Benefits Of Water Use Research Articles

Analisis Nilai Ekonomi Pemanfaatan Air Di Daerah Aliran Sungai (DAS) Cijengkol

Surface water is the portion of precipitation that flows over the land surface into rivers, lakes, or oceans. One source of surface water in West Java is river water originating from the Cijengkol watershed. Communities living around the Cijengkol River have traditionally benefited from the value of water as a river environmental service. They use water for their livelihood, mainly for agriculture, fishing, and animal husbandry. In addition, the water in the Cijengkol watershed is also used for daily needs by the people living around the Cijengkol river. This study explains the value of water utilization used by the community around the Cijengkol watershed from various sectors, namely agriculture, household needs, animal husbandry and fisheries and examines the value of the economic benefits of water use in the Cijengkol watershed. The research method used is to find the mainstay discharge and approach the formula for the Economic Value of Water with data obtained from Perum Jasa Tirta II (PJT II), Regional Drinking Water Company (PDAM), and the Regency Central Statistics Agency (BPS). Subang. It can be seen that the mainstay debit for irrigation is 5.61 m³/s while for household needs it is 4.24 m³/s. The economic value of water in the Cijengkol watershed is Rp. 949,986,603,420/year. from various aspects of use, namely household needs, agriculture, fisheries, and animal husbandry.

Research on emergy evaluation method of ecological water use efficiency based on comprehensive benefits.

Scientifically evaluating ecological water use efficiency (EWUE) is an effective means to regulate the level of ecological water use in a country or a region. It is also a basic work to achieve high-efficiency use of ecological water under the current situation of water shortage. However, there were few researches on EWUE, and existing studies only focus on eco-environmental benefits generated by ecological water, without considering its impact on economy and society. An emergy evaluation method for EWUE based on comprehensive benefits was proposed in this paper innovatively. Considering the impact of ecological water use on society, economy, and eco-environment, the concept of EWUE could be defined. Then, comprehensive benefits of ecological water use (CBEW) were quantified by emergy method, and EWUE was evaluated by the comprehensive benefits of unit ecological water use. Taking Zhengzhou City as an example for calculation, from 2011 to 2020, CBEW increased from 5.20 × 1019 sej to 6.72 × 1020 sej, showing an overall upward trend, and EWUE rose from 2.71 × 1011 sej/m3 (1.27￥/m3) to 1.32 × 1012 sej/m3 (8.10￥/m3) with fluctuation. It showed that Zhengzhou City has paid enough attention to the allocation of ecological water and EWUE at a high level. The method proposed in this paper provides a new idea to evaluate EWUE scientifically, and the results can provide guidance to allocate ecological water resources to achieve sustainable development.

What is the potential to improve food security by restructuring crops in Northwest China?

Exploring the potential of crop type adjustment to improve regional food security, ecological security and net economic benefits is significant for agricultural water management, green production and sustainable development in drylands. Previous studies on the optimization of crop type were mostly concentrated within the region, without considering the impact of interregional food trade on the adjustment of regional crop type. It is difficult to give full play to the advantages of crop type optimization in improving regional food security. This paper introduces the virtual water trade theory into the optimization model of crop type. By quantifying the water footprint, carbon footprint, crop calories and net economic benefits of food crops in Northwest China and Central Asia. On the basis of fully considering farmers' planting willingness in Northwest China and food trade with Central Asian, the relative and absolute comparative advantage index is used as the optimization coefficient of the model. The food security and ecological security of the region, the blue water use efficiency, the green water ratio and the net food efficiency of the provinces (districts) in the region were used as objective functions to construct an open-ended crop type optimization model to optimize the crop type in the region. The results showed that the use of the constructed open crop type optimization model to guide regional food crop type adjustment increased the calories and grey water footprint provided by regional crops by 7.5% and −6.6%, respectively. The provinces in the region have seen varying degrees of improvement in the benefits of blue water use and net economic benefits, particularly in Gansu Province, which have increased by 51.0% and 53.5%, respectively. Due to the effect of crop type adjustment on the regional green water footprint and carbon footprint targets is less than satisfactory. On this basis, effective suggested measures to improve the efficiency of crop green water use and reduce the carbon footprint were proposed. In this study, the combination of relevant measures and grain crop type adjustment can give full play to the role of grain crop type adjustment in alleviating regional water resources and ecological pressure, improving food security, ecological security and sustainable grain production. It is expected to ensure global food security and promote green production and sustainable development of crops.

Study on Comprehensive Efficiency Evaluation of Farmland Irrigation Water Based on Compound Fuzzy Mathematical Model

China’s water resources are extremely scarce. Statistics show that agricultural water consumption accounts for more than 60% of the total water consumption in the country every year, and farmland irrigation water accounts for the largest proportion, accounting for about 90% of agricultural water consumption. It can be seen that irrigation water is the key to water saving. Taking the south of Jiangsu Province as the research background, this paper constructs an evaluation index system of farmland irrigation water use efficiency from four dimensions of water consumption level, irrigation water saving, water use efficiency and water production efficiency. A method based on complex fuzzy matter-element method is proposed to evaluate the benefits of farmland irrigation water. Taking the irrigation water for rice crops in southern Jiangsu as a case, the entropy value and weight are calculated by entropy weight method, and the evaluation results of the benefits of rice water use over the years are calculated by Euclidean closeness degree. This conclusion can provide decision support for rational allocation of farmland irrigation water, efficient utilization of water resources and comprehensive reform of agricultural water price.

Emergy evaluation of positive and negative benefits of agricultural water use based on energy analysis of water cycle

The current assessment of the positive and negative benefits of agricultural water use lacks a depiction of the overall internal energy flow, which lead to the identification and analysis of agricultural water use benefits are not comprehensive enough. Based on the “water supply - water use and consumption - drainage - pollutant carrying” link in the ecological economic system of agricultural water resources, the energy conversion relationship of each link were analyzed, and the main connotation and composition of the positive and negative benefits of agricultural water use were raised, then a set of emergy quantitative method system of the positive and negative benefits of agricultural water use was built. Taking Zhengzhou city as an example, the positive and negative benefits of agricultural water use in 2017 were calculated. The research results show that the negative benefits of agricultural water resources eco-economic system production account for 37.93% of the positive benefits. The main reason for the negative benefits is non-point source pollution caused by TN, TP and COD.Consequently, developing production and social policies to limit the amount of non-point source pollution caused by pollutants in agricultural production is an effective way to increase the efficiency of agricultural water production while reducing the negative benefits generated.

Common Pool Resource Management: Assessing Water Resources Planning for Hydrologically Connected Surface and Groundwater Systems

Common pool resource (CPR) management has the potential to overcome the collective action dilemma, defined as the tendency for individual users to exploit natural resources and contribute to a tragedy of the commons. Design principles associated with effective CPR management help to ensure that arrangements work to the mutual benefit of water users. This study contributes to current research on CPR management by examining the process of implementing integrated management planning through the lens of CPR design principles. Integrated management plans facilitate the management of a complex common pool resource, ground and surface water resources having a hydrological connection. Water governance structures were evaluated through the use of participatory methods and observed records of interannual changes in rainfall, evapotranspiration, and ground water levels across the Northern High Plains. The findings, documented in statutes, field interviews and observed hydrologic variables, point to the potential for addressing large-scale collective action dilemmas, while building on the strengths of local control and participation. The feasibility of a “bottom up” system to foster groundwater resilience was evidenced by reductions in groundwater depths of 2 m in less than a decade.

The environmental impact of household's water use: A case study in Flanders assessing various water sources, production methods and consumption patterns

Responsible water use and sustainable consumption and production are high on the agenda of multiple stakeholders. Different water supply sources are available, including tap water, bottled water, domestically harvested rainwater and domestically abstracted groundwater. The extent to which each of these water supply sources is used, differs over consumption patterns in various housing types, being detached houses, semi-detached houses, terraced houses and apartments. To identify the environmental impact of a household's water use and potential environmental impact reduction strategies, a holistic assessment is required. In this paper, the environmental impact of a household's water use in Flanders (Belgium) was assessed including four different water supply sources and four different consumption patterns by means of a life cycle assessment. The outcomes of this study reveal a large difference between the environmental impact of bottled water use, having a global warming impact of 259 kg CO2-eq.·m−3, compared to the other three supply sources. Tap water supply had the lowest global warming impact (0.17 kg CO2-eq.·m−3) and resource footprint (6.51 MJex·m−3) of all water supply sources. The most efficient strategy to reduce the environmental impact of household's water use is to shift the water consumption from bottled to tap water consumption. This would induce a reduction in global warming impact of the water use of an inhabitant in Flanders by on average 80%, saving 0.1 kg CO2-eq.·day−1 in case of groundwater-based tap water. These results provide insights into sustainable water use for multiple consumption patterns and can be used to better frame the environmental benefits of tap water use.

Ecological Compensation Standard of Groundwater

According to the characteristics of groundwater and the requirements of groundwater protection, the ecological compensation standard of groundwater is discussed. Based on the study of groundwater characteristics at home and abroad, combined with the existing ecological compensation research, the ecological compensation standard of groundwater is discussed based on fair water use. Based on the determination of water distribution, pollutant discharge permission and water use income, and based on the social equity mechanism and the cooperative game, the upper limit of agricultural water demand in Cheng’an County under the current development mode is calculated to be 400 million m3, the lower limit to be 34 million m3, and the average to be 32 million m3. The people’s Government of Cheng‘an county shall compensate the farmers for their water saving. The compensation standard is based on the economic benefits of agricultural water use. The total compensation amount is 236 million yuan. The compensation standard is 6720 ¥/ha according to the accounting of 35 thousand ha farmland area. The calculation results of the groundwater ecological compensation model are reasonable and easy to implement, which provides a theoretical basis for the implementation of groundwater ecological compensation in Beijing Tianjin Hebei region.

"Socio-Economic Measures for Achieving Total Water Cost Recovery: A Brief Analysis with Illustration from the Evrotas River Basin, Greece"

The EU Water Framework Directive is considered a first systematic approach to ensure the quality of freshwater ecosystems holistically. At the core of the Directive is the concept of “Total” costs and benefits of water use, i.e. the financial, environmental and resource costs of water use. Many studies stress the importance of conceptualizing and monetizing the total water costs. Nevertheless, implementing total water cost recovery may raise social and redistributive concerns.

An Ecologically Oriented Operation Strategy for a Multi-Reservoir System: A Case Study of the Middle and Lower Han River Basin, China

Abstract Constructing and operating a multi-reservoir system changes the natural flow regime of rivers, and thus imposes adverse impacts on riverine ecosystems. To balance human needs with ecosystem needs, this study proposes an ecologically oriented operation strategy for a multi-reservoir system that integrates environmental flow requirements into the joint operation of a multi-reservoir system in order to maintain different ecological functions throughout the river. This strategy is a combination of a regular optimal operation scheme and a series of real-time ecological operation schemes. During time periods when the incompatibilities between human water needs and ecosystem needs for environmental flows are relatively small, the regular optimal operation scheme is implemented in order to maximize multiple human water-use benefits under the constraints of a minimum water-release policy. During time periods when reservoir-induced hydrological alteration imposes significant negative impacts on the river’s key ecological functions, real-time ecological operation schemes are implemented in order to modify the outflow from reservoirs to meet the environmental flow requirements of these functions. The practical use of this strategy is demonstrated for the simulation operation of a large-scale multi-reservoir system which located in the middle and lower Han River Basin in China. The results indicate that the real-time ecological operation schemes ensure the environmental flow requirements of the river’s key ecological functions, and that adverse impacts on human water-use benefits can be compensated for by the regular optimal operation scheme. The ecologically oriented operation strategy for a multi-reservoir system that is proposed in this study enriches the theoretical application of the multi-reservoir system joint operation which considers environmental flow requirements.

Water for sustainable development in the Berg Water Management Area, South Africa

Water is fundamental to human well-being and economic growth. Measuring how water contributes to sustainable development is an important aspect of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6, ‘Water and sanitation for all’. This importance is especially significant for water-scarce developing countries such as South Africa. Appropriate indicators can support decision-making and highlight key issues on inequality, unemployment and sustainability. In this paper, additional indicators for SDG 6.4 on water-use efficiency are proposed that focus on how individuals and households benefit, both directly and indirectly, from the allocations and use of water resources. The Berg Water Management Area (WMA) in the southwest corner of South Africa is used as a case study to illustrate the results. Residential per capita water use and municipal water losses were determined for all towns in the area. Figures for jobs and income per unit of water use were calculated for the heavily water-dependent industries, namely, agriculture, agriprocessing, freshwater aquaculture, mining and steel processing. This approach to measuring the socio-economic benefits of water use are relevant for other countries seeking to measure the role that water plays in achieving inclusive sustainable development, and could be included in the final SDG 6 indicator suite.
 Significance: 
 
 New measures of water-use efficiency based on jobs and income are proposed.
 New indicators are proposed for SDG 6.
 Water use, jobs and annual income are estimated for all heavily water-dependent sectors in the Berg WMA.

The Hydro-economics of Mining

Joint research between economists and hydrologists increasingly contributes to optimising the economic value gained from water, while safeguarding its social and environmental values. The application of hydro-economic analysis to mining regions, however, is limited. This paper examines why this is the case and how to confront it. The paper focuses on identifying and describing features of large-scale mines and mine regions that are challenging to analyse such as: magnitude of capital involved, time-scale and remoteness of projects, inherent environmental risks, and strong negative perceptions about mining's impacts on water. These characteristics may limit the applicability of established hydro-economic concepts and methods, thus risk-based metrics are discussed as complementary tools. We also contend that further research and development in water-related ecosystem services should be a priority, in order to better quantify trade-offs between the economic benefits of water use by mining and competing users, including environmental flows. Case studies of mining regions in Chile, Madagascar and Sweden are summarised to illustrate some of the issues raised. While data limitations are an obstacle, new and extended case studies are required to explore how the challenges may be addressed.

Decline of the world's saline lakes

Many of the world's saline lakes have been shrinking due to consumptive water use. The Great Salt Lake, USA, provides an example for how the health of and ecosystem services provided by saline lakes can be sustained. Many of the world's saline lakes are shrinking at alarming rates, reducing waterbird habitat and economic benefits while threatening human health. Saline lakes are long-term basin-wide integrators of climatic conditions that shrink and grow with natural climatic variation. In contrast, water withdrawals for human use exert a sustained reduction in lake inflows and levels. Quantifying the relative contributions of natural variability and human impacts to lake inflows is needed to preserve these lakes. With a credible water balance, causes of lake decline from water diversions or climate variability can be identified and the inflow needed to maintain lake health can be defined. Without a water balance, natural variability can be an excuse for inaction. Here we describe the decline of several of the world's large saline lakes and use a water balance for Great Salt Lake (USA) to demonstrate that consumptive water use rather than long-term climate change has greatly reduced its size. The inflow needed to maintain bird habitat, support lake-related industries and prevent dust storms that threaten human health and agriculture can be identified and provides the information to evaluate the difficult tradeoffs between direct benefits of consumptive water use and ecosystem services provided by saline lakes.

Agricultural water rights trading and virtual water export compensation coupling model: A case study of an irrigation district in China

Water rights trading is an effective way to promote efficient water allocation. The implementation of agricultural water rights trading can promote water saving, but may reduce the agricultural production scale in irrigation districts. Compensation for crop virtual water export can increase the benefits of agricultural water use, so as to enhance the competitiveness of economic benefit for agricultural production. This paper analyzed the relationship between agricultural water rights trading and virtual water export compensation, then a bi-level programming model was established with multiple objectives. The model was applied in Hetao irrigation district by using enumeration method. The changes of new water use of different users, benefits of irrigation district and water users with different water prices were analyzed and the optimization schemes were selected. Results show that the model through adjusting price variables including both water rights trading price and virtual water compensation price to optimize the allocation of agricultural water quantity saved among different water users, which at the same time makes both the irrigation management administration and water users get more benefit. The optimized scheme can raise the willingness of water saving in irrigation district, and enhance the competitiveness of agricultural water user against non-agricultural water user. This study provides a new method and scientific basis for the water resource management agency in their policy making.

Sharing water and benefits in transboundary river basins

Abstract. The equitable sharing of benefits in transboundary river basins is necessary to solve disputes among riparian countries and to reach a consensus on basin-wide development and management activities. Benefit-sharing arrangements must be collaboratively developed to be perceived not only as efficient, but also as equitable in order to be considered acceptable to all riparian countries. The current literature mainly describes what is meant by the term benefit sharing in the context of transboundary river basins and discusses this from a conceptual point of view, but falls short of providing practical, institutional arrangements that ensure maximum economic welfare as well as collaboratively developed methods for encouraging the equitable sharing of benefits. In this study, we define an institutional arrangement that distributes welfare in a river basin by maximizing the economic benefits of water use and then sharing these benefits in an equitable manner using a method developed through stakeholder involvement. We describe a methodology in which (i) a hydrological model is used to allocate scarce water resources, in an economically efficient manner, to water users in a transboundary basin, (ii) water users are obliged to pay for water, and (iii) the total of these water charges is equitably redistributed as monetary compensation to users in an amount determined through the application of a sharing method developed by stakeholder input, thus based on a stakeholder vision of fairness, using an axiomatic approach. With the proposed benefit-sharing mechanism, the efficiency–equity trade-off still exists, but the extent of the imbalance is reduced because benefits are maximized and redistributed according to a key that has been collectively agreed upon by the participants. The whole system is overseen by a river basin authority. The methodology is applied to the Eastern Nile River basin as a case study. The described technique not only ensures economic efficiency, but may also lead to more equitable solutions in the sharing of benefits in transboundary river basins because the definition of the sharing rule is not in question, as would be the case if existing methods, such as game theory, were applied, with their inherent definitions of fairness.

Assessment of the Water Market in the Xiying Irrigation District, Shiyang River Basin, China

AbstractA water market is an effective way to increase water-use benefits. A preliminary market for irrigation water trading among villages has emerged in the arid area of northwestern China since 2008. This study conducts a quantitative evaluation of the water market at the Xiying irrigation district of the Shiyang River Basin in western China. Network analysis method is employed to assess trading activity and market centrality. The characters of case water market are compared with that of the United States and Australia to discuss the foundations and barriers for developing a mature water market in China. Results show that the case water market in China is undeveloped and is highly regulated by local government although water transactions continuously occur among villages for years. Insufficient incentives and high transaction cost are the key barriers in further developing the market. The indicators proposed in this study for market network analysis are useful for quantitatively evaluating the characte...

A new multiple integral model for water shortage risk assessment and its application in Beijing, China

In terms of drought years, the assessment of water shortage risk is a significant precondition for taking effective measures to reduce the potential losses. This paper proposes a new multiple integral model for evaluating the risk of water shortage. First, the probability density function for water shortage was simulated. Second, a nonlinear function between vulnerability and its indicators was developed based on projection pursuit. Third, a function of consequence was proposed from the perspective of water-use benefit, and data envelopment analysis was applied to compute the water-use benefit coefficients. Fourth, risk was defined as a double integral in monetary units. Risks in Beijing, used as a case study, are assessed under different inflow scenarios (1956–2012) by using the model. The findings of the study were as follows: In 2020, the vulnerability was shown to vary from 0.93 to 0.99, and the maximum value occurs with the inflow conditions of 1980 and 2009. The probable maximum loss occurs with the inflow condition of 2006, and risk is approximately equal to 0.7 billion CNY. After using the transferred water and reclaimed water, all of the values for consequence vulnerability and risk are reduced, but the situation regarding supply and demand remains at a disadvantage in 2020.

Suppression of nighttime sap flux with lower stem photosynthesis in Eucalyptus trees

It is widely accepted that substantial nighttime sap flux (J s,n) or transpiration (E) occurs in most plants, but the physiological implications are poorly known. It has been hypothesized that J s,n or E serves to enhance nitrogen uptake or deliver oxygen; however, no clear evidence is currently available. In this study, sap flux (J s) in Eucalyptus grandis × urophylla with apparent stem photosynthesis was measured, including control trees which were covered by aluminum foil (approximately 1/3 of tree height) to block stem photosynthesis. We hypothesized that the nighttime water flux would be suppressed in trees with lower stem photosynthesis. The results showed that the green tissue degraded after 3 months, demonstrating a decrease in stem photosynthesis. The daytime J s decreased by 21.47%, while J s,n decreased by 12.03% in covered trees as compared to that of control, and the difference was statistically significant (P < 0.01). The linear quantile regression model showed that J s,n decreased for a given daytime transpiration water loss, indicating that J s,n was suppressed by lower stem photosynthesis in covered trees. Predawn (ψ pd) of covered trees was marginally higher than that of control while lower at predawn stomatal conductance (g s), indicating a suppressed water flux in covered trees. There was no difference in leaf carbon content and δ(13)C between the two groups, while leaf nitrogen content and δ(15)N were significantly higher in covered trees than that of the control (P < 0.05), indicating that J s,n was not used for nitrogen uptake. These results suggest that J s,n may act as an oxygen pathway since green tissue has a higher respiration or oxygen demand than non-green tissue. Thus, this study demonstrated the physiological implications of J s,n and the possible benefits of nighttime water use or E by the tree.

Contract farming and the reorganisation of agricultural production within the Chókwè Irrigation System, Mozambique

This paper contributes to the discussion about ‘inclusive business models’ as alternatives to large-scale land acquisitions by analysing a case in which a foreign agribusiness investor, within an impact investment paradigm, acquired and rehabilitated a rice processing plant in Chókwè, Mozambique. A contract farming programme drawn up to source raw produce for the factory led to radical shifts in control over land and water resources. The case is set against the background of a large-scale irrigation system that has played an important role in national agricultural policies since colonial times. The private sector-led development approach is strongly supported by the state which portrays it as an opportunity to reduce its dependency on rice imports. The investor redirected the benefits of land and water use through taking a role of coordination and control within the irrigated production system.The ensuing rural transformation reminds one of earlier periods in the development of the irrigation system: the central control over production, and the very high level of agricultural inputs and mechanisation, remind one of the state socialist period, while the removal of smallholders from their land and its concentration in the hands of a few bears a strong resemblance to the scheme's establishment under colonial rule.

Nonlinear Optimisation Using Production Functions to Estimate Economic Benefit of Conjunctive Water Use for Multicrop Production

Uncertainty and shortages of surface water supplies, as a result of global climate change, necessitate development of groundwater in many canal commands. Groundwater can be expensive to pump, but provides a reliable supply if managed sustainably. Groundwater can be used optimally in conjunction with surface water supplies. The use of such conjunctive systems can significantly decrease the risk associated with a stochastic availability of surface water supply. However, increasing pumping cost due to groundwater drawdown and energy prices are key concerns. We propose an innovative nonlinear programing model for the optimisation of profitability and productivity in an irrigation command area, with conjunctive water use options. The model, rather than using exogenous yields and gross margins, uses crop water production and profit functions to endogenously determine yields and water uses, and associated gross margins, respectively, for various conjunctive water use options. The model allows the estimation of the potential economic benefits of conjunctive water use and derives an optimal use of regional level land and water resources by maximising the net benefits and water productivity under various physical and economic constraints, including escalating energy prices. The proposed model is applied to the Coleambally Irrigation Area (CIA) in southeastern Australia to explore potential of conjunctive water use and evaluate economic implication of increasing energy prices. The results show that optimal conjunctive water use can offer significant economic benefit especially at low levels of surface water allocation and pumping cost. The results show that conjunctive water use potentially generates additional AUD 57.3 million if groundwater price is the same as surface water price. The benefit decreases significantly with increasing pumping cost.