Intensive Water Use Research Articles

“Quantifying spatiotemporal impacts of the interaction of water scarcity and water use by the global semiconductor manufacturing industry”

The high-tech semiconductor manufacturing sector is integral to the international electronics industry and was valued at over $400 billion USD in 2017. Intensive water use by this industry is well-documented and this work provides a spatially explicitly assessment of water use impacts by nearly 100% of global semiconductor manufacturing capacity. Both direct manufacturing water use and water use from electricity were considered as part of a facility’s total withdrawal. Manufacturing water withdrawals were estimated by using technology-specific water and electricity use data, reported at the semiconductor chip or wafer level from the life cycle literature and industry estimates. Electricity water use intensity (WUI) factors were gleaned from the literature and regional electricity WUI factors were derived for China and the U.S. Geolocation of semiconductor manufacturing facilities allowed for summation of water withdrawals at various spatial extents (i.e. watershed, country, and globally). This data was combined with calculated regional or country-level electricity water use factors to estimate total water withdrawals by a facility. Geolocation of data also allowed for calculation of watershed specific scarcity-weighted withdrawals. Scarcity-weighted withdrawals were ascertained by multiplying facility water withdrawal data by the AWaRE water scarcity characterization factor available for each of 202 watersheds associated with semiconductor manufacturing facilities. These data were used to identify and map hotspots of industry water use, which is especially important for areas of industry growth such as China. This analysis is useful as a benchmark for global semiconductor industry water withdrawals and may assist OEMs in decisions about supply chain sourcing. This could also guide semiconductor manufacturers in prioritizing locations and time periods to implement water-saving technologies or employ less water intensive electricity sources. Additionally, the spatially explicit water use data for the semiconductor sector can be used to improve existing databases of national and regional sector-specific water use coefficients that are often applied in LCA input-output studies.

Eco-Geochemical Characteristics of Surface Waters in the Zone of Oil and Gas Deposits Development in the Western Yakutia

In Western Yakutia, the largest oil and gas fields are concentrated, on which several subsoil users currently work. Due to the intensive use of water by oil and gas companies for industrial purposes, the construction of transport infrastructure, a significant impact on the state of surface water is occur. An assessment of the ecogeochemical state of small rivers located on the territory of oil and gas industry impact in Mirny district was carried out. It is revealed that the construction of water intakes can lead to changes in the mineral composition of surface water. Road construction has a significant exposure on the ecological condition of rivers. The results indicated increased concentrations of heavy metals such as iron, zinc, copper, aluminium, manganese in the studied rivers.

Hydrodynamics of the Onega River tidal estuary as a basis for ecosystem monitoring

Tidal river mouths are very complicated objects for hydrological and ecosystem research. Moreover, river mouth areas are characterized by unique and vulnerable ecosystems with great biodiversity. Water quality and hydrological monitoring is essential for their preservation in conditions of intensive water use. We provided comprehensive field observations of the flow dynamics in the Onega River estuary during winter and summer period. Field data analysis has shown flow velocity and flow direction variability over a tidal cycle and depending on river runoff, wind conditions and ice cover. We investigated flow velocity profiles and cross-section velocity distribution over a tidal cycle. Also, water levels and salinity were measured over a tidal cycle at multiple locations along the estuary. All the collected data can be used for designing an ecosystem monitoring program and setting up a hydrodynamic model of the Onega River estuary.

Climate risk and food availability in Guatemala

AbstractIn this paper, we use a computable general equilibrium model to simulate the effects of drought and a decrease in agricultural productivity caused by climate change in Guatemala. A reduction in agricultural productivity would mean a considerable drop in crop and livestock production, and the resulting higher prices and lower household income would mean a significant reduction in the consumption of agricultural goods and food. The most negative effects of a drought would be concentrated in agriculture, given its intensive use of water. Because agricultural production is essential to ensuring food availability, these results suggest that Guatemala needs a proper water-distribution regulatory framework.

Coordination degree of the exploitation of water resources and its spatial differences in China

Coordinated relationships between socioeconomic development and water utilization, as well as environmental protection measures, are crucial for achieving sustainable water resource exploitation (WRE) under changing environmental conditions. Moreover, a balanced condition of regional WRE is essential to guaranteeing the water security of the entire nation. In this study, an evaluation model of the coordination degree (CD) of WRE is built based on 10 selected indicators and is then applied to 31 provincial zones in China during the period 2004–2014. The cluster analysis method is introduced to classify the relative rank (RK) of the CD at the provincial scale in the pre- (2004–2010) and post- (2011–2014) phases; these phases are divided by the first year of the implementation of the “Three Red Lines Policy” in China (2011), and the spatial differences of the CD of the entire nation were decomposed. The results showed the following. 1) The CD of WRE increases significantly in 26 provincial zones after the implementation of the “Three Red Lines Policy”, and the average CD of WRE for 28 provincial zones during the post-phase was greater than that during the pre-phase. 2) Provincial zones with the RK of coordinated development model (CDM) are mainly located in southern and southwestern China. Provincial zones with the RK of the uncoordinated development model (UDM) were mainly found in northern inland China. Eight provincial zones with dense populations and intensive water use, but with only scarce per capita water resources, have the RK of the severely uncoordinated development model (SUDM). 3) The spatial differences in CD diminished in the post-phase, and the differences in CD at the inter-regional scale accounted for a predominant proportion of the difference in CD at the national scale. In addition to improving the coordination status of WRE, the implementation of the “Three Red Lines Policy” also decreased the disparity among the CD of WRE, and this policy continued to be effectively implemented and followed to make a lasting difference. Cross-regional cooperation and coordinated relationships between socioeconomic development and water resource protection are needed to achieve a more coordinated and balanced WRE for long-term development. The results of this study have scientific and practical implications for sustainable WRE and water security in rapidly developing countries such as China.

Trophic compression of lake food webs under hydrologic disturbance

AbstractThe need to protect biostructure is increasingly recognized, yet empirical studies of how human exploits affect ecological networks are rare. Studying the effects of variation in human disturbance intensity from decades past can help us understand and anticipate ecosystem change under alleviated or amplified disturbance over decades to come. Here, we use stable isotopes and an innovative analytical approach to compare the food webs of two akin lake ecosystems subject to disparate water use regimes, a pervasive, yet unappreciated stressor. We show that intensive water use (persistent, early season, rapid lake‐level drawdown) can compress trophic diversity by 46%, necessitating reorganization of biostructural elements configuring lake food webs. Compression occurred over the δ13C axis indicating erosion of basal trophic diversity, but food chain length remained intact over the period and intensity of disturbance examined. This study demonstrates the potential for water use, like other disturbances (warming, eutrophication, and invasive species), to mute opportunity for benthic‐pelagic coupling and benefits to lake food webs and the inherent capacity of lake ecosystems to adapt to stress. Trophically compressed lakes may be less able to adapt to intensified water use.

Mapping Changes in Carbon Storage and Productivity Services Provided by Riparian Ecosystems of Semi-Arid Environments in Northwestern Mexico

We analyze the importance of riparian ecosystems (RE) as critical areas for carbon storage and productivity in semi-arid regions of Northwest Mexico. We calculated the carbon storage by land cover and compared temporal trends of basal productivity (MODIS) and pre-monsoon productivity (Landsat) of RE, to other land cover types. We used land cover maps generated previously for the region (years 1993, 2002, and 2011), assigning values of carbon stored in aerial and root biomass, as well as organic carbon stored in the soil. To estimate productivity (proxy), time series were generated using the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) values of Landsat 4–5 TM and MODIS for each land cover type. We found that RE stores 93,147 tC/ha, about 1.5 times the estimated storage for oak forest (65,048 tC/ha). Productivity of RE was similar to highly productive land cover types, such as agriculture and oak forest, and higher than in the rest of the ecosystems of the region. We also found that changes from RE to agriculture and cultivated grasslands represented a decrease in productivity (p < 0.001). Finally, we report a gradual decrease in basal productivity (p = 0.0151) and pre-monsoon productivity (p = 0.031) in the RE. These results help us understand that changes in land use, intensive use of water, and climate can influence the ecosystem services of productivity and carbon storage offered by RE in semi-arid areas.

Water Policy Reforms in South Korea: A Historical Review and Ongoing Challenges for Sustainable Water Governance and Management

This study aims to provide an opinion on the state-of-the-art of changes and reforms of water policies in South Korea, as well as the challenges along with their implications for sustainable water governance and management. In parallel with change in water resource characteristics generated by physical, environmental and socio-economic challenges such as: (1) uncertainties about climate change (flooding and drought) including seasonal and regional variation in precipitation; (2) significant increase in water use caused by rapid urbanization and population growth in industrialized urban areas; (3) inadequate water pricing mechanism which covers only around 80% of the production cost and makes it harder to maintain water systems; and (4) recursive water quality degradation and conflicts over water rights between regions resulting from non-point source pollution in highland versus lowland areas, Korean water policies have been developed through diverse reforms over 100 years. Nevertheless, new challenges for sustainable water management are continuously emerging. To meet those challenges we provide two ideas: (i) provider-gets-principle (payment for ecosystem services) of cost-benefit sharing among stakeholders who benefit from water use; and (ii) water pricing applying full-cost pricing-principle internalizing environmental externalities caused by the intensive water use. Funds secured from the application of those methods would facilitate: (1) support for upstream (rural) low income householders suffering from economic restrictions; (2) improvement in water facilities; and (3) efficient water use and demand management in South Korea’s water sectors. We expect that this paper can examine the lessons relevant to challenges that South Korea faces and offer some implications on the formulation of new integration and further reforms of the institutions, laws and organizations responsible for managing water resources in South Korea.

Governance and management dynamics of landscape restoration at multiple scales: Learning from successful environmental managers in Sweden

Due to a long history of intensive land and water use, habitat networks for biodiversity conservation are generally degraded in Sweden. Landscape restoration (LR) is an important strategy for achieving representative and functional green infrastructures. However, outcomes of LR efforts are poorly studied, particularly the dynamics of LR governance and management. We apply systems thinking methods to a series of LR case studies to analyse the causal structures underlying LR governance and management in Sweden. We show that these structures appear to comprise of an interlinked system of at least three sets of drivers and four core processes. This system exhibits many characteristics of a transformative change towards an integrated, adaptive approach to governance and management. Key challenges for Swedish LR projects relate to institutional and regulatory flexibility, the timely availability of sufficient funds, and the management of learning and knowledge production processes. In response, successful project leaders develop several key strategies to manage complexity and risk, and enhance perceptions of the attractiveness of LR projects.

Biochar-based nursery substrates: The effect of peat substitution on reduced salinity

The growing of ornamental plants for urban greening has significant environmental and economic implications. In particular, the intensive use of peat and high-quality water at the nursery stage is sensitive due to the problems of soil depletion and water salinization even in urban areas. In these contexts, a preference for salinity-resistant species and cultivation techniques based on the substitution of low-impact materials could be beneficial.Here, an experiment has been carried out with two ornamental plant species – cherry laurel [Prunus laurocerasus L.] which is salinity-sensitive, and phillyrea [Phillyrea latifolia L.] which is salinity-resistant – using substrates containing different amounts of biochar in place of peat. Moreover, using irrigation water at two different salinity concentrations, we assess the extent to which the biochar can mitigate salinity damage in these plant species. The results of this study showed that the addition of biochar to the potting medium had no effect on plant growth but crucially limited cherry laurel salinity damage. Tolerance to salinity was attributed to lower Na+ retention in the biochar-containing substrates. Based on these findings, we conclude that the application of biochar not only reduces the amount of peat required in growth substrates, but can also permit the utilization of low-quality irrigation water – thereby also reducing the leaching of nutrients such as K+ and N-NH4+.

Co-design and assessment of cropping systems for developing crop-livestock integration at the territory level

Agricultural systems face numerous sustainability challenges that require their ecological modernization. Strong changes in agricultural practices may require redesigning farming systems and involving local stakeholders in an agroecological transition. Development of Integrated Crop-Livestock Systems (ICLS) is a promising transition pathway. They can be developed at farm and territory levels by developing interactions between specialized farming systems. Designing ICLS at the territory level requires a systemic approach that considers social, technical and ecological issues from field and farm to territory levels. We present a participatory modeling approach for designing ICLS at the territory level in the Aveyron River basin (southwestern France), where arable farms experience significant sustainability issues due to intensive use of irrigation water and soil erosion, while livestock farms have significant feed self-sufficiency issues. We first quantified the amount of feed imported to livestock systems to determine the potential for local feed production. We designed alternative cropping systems with a group of arable farmers and technical advisors. The resulting options for change in land use and practices were simulated to assess the delivery of ecosystem services, socioeconomic performance and capacity to respond to water scarcity. The most promising option is the introduction of alfalfa into current cropping systems. This option reduces the use of inputs in cropping systems, in particular irrigation-water withdrawals, by up to 50% without decreasing socioeconomic performance. Ecosystem services, in particular soil fertility maintenance and biological regulation, could be enhanced. Technical practices can be modified with the support of local supply chains, but require further support from public policies.

Deficit irrigation in table grape: eco-physiological basis and potential use to save water and improve quality

Table grapes are one of the most productive and economically relevant fruit crops worldwide. Table grape production characterizes by high water productivity but also by an intensive use of water, which puts pressure on local/regional water resources, particularly in dry regions (e.g. South Mediterranean, Northeast and Southeast of Brazil). Climate change and scarcer water resources make the problem more severe in those areas. Meanwhile, consumer’s demand for quality and sustainable production is increasing and environmental issues are becoming critical for competiveness. In this context, table grape “industry” needs solutions to promote water savings, sustain yield, quality and profit. Deficit irrigation emerged as a tool to mitigate the negative impact of drought on yield and quality and to save water in modern irrigated viticulture. Our aim is to describe the potential benefits of deficit irrigation in table grape production namely in what concerns water savings and berry quality. Previous literature shows that the effect of deficit irrigation on water savings varies with the genotype (scion and rootstock), the environmental conditions as well as the adopted agronomic strategies. This paper provides a comprehensive and up-to-date overview on the eco-physiological basis of deficit irrigation strategies and their role on growth, yield and berry quality (biophysical and biochemical) in table grape. Complementary crop management strategies to guarantee a more sustainable use of water (e.g. higher water use efficiency), improved berry quality and smaller environmental impact of table grape production are presented and discussed.

Comparative life cycle assessment (LCA) study of heterogeneous and homogenous Fenton processes for the treatment of pharmaceutical wastewater

The applicability of any wastewater technology should be related not only to its degradation, mineralization or detoxification efficiency, but also to its environmental impacts. This could be particularly relevant in case of advanced oxidation processes (AOPs), which are usually highly demanding on chemicals, energy, and generating residual fluxes with specific problems and potential environmental impacts (metal ion-containing sludge, exhausted solid catalysts, etc). In this work, the life cycle assessment (LCA) has been applied for the evaluation of both homogeneous and heterogeneous Fenton processes for the treatment of a wastewater coming from a pharmaceutical industry in Toledo, Spain. The application of LCA as tool for the evaluation of AOPs is scarce found in literature, although it provides a systematic estimation of the environmental changes related to the AOP treatment, quantification of consumptions and emissions, and their effects on human health. In this work, the potential environmental impacts were calculated with Gabi 6.0 software by using ReCiPe version 1.06 and ICCP 2007 methods. Additionally, the water footprint (WF) was used in this study for the first time as tool for comparison between both AOP systems. Experimental data, directly obtained from the company and the laboratory were used to carry out the life cycle inventory (LCI) analysis, ensuring high accuracy and sensitivity of the obtained results. The obtained results showed that the recovery of the metallic sludge generated in the homogeneous Fenton process is the most contributing step to environmental impacts followed by the use of chemicals and the heat requirements. The comparison between homogeneous and heterogeneous Fenton processes revealed that the latter is a more environmental friendly alternative for the treatment of the pharmaceutical wastewater. In addition, the use of the heterogeneous process allows the reduction of the water footprint in more than 77% as compared to the homogeneous one. Besides the results regarding to both Fenton processes, this work shows the efficiency of the water footprint as a complementary parameter to the LCA for comparison between advanced wastewater treatments processes which can be intensive use of fresh water as a resource.

Role of Direct Sown Rice Technology for Conservation of Water Resources in Punjab-A Case Study of Amritsar District

India has the largest area under rice crop (about 45 million ha.) and it occupies 23.3 per cent of gross cropped area of the country. The intensive use of water in traditional transplanted rice (TTR) cultivation in northwest Indo Gangetic plains is depleting aquifers. Paddy crop contributes a lot in the agricultural economy of the Punjab state but it was observed in the study that 79.41 per cent of irrigation water being contributed to the production of rice in Amritsar district. As a result of over exploitation of ground water the water table was declined and the ground water development reached to 152 per cent in the district. The use of ground water in the months of May and June was highly important for ground water resource management in the district and it was observed that less than 60 mm rain during the months of May and June contributed negative impact on the ground water situation in the district. It was realized in the study that DSR is a viable alternative to TTR and helpful to overcome the problem of water shortage and labour over TTR as it saves 52.41 (before July) and 21.22 (overall) per cent of irrigations applied. Therefore with the support of the govt, cooperatives and farmers participation; DSR can become a successful alternative to the TTR for optimum use of water resources of Punjab.

El paludismo en Fuente Álamo de Murcia en los siglos XVIII y XIX

En los siglos XVIII y XIX, Fuente Álamo de Murcia se vio afectada por diversos brotes palúdicos dentro de la afección febril generalizada que afligía a gran parte del territorio nacional, especialmente al área levantina. La existencia natural de varias zonas encharcadas en el cauce de las ramblas adyacentes al núcleo poblacional, fue el detonante de estos brotes tercianarios cuyos efectos fueron especialmente graves en la población. A mediados del XVIII, Juan Antonio García Serón decidió hacerse cargo de las colosales obras que eran necesarias para iniciar el drenaje de las zonas marjalencas; pero no será hasta mediados del XIX cuando desaparecerán los problemas causados por las tercianas, gracias al intenso aprovechamiento de las aguas captadas mediante los sistemas de galerías con lumbreras existentes (el primero creado por el señor Serón en 1753 y el segundo construido por sus descendientes, pertenecientes a la familia Girón, en 1837-1840) y mediante los numerosos pozos verticales que extraían el agua del subsuelo por medio de la fuerza eólica o animal, lo que provocó el descenso de los niveles freáticos y la desaparición de las fuentes naturales que alimentaban las charcas.

Association between irrigated farming and improved nutrition in farm households in Malawi

ABSTRACTMore intensive use of Malawi's water and agricultural land resources through increased irrigation is expected to enable Malawians gain greater access to more food and a more diverse range of foods. The nutritional status of the nutritionally vulnerable in Malawian communities should improve in consequence. However, there is little evidence from Malawi or elsewhere to confirm whether irrigation improves nutritional status at household level. Using data from the Third Malawi Integrated Household Survey of 2010/11, this article presents a basic assessment of whether increased use of irrigated farming by smallholders in Malawi might result in better nutritional outcomes for children in Malawian farm households and more diverse diets in these households. The association between the use of irrigation by farm households and the growth performance of their children aged six months to five years was positive but weak and not significant (P>0.05). The positive association between irrigated farming and the diversity in the foods consumed by farm households was somewhat stronger and significant (P<0.05). In particular, irrigation is shown to be an important component in reducing seasonality in household dietary diversity.

Characterization of Irrigation Farm Households and Economic Valuation of Irrigation Water: The Case of Ahero Rice Irrigation Scheme in Nyando District of Kenya

Irrigated farming can play a great role to enhance agricultural development in Kenya, given that Kenya's economy is predominantly agricultural based and that about 80% of Kenya's land area is arid and semi - arid land (ASAL) where annual rainfall rarely exce eds 400 millimetres. However, irrigation tends to be carried out under intensive water use and low water use efficiency in many parts of the world, Kenya included. Household characteristics and subsidized or low water charges have been identified as a majo r contributor to intensive water use and low water use efficiency in irrigation. Therefore, characterization of farm households that irrigate and determination of efficient prices for irrigation water should be a prerequisite to formulation of appropriate water pricing in irrigation development policies. Taking the Ahero Rice Irrigation Scheme (ARIS) that is managed by

Study of the ground subsidences in the Sibari Plain (Southern Italy) detected by InSAR data analysis

We investigated surface ground deformations in the Sibari Plain (SP - Calabria, Southern Italy) by means of Small Baseline Subset multi-temporal InSAR technique (SBAS), applied to two SAR datasets acquired from 2003 up to 2013 by Envisat (ESA, European Space Agency) and COSMO-SkyMed (ASI, Italian Space Agency) satellites. The retrieved InSAR data show the existence of ground subsidence phenomena up to ~ -20 mm/yr. Our investigation is based on integration between InSAR data and geological, well-logs, land use and hydrogeological information. The results show a direct correlation among subsidence, the thickness of Plio-Pleistocene succession and thickness and lithology of the late Holocene deposits. We identified the fast urbanization of the coastal area during the last ~50 yr and the water table drop as incremental factors of subsidence phenomena. The second factor, due to intensive use of ground water for agriculture, is not the triggering cause of subsidence processes on contrary to the assumption of some previous publications. No evidence of tectonic contribution in the ground deformation pattern is observed.

Spatial and temporal variations in ecosystem response to monsoon precipitation variability in southwestern North America

AbstractDue to its marked vegetation phenology and precipitation gradients, the North American Monsoon Region (NAMR) is a useful domain for studying ecosystem responses to climate variability and change. To this end, we analyze long‐term dynamics (1982–2004) in monsoon precipitation (Pr), time‐integrated Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (TINDVI) used as proxy of net primary productivity, and rain‐use efficiency (RUE). The analysis focuses on six ecoregions, spanning from desert environments to tropical dry forests, to investigate (1) how net primary productivity and rain‐use efficiency vary along a precipitation gradient, (2) if interannual variability in net primary productivity is linked to the interannual variability in precipitation, and (3) if there is evidence of a long‐term signal imposed on the interannual variability in rain‐use efficiency. Variations in TINDVI and RUE with Pr along the NAMR precipitation gradient differ among ecoregions exhibiting intensive or extensive water use strategies. We explain the nonlinear behaviors along the precipitation gradient as resulting from different physiological responses to climatological means and the impact of topographic effects. Statistical analysis indicates that the interannual variability in vegetation response is significantly related to the interannual variability in Pr, but their correlation declines with time. A long‐term positive signal in RUE imposed on its interannual variability is identified and results from a constant TINDVI under negative long‐term trends of Pr. This important finding suggests the combined long‐term effects of ecosystem acclimation to reduced water availability and increasing CO2 concentration across the varied ecosystems of the North American Monsoon Region.

A modeling approach reveals differences in evapotranspiration and its partitioning in two semiarid ecosystems in Northwest Mexico

AbstractSeasonal vegetation changes during the North American monsoon play a major role in modifying water, energy, and momentum fluxes. Nevertheless, most models parameterize plants as a static component or with averaged seasonal variations that ignore interannual differences and their potential impact on evapotranspiration (ET) and its components. Here vegetation parameters derived from remote sensing data were coupled with a hydrologic model at two eddy covariance (EC) sites with observations spanning multiple summers. Sinaloan thornscrub (ST) and Madrean woodland (MW) sites, arranged at intermediate and high elevations along mountain fronts in northwest Mexico, occupy specific niches related to climate conditions and water availability that are poorly understood. We found that simulations with a dynamic representation of vegetation greening tracked well the seasonal evolution of observed ET and soil moisture (SM). A switch in the dominant component of ET from soil evaporation (E) to plant transpiration (T) was observed for each ecosystem depending on the timing and magnitude of vegetation greening that is directly tied to rainfall characteristics. Differences in vegetation greening at the ST and MW sites lead to a dominance of transpiration at ST (T/ET = 57%), but evaporation‐dominant conditions at MW (T/ET = 19%). Peak transpiration occurred at 5 and 20 days after the full canopy development in the ST and MW sites, respectively. These results indicate that evapotranspiration timing and partitioning varies considerably in the two studied ecosystems in accordance with different modes of vegetation greening. Intermediate‐elevation ecosystems follow an intensive water use strategy with a rapid and robust transpiration response to water availability. In contrast, higher elevation sites have delayed and attenuated transpiration, suggesting an extensive water use strategy persisting beyond the North American monsoon.