater level, the specific yield, and the annual precipitation. The monthly stored groundwater volume is verified against the volume obtained during the recharge of the basin (November–April). The difference between the groundwater volume and the measured discharge of the basin (May–October) is in agreement with the initial estimation of the groundwater withdrawal. This method is applied successfully in an agricultural basin on the island of Crete, Greece and its novelty lies in the fact that it can be used in basins where groundwater withdrawal is not known or data is incomplete.

Efficient Post-Retirement Asset Allocation

To examine post-retirement asset allocation, an extension to the classic Markowitz risk-return framework is suggested. Assuming that retirees make constant (real dollar) annual withdrawals from their portfolios, reward and risk measures are defined to be the mean and standard deviation of wealth remaining at end of life. Asset returns and time of death are both treated as random variables. Assuming constant lifetime asset allocation, the risk and reward measures can be evaluated analytically, and an efficient frontier can be determined. Life annuities can be used to extend the left-hand (low-risk) side of the efficient frontier. The desired level of wealth at end of life can be used to choose a desirable portfolio on the efficient frontier. The desirable portfolio strongly depends on the withdrawal rate. It is suggested (although not proven) that asset allocations strategies that vary with age do not add efficiency in this model, and asset allocation strategies that vary with wealth can add efficiency.

The Most Recent Trends of Peritoneal Dialysis in Japan

By 31 December 2006, more than 260,000 patients were on dialysis therapy in Japan, and 9,243 of them (3.6%) were on peritoneal dialysis (PD). The mean age of PD patients was 5 years less than that of all patients with chronic kidney disease, and the prevalence of diabetes among them was 9.4% lower. Among the PD patients, 18.0% were being treated with a combination of PD and hemodialysis, and 33.4% were being treated with automated PD. A peritoneal equilibration test (PET) had been performed in 22.0% of the patients, who were then classified into the four PET categories. Of the tested patients, 10.3% were placed in the low (L) category; 38.3% in the low-average (LA) category; 38.4%, in the high-average (HA) category; and 13.0%, in the high (H) category. Icodextrin was used by 27.3% of patients classified L, 30.5% of those classified LA, 47.1% of those classified HA, and 55.1% of those classified H. The annual death rate was 6.1%, which was lower than the rate for HD (9.7%); and the annual withdrawal rate was 19.8%. Infectious complications were the main cause for lowered rates of patient and technique survival. Use of PD for older and diabetic patients and of combination therapy with hemodialysis are key perspectives in the most recent report on PD in Japan.

Relationship of Colonoscopy Completion Rates and Endoscopist Features

The success rate for reaching the cecum has been widely discussed as an indicator of technical expertise for colonoscopy. However, few studies have addressed the impact of endoscopist-specific parameters on cecal intubation rates. The aim of this study was to characterize the relationship between endoscopist-specific parameters (age, gender, experience level, annual procedure volume, insertion and withdrawal times) and cecal intubation rates for colonoscopy. Procedural data from all colonoscopies performed by gastroenterologists at the outpatient endoscopy unit of Rochester Methodist Hospital, Minnesota, between January and December 2003 were reviewed. Procedural data of 45 endoscopists who performed 17,100 colonoscopies over the study period were analyzed. The average cecal intubation rate was 93.9% (SD, 2.9%). Higher experience level (>9 years [median]) was significantly predictive of a cecal intubation rate >94% (OR = 3.43; 95% CI, 1.03-12.29; P = 0.04). Although higher procedure volume was not predictive of higher colonoscopy completion rates overall, when analysis was confined to the junior faculty members (<5 years' experience), completion rates for those endoscopists doing >200 per year (92.5%) was significantly higher than for those doing <200 per year (88.5%; P = 0.04). Our observations suggest that cecal intubation rates increase with increasing endoscopist experience. Moreover, among junior endoscopists, an annual volume of at least 200 procedures appears to be required to maintain adequate competence. Future prospective studies should provide data to support consensus guidelines recommending minimum annual procedure numbers required for maintenance of endoscopic competence among trained endoscopists.

04/00880 Energy sector and wind energy potential in Turkey: Ogulata, R. T. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 2003, 7, (6), 469–484

Scarcity of freshwater for agricultural production is becoming an ever increasing global environmental issue and one that will impact the food security of many nations in the very near future. Turkey is one of the key agricultural production nations in the world. The OECD estimates that Turkey is the world's seventh-biggest agricultural producer. With 40% of its total land area arable, it is the world's number one producer in numerous agricultural produce, including being the biggest wheat producer in the region. However its animal production system with the exception of poultry has declined considerably over the past few decades. The country has gone from being a livestock exporter in the 1980's to a major importer of red meat and slaughter animals since 2009. Despite the reduction in it national herd size the country has still managed to increase it's animal production water footprint (WF) due to inefficient natural resource management practices. Simulations of global climate change by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) with 21 different models, predicts a 12% decrease in annual rainfall in southern Europe and the Mediterranean Basin. As Turkey's annual water withdrawals are expected to exceed 20% of the annual renewable water supply, the country is likely to be at risk of suffering water stress in the next decade. Despite such grim prospects Turkey's agricultural sector is taking very few tangible water conservation measures. There is a real opportunity for Turkey to better utilize its rich water resources and become self sufficient for its animal production systems by adopting irrigated pasture improvement for grazing.

SULPHATE BALANCE OF LAKES AND SHALLOW GROUNDWATER IN THE VASAVERE BURIED VALLEY, NORTHEAST ESTONIA

Groundwater is an important component of many water resource systems supplying water for domestic use, industry, and agriculture. Management of a groundwater system, an aquifer, means making such decisions as annual withdrawal of the total quantity of water, location of wells for pumping and for artificial recharge and their rates, and control conditions at aquifer boundaries. The decisions related to groundwater quality are of no less importance. In fact, the quantity and quality problems cannot be separated. In many parts of the country, with the increased withdrawal of groundwater, the quality of groundwater has been continuously deteriorating. In recent years the attention has been focused on groundwater contamination by mine water. A thorough understanding of the system, and the processes that take place in it are needed for modeling procedure. It is important to identify those parts of the system’s behavior that are relevant to the considered problem, while other parts may be neglected. On the basis of this understanding, summarized as a conceptual model of the given problem, a numerical model was constructed. Using the conceptual model the groundwater flow model of the Quaternary aquifer, in the eastern part of oil shale deposit area, in the Vasavere buried valley, was constructed. The infiltration of contaminants grows, and the Quaternary aquifer is polluted by sulphate in a large area of the Vasavere buried valley.

Seeing it from both sides: reasons for withdrawing from one-year secondary postgraduate certificate in education courses

Teacher recruitment and retention are a major concern. Recruitment to Postgraduate Certificate in Education courses (PGCE), whilst improving in some subject areas, remains problematic in others; potential teachers are leaving in larger numbers than has formerly been the case. Since 1996-97, initial teacher education providers have been losing about 11% of their intake when previously they had experienced an annual withdrawal rate of 5-6%. This article describes research funded by the Teacher Training Agency which examined the question of PGCE (secondary) student withdrawal from eight higher education institutions in England. Data were obtained from both the students and from the schools in which they were working at the time of withdrawal. The main findings relate to three major concerns: the mentor/student relationship, the workload expected of students and the image of the profession as perceived by the students in schools.

Why students withdraw from PGCE courses

Teacher recruitment and retention are a major concern. Recruitment to PGCE courses, whilst improving in some subject areas, remains problematic in others, including modern foreign languages. Student retention on ITE programmes also shows worrying trends. Research into numbers of students leaving PGCE courses before completion shows that potential teachers are leaving in larger numbers than has formerly been the case. Since 1996/97 ITE providers have been losing about 11% of their intake when formerly they had experienced an annual withdrawal rate of 5%–6%. Why is this so? TTA-funded research looked into this question. The findings confirm two major concerns. (1) The role of the mentor in ITE is crucial. Mentors need time and training to do their job properly. More should be done to meet this need. (2) The workload and commitment expected of students is such that a significant nubmer, who are quite capable (and in some cases very good) in the classroom, diligent and industrious, withdraw from the course and are lost to the profession. This real problem has to be addressed if the macro issue of teacher recruitment and retention is to be tackled meaningfully.

Determination of spatial water requirements at county and regional levels using crop models and GIS: An example for the State of Parana, Brazil

Due to the competitive use of available water resources, it has become important to define appropriate strategies for planning and management of irrigated farmland. To achieve effective planning, accurate information is needed for crop water use requirements, irrigation withdrawals, runoff and nitrate leaching as a function of crop, soil type and weather conditions at a regional level. Interfacing crop models with a geographic information system (GIS) extends the capabilities of the crop models to a regional level. The objective of this study was to determine the irrigation requirements, annual runoff and annual nitrate leaching for the most important crops of the Tibagi river basin in the State of Parana, Brazil. The computer tool selected for this study was the Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer (DSSAT) version 3.5 (98.0) and its associated crop modeling and spatial application system AEGIS/WIN. It was assumed that farms within the same county use similar management practices. To achieve representative estimates of irrigation requirements, the weather data from stations located within each county or the nearest weather station were used. A weighting factor based on the proportion of soil type and crop acreage was applied to determine total annual irrigation withdrawals, annual runoff and nitrate leaching for each county in the river basin. The model predicted outputs, including yield, irrigation requirements, runoff and nitrate leached for different soil types in each county, were analyzed, using spatial analysis methods. This allowed for the display of thematic maps for irrigation requirements, annual runoff and nitrate leaching, and to relate this information with irrigation management and planning. The maximum annual irrigation withdrawal, runoff and nitrate leaching were 22,969 m 3 per year, 31,152 m 3 per year and 1488 t N per year in the Tibagi river basin. This study showed that crop simulation models linked to GIS can be an effective planning tool to help determine irrigation requirements for river basins and large watersheds.

Optimal Allocation of Monthly Water Withdrawals in Reservoir Systems

In this study, a water balance equation was derived and theperformance of a project was analyzed. The water balancecomponents were modeled without calibration, and compared withmeasured data, whenever possible. A reservoir simulation modelwas develop and the model storage capacities were compared withthe observed storage capacities satisfactorily. An optimizationmodel was developed to solve the water resources of a largeproject in a computationally satisfactory manner. The optimalreservoir storage, optimal irrigation demand, and optimalreservoir release were computed. The optimal mean (1987–1997)model total water requirements for the dry and wet seasons werealso computed and the optimal contributions by rainfall,reservoir, uncontrolled river flow, and recycled water weredetermined. The mean annual optimal water withdrawals from thereservoir systems were found to be 1223 MCM (Million cubicmeters). The optimal mean model total water requirements werecompared with other authors computed values for the same and asignificant water savings was achieved.