Promote Water Conservation Research Articles

Water–energy nexus: The coupling effects of water and energy policy applied in China based on a computable general equilibrium model

China has implemented a number of national and regional water and energy policies to achieve its goals of carbon emissions (CE) reduction, energy saving, and water conservation. Given its high energy and water resources interdependence, a framework is needed that can provide both a unified and systematic assessment of these. This study investigates the effects of coupling China's energy tax and water fee policies using a recursive dynamic computable general equilibrium model. Several possible scenarios are simulated. The simulation results show that the water fee promotes water conservation, but its effect is limited at China's current water fee level. The energy tax is shown to be more effective in improving water-saving efficiency. Under the maximum energy tax scenario (EH), total energy and industrial water demand fall by 10.45% and 3.82%, respectively, compared with 0.59% and 0.72%, respectively, under the maximum water fee scenario (W8). Furthermore, the energy tax is more conducive to China's energy conservation and CE reduction (CER) targets than the water fee, but raising both energy taxes and water fees can have a significant impact on energy conservation and CER. In the scenario going from a low energy tax (EL) to a high-energy tax (EH), the reduction in primary energy production increases from 8.36% to 19.16%, while CE also drop significantly, going from 5.59% to 16.71%; however, In the scenario going from the low water fee (W2) to the high-water fee (W8), the reduction in primary energy production only changes from 0.24% to 0.43%, and CO2 reduction from 0.35% to 0.61%. Meanwhile, the mixed water-energy scenario shows a spill over effect, with the CE and energy savings management goals requiring less GDP loss than water or energy policies implemented in isolation. Ultimately, the results show that even when combined, relying solely on existing water and energy tax policies will be insufficient to meet China's water-saving targets without other environmental policies. The key to overcoming energy and water constraints is to increase water and energy efficiency year after year. This will enable China to achieve its CER target and the 14th Five-Year Plan water savings target. Thus, the synergistic effect of water conservation and energy saving can be realised simultaneously when the CER and energy consumption structure improve, which is crucial for developing an effective environmental policy strategy.

Are advertising campaigns for water conservation in Latin America persuasive? A mixed-method approach

The United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development calls for an urgent reduction of global water footprint. Communication is crucial to respond to this call. However, most water conservation communication campaigns use the knowledge deficit model and overlook persuasive techniques. This paper presents a mixed-method approach consisting of exploratory sequential qualitative (content) analysis followed by a quantitative (cluster) analysis. This approach was used to explore the communication strategies of 95 advertisements promoting water conservation in Latin America. Four widely used persuasion frameworks were analyzed: (1) the elaboration likelihood model (ELM), (2) prospect theory (gains vs. losses), (3) the action framework (i.e., do more vs. take less), and (4) the temporal distance frame. Regarding persuasive characteristics (ELM model), most ads excluded behavioral beneficiaries (58%) and included explicit (60%) and active (52%) messages. Virtually all ads (87%) had a denotative message. Surprisingly, only 3% and 43% of ads used social norms and an authority source, respectively. Regarding the communication strategy, 44% of ads used a loss frame, and 59% focused on the current generation. Cluster analysis was used to classify the sample of ads into homogeneous groups. This analysis leads to a better understanding of the profile of campaigns promoting water conservation. Four advertising profiles were identified: (1) Persuade to act (29%), (2) Motivate without scaring (35%), (3) Raise awareness of water problems (19%), and (4) Warn of water problems (17%). The paper offers a discussion of the implications for social marketers and directions for future research on how to design effective communication campaigns.

Toothpaste Consumption: Implications for Health and Sustainability in Oral Care

Abstract Objective Toothpaste is a crucial component of daily oral hygiene routines and is significant in maintaining oral health. This study aimed to assess the amount of toothpaste consumed during tooth brushing and investigate the influence of toothbrush type on toothpaste consumption. Materials and Methods Ten volunteer students of dentistry who regularly practiced oral hygiene at home were enrolled. Participants used a 15-mL tube of toothpaste with manual and electric toothbrushes and the amount consumed was recorded three times daily. Statistical Analysis Variance analysis for repeated measures was applied for differences within groups for toothbrush types while the t-test was carried out to compare the mean quantities between groups. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. Results The findings revealed no significant difference in toothpaste consumption across different time intervals for both manual and electric toothbrushes. However, a significant difference in toothpaste consumption was observed when comparing toothbrush types. Participants using electric toothbrushes consumed less toothpaste compared to those using manual toothbrushes. Conclusion The observed differences in toothpaste consumption highlight the importance of considering toothbrush type when promoting appropriate usage. With their advanced brushing mechanisms, electric toothbrushes may enhance cleaning efficiency and reduce the need for a large amount of toothpaste. Reducing toothpaste consumption benefits oral health and contributes to environmental sustainability. It minimizes packaging waste, conserves energy and resources, promotes water conservation, preserves ecosystems, and encourages a culture of ecological responsibility. By embracing a more conscious approach to toothpaste usage, individuals can contribute to a greener and more sustainable future.

The sustainability of groundwater in semi-arid regions: the case of Makutupora Basin in Tanzania

Abstract Groundwater sustainability ensures groundwater development and uses to meet current and future needs without causing unacceptable environmental, economic, or social consequences. In semi-arid regions, water resources are typically limited, and water management is critical to ensure a sustainable water supply. Groundwater sustainability indexing is vital for groundwater management. The study used four indicators in six dimensions, i.e., quantitative and qualitative hydrogeology, environmental, social-economic, and political factors, to evaluate the sustainability of the aquifer in Makutupora basin, Dodoma, Tanzania. The resulting aquifer sustainability index is 0.59, with a 95% confidence interval between 0.3856 and 0.7944, showing that the aquifer is sufficiently sustainable. The hydrogeological analysis revealed that groundwater sustainability is promising, although groundwater use per capita is alarming. This study also recommends effective water management strategies, including improving water use efficiency, promoting water conservation, implementing policies to limit water withdrawals, and promoting alternative water sources such as recycled wastewater, especially for agricultural activities.

Assessing the water conservation potential of optimized surface irrigation management in Northern Italy

The effects of climate change on water availability affect the performance of surface irrigation, which is the oldest and most common method of water application to row crops worldwide. A paradigm shift towards strategies aimed at increasing flexibility of irrigation scheduling and improving the design and management of field layouts and irrigation practices should be explored to promote water conservation at the farm scale. In this study, we investigate how by adopting a more flexible irrigation scheduling and optimizing irrigation management variables and field layout it is possible to increase the efficiency of border irrigation and thus achieve water conservations and improve quality of crop production. The analysis of the actual performance of border irrigation was carried out on two maize fields located in the Padana Plain (Northern Italy) in 2 years characterized by different rainfall patterns (i.e. 2021 and 2022). Based on this information, continuous monitoring of soil moisture status combined with the AquaCrop-OS agro-hydrological model was used to manage flexible irrigation scheduling over the experimental fields, while the optimization of irrigation management (flowrate per unit width and cutoff time) and field geometries (border width and slope) was studied using WinSRFR 5.1 USDA software, which was properly calibrated by measures of waterfront advance and recession. The results show that with flexible irrigation scheduling and proper irrigation management and field layout, significant water conservation can be achieved. Specifically, in the case study, seasonal water conservation of about 10% was obtained just by scheduling irrigation based on actual crop water needs in a very dry agricultural season, while water conservation reached up to 60% in a wetter season. On average, an additional 7% of water conservation was achieved over the agricultural season when the irrigation duration was correctly applied to each border of the experimental plots, while approximately 20% of water was conserved when the border width was correctly designed based on inflow availability. These results provide useful information for improving the management of border irrigation in practice, both under current conditions and in prospective of increasing freshwater scarcity in the future.

Decision Support Strategies for Household Water Consumption Behaviors Based on Advanced Recommender Systems

Water is one of the most important factors that can influence human health. Therefore, constant monitoring of water consumption is essential to maintain a balance of water demand. A recommendation system represents a major challenge, but with huge potential for the water industry, providing consumers the most efficient ways to conserve water based on their data collected from smart water meters. This paper proposes a novel recommendation system design architecture that promotes water conservation behavior among residential consumers from urban areas. We analyzed 480,000 data samples from several households with different profiles to generate personalized recommendations for each household and encourage consumers to adopt measures to raise awareness and reduce water consumption. Moreover, data were collected from three different measurement points in the household (cold_sink, hot_sink, and toilet), with a sampling time of 60 s. The proposed recommendation system implements collaborative filtering combined with a set of rules to generate recommendations based on the consumption patterns of similar households. The results are promising, offering personalized feedback that could help change the consumption behavior of households if the recommendations made are followed.

Evaluation of Water Saving and Economy Impact for Tax Reform Policy Using CGE Model with Integrated Multiple Types of Water

As one of the important policy measures to promote water conservation and efficient utilization, the evaluation of water resources tax reform policy regarding its water saving and economic impact (WSEI) is a fundamental prerequisite for policy implementation. In this study, multiple types of water production modules, including surface water, groundwater, and unconventional water, were integrated into a CGE model. Hebei Province, the first pilot area in China, was used as a case study. Through a “with–without” comparative analysis scenario, three water resources tax policy simulations were designed to address the three key issues, and the results showed that the implementation of water resources tax policy would have a certain negative impact on industry economic output in the short term, but it could effectively suppress the use of conventional water and promote the utilization of unconventional water, which is beneficial for long-term water resource conservation and sustainability. The imposition of higher differential tax rates on high water-consuming industries is more effective in further promoting the use of unconventional water and reducing the use of conventional water to achieve water conservation targets. Moreover, providing tax refunds as subsidies to water-using industries could alleviate the economic impact of water resources tax and promote water conservation. From the perspectives of water quantity, water use efficiency, and economic impact, the optimal policy scenario (S3) was selected, involving implementing differential water resources tax rates of 23% for high water-consuming industries and 18% for general water-consuming industries, coupled with tax refunds and subsidies for sectors. Based on this, corresponding recommendations in terms of differential tax rate setting, tax utilization, government regulation, and agricultural water resources tax collection were provided. These findings can offer a scientific reference for the formulation and implementation of water resources tax policies in other regions.

Water-Saving Dyeing Process: A Sustainable Approach for Exhaust Dyeing of Cotton Fabric

The global demand for water onservation and sustainability in textile anufacturing is imperative in addressing the scarcity of fresh water and environmental pollution. This study introduces an innovative water-saving process for exhaust dyeing of cotton fabrics with reactive dyes, without compromising the dyeing quality or requiring extra investments. Traditional textile dyeing practices consume approximately 120 liters of fresh water per kilogram of cotton fabric, contributing to environmental degradation. In this research, a process modification is proposed that recycles water used for neutralization and rinsing at the second step of the dyeing process. This recycled water is utilized in the fourth step, effectively reducing the total water consumption to 104 liters per kilogram of fabric, thus saving 16 liters per kilogram without any additional investment. The dyed fabrics produced using this water-saving process exhibit excellent colorfastness, matching the quality of conventionally dyed textiles. The color fastness to light, washing, rubbing, and perspiration meets international standards. CMC tests indicate no significant differences compared to the existing dyeing process. Implementing this eco-friendly approach can not only significantly reduce water consumption and wastewater generation but also diminish the need for costly water treatment and effluent management facilities. This research paves the way for cleaner production in the textile industry, promoting water conservation, reducing environmental pollution, and minimizing production costs.

Has Property Rights Reform of China’s Farmland Water Facilities Improved Farmers’ Irrigation Efficiency?—Evidence from a Typical Reform Pilot in China’s Yunnan Province

China is implementing a pilot project to reform the property rights of farmland water facilities to solve the serious problems of chaotic end-of-pipe governance and inefficient irrigation from farmers. Based on microscopic research data of farm households in a typical pilot in Lu Liang County, Yunnan Province, in China, this study uses the Tobit model, and SEM was used to explore the impact of property rights reform on the irrigation efficiency of farmers and the potential mechanism paths. We further analyzed the differences in governance logic and irrigation efficiency between the two property rights models of “multiple cooperative governance” and “private contract governance” formed after the reform. The findings are as follows: (1) Compared with nonreformed areas, reformed areas have a higher promotion of adoption of water-saving technologies and a better quality of facility maintenance, which significantly contributes to irrigation efficiency, but farmers’ perception of water scarcity negatively affects irrigation efficiency; (2) there are differences between the “multiple cooperative governance model” and “private contract governance model” in terms of the mechanism paths to improve irrigation efficiency, resulting in different focuses between the two models, in which the former one has better irrigation efficiency while cutting off some of the farmers’ benefits and the latter benefits more farmers while losing some of the irrigation efficiency. Finally, this study recommends that China should continue to promote the reform of farmland water property rights while focusing on promoting water conservation technologies, improving the quality of facility maintenance and facility water supply capacity, enhancing farmers’ awareness of water scarcity, and implementing a more water-efficient “multiple cooperative governance model”. The results of this study provide a model with Chinese characteristics for developing property rights policies and governance models for farmland water facilities in developing countries.

WATER SCARCITY AND RAW WATER CHARGES IN THE STATE OF CEARÁ, BRAZIL

Economic instruments, such as water charges, have been used to promote water conservation and raise funds for basin management. However, there is a need to improve the water collection model in Brazil. The aims of this study were to analyze the evolution of raw water charges in the State of Ceará and verify the effect of drought on the costs and water collection from 2011 to 2019 to answer two questions: does the water collection fulfill its function of financing the water resources system? Is the pricing model flexible to absorb the effects of climate variability? We conducted a content analysis to determine the presence of certain words in selected documents, and then analyzed the costs of system operation. The results show that the payment capacity is lower than the tariff applied to water. The Status Index is negatively correlated with the Administration (ADM) and Operation and Maintenance (O&M) costs. The generated revenue is mainly used to cover the management costs (ADM and O&M); however, it is insufficient to finance the implementation of measures, programs, and projects to improve the water management in respective basins. Thus, a floating tariff should be established in which the water scarcity and effects of climate variability are incorporated.

Exploring the impacts of China’s water resource tax policies: A trade-off between economic development and ecological protection

The reform of water resource tax policies is an important measure in the process of China’s green economic transformation. Therefore, improving the accuracy of tax policy impact prediction is crucial for policymakers to make correct decisions. This study focused on the water resource tax policies composed of water resource tax and water pollution tax. A water computable general equilibrium (WCGE) model extended from the traditional computable general equilibrium model was proposed to simulate the impacts of policy changes and determine the optimal tax rate range. Water self-purification capacity and agricultural subsidies were first considered in water computable general equilibrium, providing a simulation–evaluation method that could support the analysis of policy alternatives from a more realistic perspective. The results indicated that water resource tax and water pollution tax synergistically promote water conservation and water pollution reduction, and the negative impact on the economy when they are raised together is lighter than that when the tax burden is raised alone. The water resource tax not only has the best water-saving effect but also has the greatest negative impact on the economy. Technological progress has the best effect in reducing water pollution and is also conducive to reducing the adverse impact of tax increases on the economy. Taxation can also improve social welfare, and the optimal tax rate level is the combination that water resource tax is 4 Yuan/m3, and the water pollution tax is in the range of 5.6–8.4 Yuan/pollution equivalent. The results demonstrate the positive role of government in environmental governance and provide a scientific basis for policymakers to adjust the direction of policy reform, strengthen the collaborative design of water tax policies, and select the optimal tax rate level. Also, solutions of water computable general equilibrium could provide in-depth analysis of the trade-offs between violation risk and system benefits and generate more reliable results by reproducing actual situations. Moreover, the water computable general equilibrium model constructed in this study is also applicable to analyze other types of policies.

Impact of urban and rural food consumption on water demand in China—From the perspective of water footprint

With the rapid development of society and economy, changes happened dramatically in the food consumption and structure among Chinese residents. This paper analyzes the impact of residents' food consumption on water resources in China from the perspective of water footprint (WF), which is important to promote water conservation from the consumption side. After calculating the WFs of urban and rural residents' food consumption, the paper explored the drivers of WFs through the extended Stochastic Impacts by Regression on Population, Affluence, and Technology (STIRPAT) model, and then scenario analysis was applied to investigate how to reduce water depletion of food consumption in China. The results showed that (1) There were increasing trends in the per capita WFs of urban and rural residents' food consumption from 2000 to 2020, and the per capita WFs in urban were higher than that of rural. (2) Between 2000 and 2020, the total WFs of urban residents' food consumption had risen by 370.20 billion m 3 , while the total WFs had decreased from 407.20 billion m 3 to 310.64 billion m 3 in rural as urbanization increased. (3) Consumption quantity and population size were the main factors driving the changes in WFs of food consumption between urban and rural residents. (4) Under the scenarios of baseline, consumption upgrading, and saving food, an upward tendency could be observed in the WFs of rural residents' food consumption, while the WFs were expected to peak around 2030 in urban. This paper argued that it was possible to achieve the goal of reducing water depletion by controlling the food consumption of urban and rural residents. Under these conditions, this paper proposes to develop a water-saving consumption pattern in terms of optimizing the dietary structure and advocating food conservation between urban and rural residents.

Design of a Rainwater Collection System and Possible Use of Harvested Water in a Kindergarten Building: A Case Study in Tirana City, Albania

This research paper focuses on the design of a rainwater collection system and the possible use of harvested rainwater in a kindergarten building to promote water conservation. Rainwater harvesting is an old technique but increasing in use because of the natural rainwater quality and to reduce the treated water consumption. Harvesting rainwater is considered an alternative source in the field of integrated water resources management and can be approved in many buildings to improve water conservation. In Tirana, there is a little experience in rainwater harvesting, since the availability of freshwater resources hasn't been a problem yet. Once we have studied all the key components needed to design a rainwater collection system, we got a kindergarten building with a catchment area of 370 m2. Rainwater that will be collected will be used for the daily requirements of the building, in flushing toilets, washing machines, and watering the garden. A system of rainwater harvest reduces potable water use, decreases ongoing operating costs for the kindergarten, and prevents storm runoff that would negatively impact the environment.

Analysis of agriculture water pricing reform in a water-deficit area of Northwest China

Abstract Northwest China frequently experiences significant droughts and water shortages. To better balance the supply and demand, and provide sufficient funds for water resource projects, this study applied a computable general equilibrium model to construct an agricultural water pricing policy model that depends on the crops' economic value and regional water use characteristics. Wuwei City in Gansu Province was used as a case study to test the model. Three agricultural water price increase policies and three supporting subsidy policies were developed. The study quantitatively investigated the impact of these policies on the agricultural economy, water use, and efficiency of water use from different water sources. The results indicated that water pricing reform promotes water conservation and improves water use efficiency. Subsidies can reduce the negative impact of water pricing policies on the agricultural economy. Economic crops (e.g. vegetables) are more sensitive to water prices compared to food crops (e.g. wheat). Finally, to the best of our knowledge, this study provided the best water pricing reform scenario expected to be the most effective for local development.

A Comparative Approach to Understanding Floral Adaptation to Climate and Pollinators During Diversification in European and Mediterranean Silene.

Pollinator selection on floral traits is a well-studied phenomenon, but less is known about the influence of climate on this species interaction. Floral trait evolution could be a result of both adaptation to climate and pollinator-mediated selection. In addition, climate may also determine pollinator communities, leading to an indirect influence of climate on floral traits. In this study, we present evidence of both direct and indirect effects of climate on plant morphology through a phylogenetic comparative analysis of the relationships between climate, pollinators, and morphology in 89 European and Mediterranean Silene species. Climate directly influences vegetative morphology, where both leaf size and internode length were found to be smaller in habitats that are warmer in the driest quarter of the year and that have more precipitation in the coldest quarter of the year. Similarly, flower size was directly influenced by climate, where smaller calyxes were also associated with habitats that are warmer in the driest quarter of the year. These results suggest that reduced leaf and flower size promote water conservation in species that occupy arid climates. Floral traits also evolved in response to pollinators, with elongated calyxes associated with nocturnal pollination, though we also found evidence that climate influences pollinator distribution. Nocturnal pollinators of Silene are found in habitats that have more temperature evenness across seasons than diurnal pollinators. Correspondingly, nocturnally-pollinated Silene are more likely to occur in habitats that have lower daily temperature fluctuation and more temperature evenness across seasons. Altogether these results show that climate can directly influence vegetative and floral morphology, but it can also affect pollinator distribution, which in turn drives floral adaptation. Our study therefore suggests that climate mediates the influence of species interactions on trait evolution by imposing direct selective demands on floral phenotypes and by determining the pollinator community that imposes its own selective demands on flowers.

The Use of Intergroup Social Comparison in Promoting Water Conservation: Evidence from a Survey Experiment in China.

This study examines the effect of the intergroup social comparison approach in promoting water conservation. In an online survey experiment, participants first encountered normative persuasive messages, informative persuasive messages, or intergroup social comparison messages and then reported their willingness to conserve water, prior water usage, and demographic information. Results showed a significantly higher willingness to conserve water in the intergroup social comparison condition compared to other conditions. We further investigated whether this social comparison effect was moderated by prior water usage and the strength of comparison. Results suggest that prior water usage, rather than the strength of comparison, moderated the influence of intergroup social comparison. Moreover, the moderating effect of prior water usage only works when participants receive a low level of strength of comparison.

Response to Water Scarcity: Gender Analysis of the Motivation Factors Toward Water Conservation Behavior in the Workplace

Provision and availability of water continue to be a major socio-economic challenge in many countries. The problem is prevalent particularly in arid and semi-arid regions which are affected by droughts and wide climate variability, combined with high population growth and economic development. Shortages and compromised water availability are causes of concern to food security (agricultural sector), performance of businesses, and economic growth among others. The study adopted a quantitative research approach and was underpinned by a positivist research paradigm. Data were collected from 72 managers at North West University—Mahikeng (NWU-Mahikeng), South Africa using an online self-administered survey questionnaire. This study evaluates the factors related to predictors of water-conservation motivation behavior at work. The study used the Chi-square statistics (Phi and Cramer's V-tests) to test the relationship between Manager's gender and motivation predictors of water conservation at work. Findings from the statistical results showed that the Phi and Cramer's V-test gave a P-value < 0.05 (P < 0.05), which shows that within the sample of managers, there is significant relationship between Manager's gender and the motivation to conserve water. These results highlight that gender orientation affects one's response to water scarcity and motivation for conservation. The variations underscored gender as an important component of sustainable development goals which must be included when implementing policies and programs to promote water conservation consciousness and efficient water use at work.

Using a Grey Niche Model to Predict the Water Consumption in 31 Regions of China

Regional development brings significant changes in industrial structure and water consumption. Researching the trend in water consumption by changes in industrial structure can promote water conservation. The grey niche model describes the industrial changes in China and analyzes the water consumption of different leading industries. Using data from 2014 to 2019, and taking the economy as the influencing reason and the industrial niche as the weight, water consumption was predicted. The average percentage errors of the prediction results were all less than 0.1%. While improving the forecasting accuracy, the water consumption forecasting has been strengthened. The calculation results show that regional industry is undergoing transformation, and tertiary industry is rising in the national economy. The successful implementation of industrial water-saving measures has kept the water consumption of industrially developed cities stable but the rapid development of tertiary industries will increase water consumption. Incorporating changes in industrial structure into water use analysis allows the Chinese government to draft water conservation policies for various industries.

Rainwater harvesting at place of worship: a case study in Australia

There are several ways of preserving water covering technical, legal and cultural aspects. More recently, Rainwater Harvesting (RWH) has become one of the popular means of water-saving. A few studies on RWH system at place of worship have been undertaken; however, there has not been any detailed study in Australia. This research aims to explore how Islamic scripture can be used to promote water conservation among the Muslim community, specifically, this examines the feasibility of a RWH system at St Marys Islamic Centre, New South Wales, Australia where a RWH system is proposed to supplement mains water for regular uses such as washing, gardening, and socio-religious functions. Based on local daily rainfall data, a water balance model has been developed to estimate reliability of a RWH system at the proposed location. The preliminary result shows that for a 10 kL tank size, the average reliability of the proposed RWH system is 69% for 400 people. However, if the tank size increases, reliability also increases and therefore, higher tank size is needed at the proposed site. Finally, this result will be useful to understand the effects of Islamic motivation and RWH on water preservation. It is also expected that the outcomes of this research will promote water conservation in places of worship and community centres across Australia and other countries.

Optimal trade-off of integrated river basin water resources allocation considering water market: A bi-level multi-objective model with conditional value-at-risk constraints

The predictable water shortage crisis is intensifying due to frequent extreme weather caused by climate change and human activities. Motivated by urgent practical needs of more scientific and balanced river basin water resources allocation (RBWRA) schemes, a comprehensive bi-level multi-objective programming (BLMOP) model for RBWRA considering uncertain risks and water market is constructed in this paper, which pursues the objectives of environmental protection, equality, and economic development. River basin authority, as the leader of RBWRA, is committed to reducing pollutants while introducing Gini coefficient to maintain the equality of economic development between sub-areas. Meanwhile, the sub-areas (i.e., followers) are dedicated to improving the economic benefit. In addition, the water market is introduced as water redistribution mechanism and its effect is probed into in detail. Moreover, conditional value-at-risk (CVaR) constraints are integrated into the model to control the economic loss caused by the risks of uncertain water availability. To solve the BLMOP model, a novel bi-level interaction based adaptive global equilibrium optimization (BI-aGEO) approach is proposed, which can obtain the best equilibrium solution that satisfies all decision-making participants. Furthermore, the proposed model and approach are applied to the Hanjiang River Basin in central China to elaborate on their feasibility and effectiveness. Results show that the proposed model is effective in ensuring the sustainability, equality and efficiency of RBWRA. The introduction of water market is shown to be able to improve water efficiency and promote water conservation and CVaR constraints play a significant role in controlling economic risks. Finally, some managerial suggestions are provided for different RBWRA participants for more scientific and effective integrated water resources management (IWRM).