Optimal Implementation of Irrigation Practices: Cost-Effective Desertification Action Plan for the Pinios Basin
Publication: Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management
Volume 140, Issue 10
Abstract
The effort to manage irrigation water use through the adoption and implementation of agricultural best management practices (BMPs) is crucial for meeting water bodies’ sustainability in water-deficient agricultural areas. This paper presents the development of an efficient decision support tool able to suggest the optimal location for placing high- and low-tech irrigation BMPs, such as deficit irrigation, conveyance efficiency improvement, precision irrigation, and wastewater reuse, and demonstrates its application in the water-scarce Pinios river basin in central Greece. The tool uses the SWAT (soil and water assessment tool) model as the BMP and hydrologic simulator and a multiobjective genetic algorithm, which, based on calculated cost data, optimizes the cost-effectiveness of management schemes across the landscape. From the analysis of the results produced and the optimal river basin BMP configurations under the current and a volumetric water pricing scenario and under a variation of the cost parameters, the study concludes that a number of different BMPs at an affordable implementation cost, along with a tiered water pricing system that could address socioeconomic heterogeneities, would form a sustainable action plan against desertification in the highly water-deficient Pinios basin. The methodology and tool are considered to be easily applicable in other river basins and could be used to assist in more cost-effective implementation of environmental legislation.
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Acknowledgments
The current research was conducted under the project i-adapt, one of the pilot projects on Development of Prevention Activities to Halt Desertification in Europe, partly funded by DG Environment of the European Commission, Grant agreement number: 07.0316/2010/581799/SUB/D1, Period of implementation: 1st Feb 2011 to 31st May 2012, Target country/region: Pinios River Basin, Thessaly, Greece.
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Information & Authors
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Published In
Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management
Volume 140 • Issue 10 • October 2014
Copyright
© 2014 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jul 9, 2013
Accepted: Dec 20, 2013
Published online: Dec 21, 2013
Published in print: Oct 1, 2014
Discussion open until: Oct 9, 2014
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