Irrigation Advisory Service Research Articles

An Analysis of Preference Weights and Setting Priorities by Irrigation Advisory Services Users Based on the Analytic Hierarchy Process

Objective: Stakeholders—farmers from four different European areas (Campania (IT), Kujawsko-Pomorskie (PL), Limburg (NL), Andalusia (ES))—are asked to share, from the OPERA project, their opinions on five criteria that all aim at improving the use of irrigation advisory services (IASs). Each criterion has different characteristics that affect the way farmers rank it. The present study has two objectives. The first is to individuate the priorities of the preferences expressed by the stakeholders. The second objective is to carry out a ranking of the weights of the criteria by case study, ranking the groups and their associated properties among farmers’ profiles. Methods: The answers to 120 questionnaires dispensed to the future users of IASs in the four agricultural sites were analyzed in detail, and then the given priorities were evaluated through the analytic hierarchy process (AHP). The AHP methodology was used to determine the relative weights of the five assessment criteria, and finally, to select the one with major value. Results and conclusions: The results show that A5 (assuring economic sustainability) was the most important criterion. The contributions provided by this study are twofold: Firstly, it presents an application of a methodology that involves the conversion of a linguistic judgement of farmers in a correspondence weight. Secondly, it tackles decision making regarding improving the use of IASs, evaluating the preferences expressed by the stakeholders. Irrigation advisory services can play a key role in assisting users to adopt new techniques and technologies for more efficient water use and increased production.

A Step toward Water Use Sustainability: Implementing a Business Model Canvas for Irrigation Advisory Services

Some major future global challenges are linked to more efficient use of water for irrigation to respond to the growing water scarcity coupled with the increasing food demand. Although irrigation advisory services (IASs) are considered effective instruments to increase water use efficiency in agriculture, their diffusion remains limited. This is due to several constraints mainly linked to their low accessibility and high costs. To overcome the bottlenecks associated with IASs’ adoption, this paper proposes a business model (BM) as a tool for scaling up IASs within a business perspective, with the aim of encouraging the diffusion of this technology while enhancing the associated environmental and social benefits. Drawn from the experience of the OPERA project, we structured the business model taking advantage of the opinion of relevant stakeholders and IASs’ potential users to identify specific limitations and understand their needs. It turned out that farmers are willing to adopt IASs but require that the service is easily accessible, with high-quality information that are delivered at an affordable cost. Indeed, here a BM with an innovative way to produce and deliver value is proposed. The value proposition is built upon key features namely, integration, customization, accessibility, and sustainability that reflect users’ needs and preferences. Our BM also provides a detailed revenues strategy that guarantees the financial sustainability of IASs. To design and represent our BM, the “Business Model Canvas ©” has been adopted. We concluded that an innovative and well-structured BM has the potential to leave the IASs profitable and capable to ensure environmental and social sustainability.

Farmers’ Perceptions on an Irrigation Advisory Service: Evidence from Tunisia

Decisions on irrigation water management are usually made at different levels, including farms, water user associations (WUAs), and regional water planning agencies. The latter generally have good access to information and decision tools regarding water resources management. However, these remain out of reach to the final water users, namely the farmers. The study, conducted in the irrigated district of Cherfech, north Tunisia, had the main objective of investigating farmer’s perceptions of, and acceptance for, the use of an irrigation advisory service (IAS) to be implemented by their WUA. The suggested IAS provides the following information: (1) reference evapotranspiration (ETo) and rainfall; (2) crop water requirement (CWR) of the most cultivated crops; (3) irrigation water requirement (IWR) of the farmer’s crop; and (4) crop monitoring and real-time estimation of IWR of crops settled, using soil moisture sensors. Such services and information would be available at the WUA level and provided in a timely manner to farmers for more effective decision making at the plot level. Prior to the acceptance study, we launched a technical study to determine the required tools and equipment required for the implementation of the IAS, followed by a farmer survey to assess their respective perceptions and acceptance towards this IAS. Results showed that only 54% of the farmers are satisfied by WUAs work, but that 77% of them accepted using the suggested IAS. Farmers are also willing to pay for most of the IAS packages suggested. The financial profitability of investing in the IAS at the WUA level shows the venture is financially viable, with a benefit cost ratio (BCR) of 1.018. The project will be even more profitable if we add the social benefits, which may result in water savings at the WUA level.

Water shortages, irrigation frequency, and preference for technologies and agricultural services: The case of Jordan*

AbstractThe use of improved technologies has been encouraged to improve irrigation on farms, especially in drought‐prone areas. However, farmers' irrigation decisions may be rather motivated by a desire to reduce risk of crop loss than to reduce water use. Using the case of Jordan, we contribute to the water‐saving debate by examining whether current irrigation frequency is influenced by past experiences of losses due to water shortage and whether preferences for technologies and irrigation advisory services are mediated by water shortage experiences. Our data are based on a survey of 304 fruit farms in the highlands that were all using drip irrigation, a popular way to “save” water globally. We find that farms that faced losses due to water shortages in the past are more likely to irrigate more frequently. More frequent irrigators who have such shortages are more likely to prefer receiving irrigation advisory information rather than upgrading technologies, while more frequent irrigators who have not faced such shortages are more likely to prefer upgrading irrigation technologies. Results suggest that irrigation management is motivated by risk reduction, not just by water conservation. Irrigation advisory services, hitherto neglected, may be an important component of agricultural water management in Jordan.

A Sentinel-2 Image-Based Irrigation Advisory Service: Cases for Tea Plantations

In this study, we aim to develop an inexpensive site-specific irrigation advisory service for resolving disadvantages related to using immobile soil moisture sensors and to the differences in irrigation needs of different tea plantations affected by variabilities in cultivars, plant ages, soil heterogeneity, and management practices. In the paper, we present methodologies to retrieve two biophysical variables, surface soil water content and canopy water content of tea trees from Sentinel-2 (S2) (European Space Agency, Paris, France) images and consider their association with crop water availability status to be used for making decisions to send an alert level. Precipitation records are used as auxiliary information to assist in determining or modifying the alert level. Once the site-specific alert level for each target plantation is determined, it is sent to the corresponding farmer through text messaging. All the processes that make up the service, from downloading an S2 image from the web to alert level text messaging, are automated and can be completed before 7:30 a.m. the next day after an S2 image was taken. Therefore, the service is operated cyclically, and corresponds to the five-day revisit period of S2, but one day behind the S2 image acquisition date. However, it should be noted that the amount of irrigation water required for each site-specific plantation has not yet been estimated because of the complexities involved. Instead, a single irrigation rate (300 t ha−1) per irrigation event is recommended. The service is now available to over 20 tea plantations in the Mingjian Township, the largest tea producing region in Taiwan, free of charge since September 2020. This operational application is expected to save expenditures on buying irrigation water and induce deeper root systems by decreasing the frequency of insufficient irrigation commonly employed by local farmers.

Irrigation Advisory Services: Farmers preferences and willingness to pay for innovation

Irrigation Advisory Services (IAS) are powerful management instruments aiming to achieve the best efficiency in irrigation water use. So far the literature on farmers’ preferences for a specific scheme design of IAS’ characteristics and the related willingness to pay (WTP) is scant. This study provides evidence on farmers’ preference towards six attributes related to the IAS configuration by using a hypothetical choice experiment. Data were collected from an original survey among 108 farmers from Spain, The Netherlands, Italy, Poland and South Africa. Moreover, we investigated the interplay between these preferences and the individual risk attitude (elicited through a lottery task) as a novel contribution. On average, the results suggest a clear farmers’ preference, especially for receiving weather forecasts from the service and for the feature related to water data recording; as the opposite, on average, crop water requirement seems irrelevant. Finally, we found that farmers’ WTP for the different IAS services varies across countries and, in some cases, also according to the individual risk attitude.

Application of smart irrigation systems for water conservation in Italian farms.

In many countries, water supplies are limited and must be managed for different uses. Providing additional resources for irrigation can be an expensive option, with an unsustainable impact on small farms and on the environment. Therefore, the main efforts should concentrate on the optimal management of existing water resources, paying particular attention to the adequate management of water demands. In Italy, the majority of scattered smallholder farmers are not provided with enough information on how to correctly manage water for irrigation. This paper presents the developing of a web-based irrigation decision support system adaptable and scalable to individual farms. The irrigation advisory service has been calibrated and validated for pomegranate trees, aubergine, and zucchini through 2 years of tests, in a farm in Southern Italy (Calabria). The results are very satisfactory, both in terms of water resources management for irrigation, and for the feedback provided by the farmers involved in the project. Future development regarding the application of wireless technology in smart irrigation is also evaluated.

Development for water, food and nutrition in a competitive environment — How NGOs and CSOs are reshaping traditional farmer irrigation advisory services*

AbstractIn spite of the 30% increase in the food supply since 1961, significant changes are anticipated over the coming decades that will increase the challenges facing smallholders. Climate change, rapidly growing population and increasing pollution all add to the risks of water and food security. This is happening at a time when water resources management is shifting away from government planning and control to a more adaptive and flexible model involving more stakeholders, whereby farmers and smallholders are increasingly involved in decision‐making and governance of water resources. Many governments, however, continue to look to their smallholders to increase food production and to find ways to produce more with less. Farmers, thus, will need to find new ways of learning and rely more on their own resources, on the private sector and on support from civil society organizations and non‐governmental organizations.This paper examines the changing nature of farmer support services, focusing on the role played by emerging non‐institutional actors. As water becomes the limiting resource for food production, it is crucial to understand how food markets are growing and can incentivize smallholders to produce more, and critically, how farmers are finding new ways of acquiring the knowledge and expertise they need.

Integrating Sentinel-2 Imagery with AquaCrop for Dynamic Assessment of Tomato Water Requirements in Southern Italy

A research study was conducted in an open field tomato crop in order to: (i) Evaluate the capability of Sentinel-2 imagery to assess tomato canopy growth and its crop water requirements; and (ii) explore the possibility to predict crop water requirements by assimilating the canopy cover estimated by Sentinel-2 imagery into AquaCrop model. The pilot area was in Campania, a region in the south west of Italy, characterized by a typical Mediterranean climate, where field campaigns were conducted in seasons 2017 and 2018 on processing tomato. Crop water use and irrigation requirement were estimated by means of three different methods: (i) The AquaCrop model; (ii) an irrigation advisory service based on Sentinel-2 imagery known as IRRISAT and (iii) assimilating the canopy cover estimated by Sentinel-2 imagery into AquaCrop model Sentinel-2 imagery proved to be effective for monitoring canopy growth and for predicting irrigation water requirements during mid-season stage of the crop, when the canopy is fully developed. Conversely, the integration of the Sentinel-2 imagery with a crop growth model can contribute to improve the irrigation water requirement predictions in the early and development stage of the crop, when the soil evaporation is not negligible with respect to the total evapotranspiration.

LCIS DSS—An irrigation supporting system for water use efficiency improvement in precision agriculture: A maize case study

The efficient use of water in agriculture is one of the most significant agricultural challenges that modern technologies are helping to cope with through Irrigation Advisory Services (IAS) and Decision Support Systems (DSS). These last are considered powerful management instruments able to help farmers achieve the best efficiency in irrigation water use and to increase their incomes through obtaining the highest possible crop yield. In this context, within the project “An advanced low cost system for farm irrigation support – LCIS” (a joint Italian-Israeli R&D project), a fully transferable DSS for irrigation support, based on three different methodologies representative of the state of the art in irrigation management tools (W-Tens, in situ soil sensor; IRRISAT®, remote sensing; W-Mod, simulation modelling of water balance in the soil-plant and atmosphere system), has been developed. These three LCIS-DSS tools have been evaluated, in terms of their ability to support the farmer in irrigation management, in a real applicative case study on maize grown on Andosols in a private farm in southern Italy in the 2018 season. The evaluation considered the predictive performance of the tools and also the pros and cons of their application, due their different spatial scale applicability, costs and complexity of use. The results have shown that all three approaches are able to realise the maximum obtainable maize production. However, the method based on in situ soil sensor (W-Tens) supplied 40% more water compared to the other two methods, whereas the IRRISAT® and W-Mod approaches represent the best solution in terms of irrigation water use efficiency (IWUE). Moreover, IRRISAT® has the advantage of being able to work without soil spatial information, although unlike W-Tens both the latter methods need a high level of user expertise and consequently support of external service providers. Integration between different tools represents an opportunity for improved water use efficiency in agriculture (e.g., field sensors and remote sensing).

Improving management scenarios of water delivery service in collective irrigation systems: a case study in Southern Italy

The performance of water delivery service in collective irrigation networks can be enhanced by improving measures ranging from a better water allocation to more expensive structural works. In any case, the efficacy of these measures must be simulated prior to their actual implementation and evaluated using quantitative performance indicators. The aim of this study is a strategic analysis of the water delivery service to understand whether a better water allocation is possible in collective irrigation systems by implementing improving measures at lower cost compared to structural works. For this goal, the performance of three water delivery systems was evaluated in Calabria (Southern Italy) over four irrigation seasons, using the indicators of adequacy, efficiency, dependability and equity developed by Molden and Gates (J Irrig Drain Eng ASCE 116(6):804–823, 1990). Subsequently, three scenarios for improving irrigation management (replacement of sprinkler methods with micro-irrigation, an arranged-demand water delivery service together with an irrigation advisory service, and a combination of both actions) were simulated and evaluated. Furthermore, two new indicators (“User Satisfaction Index” and “Water Exploitation Index”), measuring satisfaction of irrigation service users and water use levels, were proposed and applied. In the current situation poor adequacy, reliability and equity of water delivery service with low user satisfaction together with fair efficiency in exploiting the limited irrigation resources were detected. The simulation of an arranged-demand distribution and irrigation advisory service was found to be more efficacious and favourite to the system users than the replacement of current sprinkler systems with micro-irrigation. The combined adoption of these scenarios is advisable, to assure the optimal performance in water delivery systems and to make the collective service more adequate and efficient for both irrigation users and managers.

Water use efficiency of corn among the irrigation districts across the Duero river basin (Spain): Estimation of local crop coefficients by satellite images

Irrigation in the Duero river basin accounts for 75% of total water resources. Nevertheless, irrigation in this area is paramount to maintain agricultural production. Within this context, this paper is aimed at assessing the water use efficiency (WUE), for the major crop (corn), among four irrigation districts (IDs) from 2014 to 2017. Since the WUE indicators base upon crop water requirements, these were calculated by estimating the reference evapotranspiration and the local crop coefficients Kc. First, they were estimated by satellite images and then, compared with the recommendation from the Regional Irrigation Advisory Service. Finally, the gross irrigation requirements were compared with the irrigation supply.WUE indicators varied among IDs depending upon the hydrologic year, the water available for irrigation (superficial and subsurface water), and the corn sowing date. Usually, the IDs performed deficit irrigation in the dry years, and either full irrigation or over irrigation in the wet years. The rainfall only fulfilled less than 10% of corn requirements. Small differences in Kc were observed within municipalities (in each ID) and/or among IDs. The pattern of the Kc fitted curves varied among IDs and was affected by sowing dates.Although, the local Kc values were close to the general coefficients recommended by the Irrigation Advisory Service, they affected the determination of gross irrigation requirements which were significant different among IDs. Moreover, it was observed that the FAO recommendation for the duration of the corn growth stages fitted better the estimated Kc than the one from the Advisory Center.The gross irrigation requirements were similar among IDs and years, varying between 6476 and 7646 m3/ha. The local Kc estimation could help irrigation managers to adapt the irrigation supply to the actual corn needs.

Willingness of farmers to pay for satellite-based irrigation advisory services: a southern Italy experience

AbstractThe aim of the current study was to define, optimize and customize IRRISAT, a fully operative satellite-based irrigation advisory service (IAS) provided in Campania Region, Italy, using a choice experiment to determine the preferences of farmers regarding the main characteristics and attributes of IRRISAT. Furthermore, willingness to pay for the main attributes of the services provided was estimated. The information on the amount of water required for irrigation provided by the IAS is sent out to farmers via SMS and email, as well as via the IRRISAT webpage. The study was related to the 2013–2014 irrigation season, when the service provided support to 669 farmers over an area of 55 ha. The study considered four attributes and levels of IRRISAT service: land management unit (scale of service); different levels of water saving (5, 10 and 30%) that could be achieved at different prices; annual fee paid by farmers (ranging between €6 and €10/ha/year); length of contract for the service supply, ranging from 1 to 3 years. Results showed that farmers’ preferences are influenced positively by scale (entire area of the farm instead of single fields) and duration of the service delivering contract. Concerning the duration of the contract, the most preferred option was the 3-year service. Finally, water saving was shown to affect farmers’ choices very little and thus it is probably less attractive for farmers probably due to the low price and to a relatively large availability of water for irrigation.

Performance assessment of smallholder irrigation based on an energy-water-yield nexus approach

Micro irrigation has been claimed to be the world's most valued irrigation innovation. However, both its potential to save water and its adaptability to smallholders’ needs are being questioned, while its energy requirement implies financial and environmental costs that are not affordable everywhere. This paper contributes to this debate with a field performance assessment of smallholder micro irrigation systems in the Baixo Acaraú Irrigation District, Ceará, Brazil, and a novel analysis model that depicts the energy-water-yield nexus by linking irrigation performance with energy efficiency and yield gap. Irrigation system performance was evaluated in a sample of 40 family lots and compared to design performance in a fairly homogeneous subset of them. Pumping inefficiency and inappropriate filtering have been at the root of system deficiencies. The great variability of irrigation performance indicated a wide margin for improvement and the possibility of using prominent farmers as benchmarks. Although there has been “technology translation” in the irrigation district that included local innovation in the filtering system, the process has not been completed. It is concluded that the adoption of foreign irrigation technology could be accelerated with the collaboration between local innovators and publicly-supported irrigation advisory services using integrated performance assessment approaches like the one presented here.

New alternatives for reference evapotranspiration estimation in West Africa using limited weather data and ancillary data supply strategies.

Accurate estimation of reference evapotranspiration (ET0) is essential for the computation of crop water requirements, irrigation scheduling, and water resources management. In this context, having a battery of alternative local calibrated ET0 estimation methods is of great interest for any irrigation advisory service. The development of irrigation advisory services will be a major breakthrough for West African agriculture. In the case of many West African countries, the high number of meteorological inputs required by the Penman-Monteith equation has been indicated as constraining. The present paper investigates for the first time in Ghana, the estimation ability of artificial intelligence-based models (Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) and Gene Expression Programing (GEPs)), and ancillary/external approaches for modeling reference evapotranspiration (ET0) using limited weather data. According to the results of this study, GEPs have emerged as a very interesting alternative for ET0 estimation at all the locations of Ghana which have been evaluated in this study under different scenarios of meteorological data availability. The adoption of ancillary/external approaches has been also successful, moreover in the southern locations. The interesting results obtained in this study using GEPs and some ancillary approaches could be a reference for future studies about ET0 estimation in West Africa.

Earth Observation for Monitoring Irrigation Demand

During recent years Earth Observation from space (E.O.) has become the most important source of data for monitoring most of land surface-atmosphere processes, and in particular the hydrology of agricultural and forestry areas. Nowadays, E.O. data are being implemented in operative applications for the management of land and water resources. The technological developments of new generation of sensors such as Sentinel-2 of the European Space Agency -with improved spatial and temporal resolution- provide the opportunity for new observational and modelling perspectives. In this work, we illustrate some recent developments in the utilisation of E.O. techniques in the visible and near infrared ranges for supporting the management of irrigation at both farm and district scale. In particular, the following applications of E.O. in the visible and near infrared ranges will be described: irrigated area monitoring, crop parameters, estimation of crop evapotranspiration under standard conditions and crop water requirements. An operational irrigation advisory and forecast service used in Italy and based on the above mentioned techniques will be illustrated.

Irrigation Advisory Service and Performance Indicators in Baixo Acaraú Irrigation District, Brazil

AbstractSeveral decision support systems have been developed and many of them are focused on efficient use of water and energy resources. These include the Irrigation Advisory Service, combined with the use of benchmarking techniques and energy audits.In Brazil, the pioneer project called the Irrigation Advisory Service has been developed in Baixo Acaraú irrigation district, located in the north‐east of Brazil. The main goal of the project is to transfer information about irrigation to farmers.The aim of this paper is to present the results of the Irrigation Advisory Service activities in Baixo Acaraú irrigation district, during the 2011, 2012 and 2013 irrigation seasons. Moreover, the results from the estimation of several performance indicators and from energy: audits carried out are shown as a complementary activity developed by the Irrigation Advisory Service.At the beginning of the irrigation season, on‐field emission of uniformity was close to 67%. During the following evaluations, after recommendations of the Irrigation Advisory Service about the necessity of corrections to the systems, emission of uniformity reached 85%. With regard to the use of performance indicators, some problems relating to maintenance of equipment were noted, resulting in malfunctioning pumps. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Earth Observation for Monitoring Irrigation Demand

During recent years Earth Observation from space (E.O.) has become the most important source of data for monitoring most of land surface-atmosphere processes, and in particular the hydrology of agricultural and forestry areas. Nowadays, E.O. data are being implemented in operative applications for the management of land and water resources. The technological developments of new generation of sensors such as Sentinel-2 of the European Space Agency -with improved spatial and temporal resolution- provide the opportunity for new observational and modelling perspectives. In this work, we illustrate some recent developments in the utilisation of E.O. techniques in the visible and near infrared ranges for supporting the management of irrigation at both farm and district scale. In particular, the following applications of E.O. in the visible and near infrared ranges will be described: irrigated area monitoring, crop parameters, estimation of crop evapotranspiration under standard conditions and crop water requirements. An operational irrigation advisory and forecast service used in Italy and based on the above mentioned techniques will be illustrated.

Satellite-based irrigation advisory services: A common tool for different experiences from Europe to Australia

Earth Observation techniques are widely recognised in supporting the management of land and water resources and they are nowadays being transferred to operative applications. In this paper, we present the current status of a satellite-based irrigation advisory system based on dedicated webGIS or farmers and district managers, in three different agricultural systems and environments: Southern Italy, Austria and Southern Australia. Maps of canopy development (leaf area index, albedo and soil cover) are derived from high-resolution (20m) multispectral satellite images, delivered in near real time (24–36h) and processed by using in-situ agro-meteorological data. The outputs of this procedure are: (i) a personalised irrigation advice, based on the calculation of crop evapotranspiration under standard conditions (according to FAO-56 definition and by using the direct approach) by taking into account the actual canopy development and crop variability at sub-plot scale; (ii) timely delivery of the information, consisting in maps and suggested irrigation volume applications, timely published on a dedicated webGIS-site with access restricted to growers and basin authorities in order to better control the irrigation process and consequently improve its overall efficiency. The key-points of this procedure are: (a) personalised irrigation advice; (b) timely delivery of the information. Final users have provided important feedback on the usage of the information provided; i.e. farmers are able to recognise without difficulties their parcels on the images and they schedule the irrigations by taking into account the information provided. The crop heterogeneity captured by the high resolution images is considered as a valuable add-on information to identify the variability of soil texture and fertility, plant nutrition, or different performance of irrigation systems. All the farmers have evaluated positively the usefulness of the information provided, and in most cases an increase of irrigation efficiency was achieved, because of the reduction of water volumes.

AN OPTIMIZATION SCHEME OF IRRIGATION ADVICE: A CASE STUDY, SUGAR BEET IN THE BASQUE COUNTRY

ABSTRACTIrrigation advice is usually based on the optimization of crop yield, which sometimes does not meet the objective of economic optimization. In some regions, the information provided by irrigation scheduling schemes based on crop production optimization is not completely reliable if there are economic or environmental constraints. The objective of the present study is the development of an optimization scheme of irrigation advice based on economic optimization under different scenarios of water availability. The optimization scheme presented in this study is focused on the minimization of the economic losses related to the cost of water and the economic yield loss associated with different irrigation strategies. As a case study the developed scheme was applied to the optimization of irrigation advice on sugar beet in the Basque country (northern Spain). A comparison has been performed between the optimized and the actual irrigation strategies in the area of study. As a result of this comparison the adoption by an Irrigation Advisory Service of the developed optimization scheme seems adequate in the area of study. This comparison reveals the utility of the developed scheme for the optimization of irrigation advice under specific scenarios of water constraints. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.