Balancing watershed and local scale impacts of rain water harvesting in India—A review

Glendenning, Claire J.; Ogtrop, Floris van; Mishra, Anil Kumar; Vervoort, W.

doi:10.1016/j.agwat.2012.01.011

Cited by 119 publications

(90 citation statements)

References 104 publications

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“…One reason for the lack of information is that both groundwater recharge and ET are highly spatially variable, and thus difficult to accurately measure at the field scale (Glendenning et al, 2012). Most previous studies of RWH tanks estimate recharge as a residual term in the water-balance method (Glendenning et al, 2012); in arid environments, however, recharge magnitude is small compared to other fluxes (Bond, 1998), making estimates from water balance residuals vulnerable to errors in other measured components. Furthermore, water-balance methods used in RWH tanks estimate recharge using modeled values of tank evapotranspiration, another rarely measured but critically important water flux in these arid environments (Sharda et al, 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Most studies that have explored the recharge-discharge functions of tanks (Glendenning et al, 2012) have focused on individual tanks, with no consideration of the position of the tank in a cascade as an important control on its functioning. Our results Cumulative discharge/recharge (a) (b) Figure 9.…”

Section: Estimation Of Groundwater Exchangementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Furthermore, water-balance methods used in RWH tanks estimate recharge using modeled values of tank evapotranspiration, another rarely measured but critically important water flux in these arid environments (Sharda et al, 2006). While there is consensus regarding the value of direct measurements of temporal variations in recharge and evapotranspiration fluxes from RWH structures, such data are difficult to obtain due to the inherent complexities in making these measurements, especially under resource constraints (Glendenning et al, 2012).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Unfortunately, there is a lack of empirical studies that quantify tank hydrologic fluxes, especially at the scale of watersheds comprising of multiple tanks (Glendenning et al, 2012;Mialhe et al, 2008;Pandey et al, 2011Pandey et al, , 2013. One reason for the lack of information is that both groundwater recharge and ET are highly spatially variable, and thus difficult to accurately measure at the field scale (Glendenning et al, 2012).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These water fluxes determine relative water allocation to aquifer supplies, irrigation needs, and atmospheric losses, and are influenced by a wide range of both natural and management controls, from climate and geology to the more direct anthropogenic controls (e.g., sluice outflow regulation). As such, a better understanding of tank fluxes and drivers of these fluxes is necessary when managing individual and cascades of tanks to meet both societal (irrigation demand) and environmental (increasing rates of groundwater recharge) needs (Glendenning et al, 2012;Neumann et al, 2004;Ngigi, 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The socioecohydrology of rainwater harvesting in India: understanding water storage and release dynamics across spatial scales

Meter

Steiff

McLaughlin

et al. 2016

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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Abstract. Rainwater harvesting (RWH), the small-scale collection and storage of runoff for irrigated agriculture, is recognized as a sustainable strategy for ensuring food security, especially in monsoonal landscapes in the developing world. In south India, these strategies have been used for millennia to mitigate problems of water scarcity. However, in the past 100 years many traditional RWH systems have fallen into disrepair due to increasing dependence on groundwater. This dependence has contributed to accelerated decline in groundwater resources, which has in turn led to increased efforts at the state and national levels to revive older RWH systems. Critical to the success of such efforts is an improved understanding of how these ancient systems function in contemporary landscapes with extensive groundwater pumping and shifted climatic regimes. Knowledge is especially lacking regarding the water-exchange dynamics of these RWH tanks at tank and catchment scales, and how these exchanges regulate tank performance and catchment water balances. Here, we use fine-scale, water-level variation to quantify daily fluxes of groundwater, evapotranspiration (ET), and sluice outflows in four tanks over the 2013 northeast monsoon season in a tank cascade that covers a catchment area of 28 km 2 . At the tank scale, our results indicate that groundwater recharge and irrigation outflows comprise the largest fractions of the tank water budget, with ET accounting for only 13-22 % of the outflows. At the scale of the cascade, we observe a distinct spatial pattern in groundwater-exchange dynamics, with the frequency and magnitude of groundwater inflows increasing down the cascade of tanks. The significant magnitude of return flows along the tank cascade leads to the most downgradient tank in the cascade having an outflow-to-capacity ratio greater than 2. At the catchment scale, the presence of tanks in the landscape dramatically alters the catchment water balance, with runoff decreasing by nearly 75 %, and recharge increasing by more than 40 %. Finally, while water from the tanks directly satisfies ∼ 40 % of the crop water requirement across the northeast monsoon season via surface water irrigation, a large fraction of the tank water is "wasted", and more efficient management of sluice outflows could lead to tanks meeting a higher fraction of crop water requirements.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Estimation Of Groundwater Exchangementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

The socioecohydrology of rainwater harvesting in India: understanding water storage and release dynamics across spatial scales

Meter

Steiff

McLaughlin

et al. 2016

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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show abstract

Road Water Harvesting

Sadeghi

Eslamian

2021

Handbook of Water Harvesting and Conservation

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South American Dry Chaco rangelands: Positive effects of cattle trampling and transit on ecohydrological functioning

Magliano

Breshears

Murray

et al. 2023

Ecological Applications

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Livestock production in drylands requires consideration of the ecological applications of ecohydrological redistribution of water. Intensive cattle trampling and the associated increase of surface runoff are common concerns for rangeland productivity and sustainability. Here, we highlight a regional livestock production system in which cattle trails and trampling surrounding an artificial impoundment are purposely managed to enhance redistribution and availability of water for cattle drinking. Based on literature synthesis and field measurements, we first describe cattle production systems and surface water redistribution in the Dry Chaco rangelands of South America, and then develop a conceptual framework to synthesize the ecohydrological impacts of livestock production on these ecosystems. Critical to this framework is the pioshere-a degraded overgrazed and overtrampled area where vegetation has difficulties growing, usually close to the water points. The Dry Chaco rangelands have three key distinctive characteristics associated with the flat sedimentary environment lacking fresh groundwater and the very extensive ranching conditions: (1) cattle drinking water is provided by artificial impoundments filled by runoff, (2) heavy trampling around the impoundment and its adjacent areas generates a piosphere that favors runoff toward the impoundment, and (3) the impoundment, piosphere, and extensive forage areas are hydrologically connected with a network of cattle trails. We propose an ecohydrological framework where cattle transit and trampling alter the natural water circulation of these ecosystems, affecting small fractions of the landscape through increased runoff (compaction in piosphere and trails), surface connectivity (convergence of trails to piosphere to impoundment), and ponding (compaction of the impoundment floor) that operate together making water harvesting and storage possible. These effects have likely generated a positive water feedback on the expansion of livestock in the region with a relatively low impact on forage production. We highlight the role of livestock transit as a geomorphological agent capable of reshaping the hydrology of flat sedimentary rangelands in ways that can be managed positively for sustainable ranching systems. We suggest that the Dry Chaco offers an alternative

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Balancing watershed and local scale impacts of rain water harvesting in India—A review

Cited by 119 publications

References 104 publications

The socioecohydrology of rainwater harvesting in India: understanding water storage and release dynamics across spatial scales

The socioecohydrology of rainwater harvesting in India: understanding water storage and release dynamics across spatial scales

Road Water Harvesting

South American Dry Chaco rangelands: Positive effects of cattle trampling and transit on ecohydrological functioning

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