Socio-Economic Indexes for Water Use in Irrigation in a Representative Basin of the Tropical Semiarid Region

Abstract

Performance evaluation of irrigated agriculture is an important tool that assists in decision-making on water management in the river basin, particularly in tropical semiarid regions. This study was carried out using information from the Jaguaribe River basin, located in the Northeast region of Brazil, which has an important restriction in the availability of water resources and high competition for water use. From a set of indicators (production, water, economic, and social), the overall performance index of irrigated agriculture was estimated (ranging from zero to 1.0) for two scenarios: high water scarcity and low water scarcity. The performance index used was based on the mean value of these security criteria normalized with respect to the maximum value of the indicator for the crop obtained in the sub-basin. A low performance index of irrigated agriculture (less than 0.3) has always been associated with inadequacy of more than one security indicator. Crops with significant cultivated areas and, therefore, requiring a high volume of irrigation, such as rice, sugar cane, banana, and green coconut, require technical interventions related to the management of the soil–water–plant system aiming at improving yield with less water. Under conditions of water restrictions, crops with performance indexes higher than 0.3 should be prioritized. The study presented here for Jaguaribe River basin may support public policies related to irrigation and agronomic techniques necessary to improve the performance of agricultural under tropical dry lands.

Rainwater harvesting and supplemental irrigation for cotton cultivation in Minas Gerais, Brazil

“…Success in the application of modern agricultural techniques also depends on institutional actions aimed at stimulating technical assistance and the dissemination of knowledge, education, and training of irrigators, as well as the promotion of incentives for the efficient use of water and penalties for inefficient use (Frizzone et al, 2021). The encouragement of this type of irrigation practices via public policies should be guided by solid planning that brings together various productive, environmental, social, and economic elements, allowing not only an increase in productivity but also sustainable territorial development and income generation for all sections of farmers (USP, 2022).…”

“…The National Water and Sanitation Agency (Agência Nacional de Águas e Saneamento B asico -ANA) describes the advantages of using irrigation: (i) increase in productivity on the order of two to three times in relation to rainfed agriculture, (ii) increase in rural producer income and reduction in production risks, (iii) use of the soil throughout the year with up to three annual harvests, (iv) modernization of production systems stimulating the introduction of new technologies, (v) increase in the supply and regularity of food, and (vi) greater viability for the creation of agro-industrial poles and the opening of new markets (USP, 2022). Success in the application of modern agricultural techniques also depends on institutional actions aimed at stimulating technical assistance and the dissemination of knowledge, education, and training of irrigators, as well as the promotion of incentives for the efficient use of water and penalties for inefficient use (Frizzone et al, 2021). The encouragement of this type of irrigation practices via public policies should be guided by solid planning that brings together various productive, environmental, social, and economic elements, allowing not only an increase in productivity but also sustainable territorial development and income generation for all sections of farmers (USP, 2022).…”

Comparative Study on the Application of Water Resources Index for a Highly-Regulated Urbanized Basin

“…The above indices require a wide range of data sources, of which ground-based hydro-meteorological data is the utmost important (Javadinejad et al, 2020). Additionally, data obtained from remote sensing (Khalid et al, 2021) and socio-economic databases (Frizzone et al, 2021) etc. are increasingly popular to be incorporated into the framework.…”

Bacillus aryabhattai Mitigates the Effects of Salt and Water Stress on the Agronomic Performance of Maize Under an Agroe-Cological System

“…The semi-arid region of Brazil is considered one of the largest semi-arid regions, with approximately 27 million inhabitants [7], where irrigation is an important tool for ensuring food security [8]. Characteristics of the region are high temperatures, high evapotranspiration, and a low rainfall rate [9,10].…”

“…Characteristics of the region are high temperatures, high evapotranspiration, and a low rainfall rate [9,10]. Water shortages and high salt concentrations in the groundwater are problems that limit agricultural production in this region [8,11].…”