IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/agiwat/v204y2018icp234-246.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Operational performance improvements in irrigation canals to overcome groundwater overexploitation

Author

Listed:
  • Hashemy Shahdany, S. Mehdy
  • Firoozfar, Alireza
  • Maestre, J.M.
  • Mallakpour, Iman
  • Taghvaeian, Saleh
  • Karimi, Poolad

Abstract

Groundwater overexploitation due to unsustainable agricultural development is a widespread problem in irrigation districts relying on conjunctive use of surface and groundwater resources. Nearly 90% of global groundwater supported irrigated areas have conjunctive use of both surface and groundwater. A major driver behind the use of groundwater in these regions, in addition to surface water scarcity, is the poor operational performance of the irrigation schemes. The lack of reliability of water deliveries at farm gates forces farmers to increasingly turn to groundwater. Therefore, they intensively extract water and continuously deteriorate groundwater aquifers. This case study investigates the potential impact of improved water distribution and delivery through implementing canal automation techniques. These techniques can enhance the reliability of irrigation deliveries to the endpoint, resulting in reduction of groundwater extraction and associated benefits in decreasing energy consumption and CO2 emissions. The current study focuses on six main irrigation districts located in the Zayandeh-Rud River Basin (ZRB) in central Iran, where a total area of 200,000 ha is irrigated using surface water in conjunction with groundwater. To improve the performance of the irrigation networks for each of these districts, three operational model alternatives, including fully automated systems, were considered. Each of these models was designed and run for each of the six districts separately. The results showed a reduction of operational water losses in the range of 15% –25% depending on the implemented operational model. These potential water savings are then available to be used in the agricultural sector and can result in a reduction in groundwater extraction of up to 300 Million Cubic Meters (MCM). The associated reduction in energy consumption and carbon emission was about 450 GWh and 57,500 t each year, respectively. The results of this study can be employed in designing a centralized configuration of automated systems that enable water managers to reduce pressure on groundwater resources.

Suggested Citation

  • Hashemy Shahdany, S. Mehdy & Firoozfar, Alireza & Maestre, J.M. & Mallakpour, Iman & Taghvaeian, Saleh & Karimi, Poolad, 2018. "Operational performance improvements in irrigation canals to overcome groundwater overexploitation," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 204(C), pages 234-246.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:agiwat:v:204:y:2018:i:c:p:234-246
    DOI: 10.1016/j.agwat.2018.04.014
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S037837741830355X
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.agwat.2018.04.014?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. S. Hashemy Shahdany & J. Maestre & P. van Overloop, 2015. "Equitable Water Distribution in Main Irrigation Canals with Constrained Water Supply," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 29(9), pages 3315-3328, July.
    2. I. Fernández García & P. Montesinos & E. Camacho Poyato & J. A. Rodríguez Díaz, 2017. "Optimal Design of Pressurized Irrigation Networks to Minimize the Operational Cost under Different Management Scenarios," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 31(6), pages 1995-2010, April.
    3. Rijsberman, Frank R., 2006. "Water scarcity: Fact or fiction?," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 80(1-3), pages 5-22, February.
    4. Aditi Bhadra & Arnab Bandyopadhyay & Rajendra Singh & Narendra Raghuwanshi, 2010. "An Alternative Rotational Delivery Schedule for Improved Performance of Reservoir-based Canal Irrigation System," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 24(13), pages 3679-3700, October.
    5. Inas EL-Gafy & Neil Grigg & Reagan Waskom, 2017. "Water-Food-Energy: Nexus and Non-Nexus Approaches for Optimal Cropping Pattern," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 31(15), pages 4971-4980, December.
    6. Kaveh Madani & Miguel Mariño, 2009. "System Dynamics Analysis for Managing Iran’s Zayandeh-Rud River Basin," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 23(11), pages 2163-2187, September.
    7. Karimi, Poolad & Qureshi, Asad Sarwar & Bahramloo, Reza & Molden, David, 2012. "Reducing carbon emissions through improved irrigation and groundwater management: A case study from Iran," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 108(C), pages 52-60.
    8. Singh, Ajay, 2014. "Simulation–optimization modeling for conjunctive water use management," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 141(C), pages 23-29.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Mirzaie, Nargis & Banihabib, Mohammad Ebrahim & shahdany, S. Mehdy hashemy & Randhir, Timothy O., 2021. "Fuzzy particle swarm optimization for conjunctive use of groundwater and reclaimed wastewater under uncertainty," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 256(C).
    2. Mao, Wei & Zhu, Yan & Huang, Shuang & Han, Xudong & Sun, Guanfang & Ye, Ming & Yang, Jinzhong, 2024. "Assessment of spatial and temporal seepage losses in large canal systems under current and future water-saving conditions: A case study in the Hetao Irrigation District, China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 291(C).
    3. Afsaneh Kaghazchi & Seied Mehdy Hashemy Shahdany & Alireza Firoozfar, 2022. "Prioritization of agricultural water distribution operating systems based on the sustainable development indicators," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(1), pages 23-40, February.
    4. Nazemi, Neda & Foley, Rider W. & Louis, Garrick & Keeler, Lauren Withycombe, 2020. "Divergent agricultural water governance scenarios: The case of Zayanderud basin, Iran," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 229(C).
    5. Li, Pei & Ren, Li, 2023. "Evaluating the differences in irrigation methods for winter wheat under limited irrigation quotas in the water-food-economy nexus in the North China Plain," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 289(C).
    6. Barkhordari, Soroush & Hashemy Shahdany, Seied Mehdy, 2021. "Developing a smart operating system for fairly distribution of irrigation water, based on social, economic, and environmental considerations," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 250(C).
    7. Yu Cai & Wengang Zheng & Xin Zhang & Lili Zhangzhong & Xuzhang Xue, 2019. "Research on soil moisture prediction model based on deep learning," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 14(4), pages 1-19, April.
    8. Yao, Liming & Li, Yalan & Chen, Xudong, 2021. "A robust water-food-land nexus optimization model for sustainable agricultural development in the Yangtze River Basin," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 256(C).
    9. Hassani, Yousef & Hashemy Shahdany, Seied Mehdy & Maestre, J.M. & Zahraie, Banafsheh & Ghorbani, Mohammad & Henneberry, Shida Rastegari & Kulshreshtha, Suren N., 2019. "An economic-operational framework for optimum agricultural water distribution in irrigation districts without water marketing," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 221(C), pages 348-361.
    10. Avargani, Habib Karimi & Hashemy Shahdany, S. Mehdy & Kamrani, Kazem & Maestre, Jose, M. & Hashemi Garmdareh, S. Ebrahim & Liaghat, Abdolmajid, 2022. "Prioritization of surface water distribution in irrigation districts to mitigate crop yield reduction during water scarcity," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 269(C).
    11. Weijing Ma & Lihong Meng & Feili Wei & Christian Opp & Dewei Yang, 2020. "Sensitive Factors Identification and Scenario Simulation of Water Demand in the Arid Agricultural Area Based on the Socio-Economic-Environment Nexus," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(10), pages 1-19, May.
    12. Yaltaghian Khiabani, M. & Hashamy Shahadany, S.M. & Maestre, J.M. & Stepanian, R. & Mallakpour, I., 2020. "Potential assessment of non-automatic and automatic modernization alternatives for the improvement of water distribution supplied by surface-water resources: A case study in Iran," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 230(C).
    13. Kaghazchi, Afsaneh & Hashemy Shahdany, S. Mehdy & Roozbahani, Abbas, 2021. "Simulation and evaluation of agricultural water distribution and delivery systems with a Hybrid Bayesian network model," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 245(C).
    14. Jolfan, Mohsen Hosseini & Hashemy Shahdany, S. Mehdy & Javadi, Saman & Milan, Sami Ghordoyee & Neshat, Aminreza & Berndtsson, Ronny & Tork, Hamed, 2023. "Modernization in agricultural water distribution system for aquifer storage and recovery – A case study," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 282(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Kamrani, Kazem & Roozbahani, Abbas & Hashemy Shahdany, Seied Mehdy, 2020. "Using Bayesian networks to evaluate how agricultural water distribution systems handle the water-food-energy nexus," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 239(C).
    2. Nouri, Milad & Homaee, Mehdi & Pereira, Luis S. & Bybordi, Mohammad, 2023. "Water management dilemma in the agricultural sector of Iran: A review focusing on water governance," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 288(C).
    3. S. M. Hashemy Shahdany & A. R. Firoozfar, 2017. "Providing a Reliable Water Level Control in Main Canals under Significant Inflow Fluctuations at Drought Periods within Canal Automation," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 31(11), pages 3343-3354, September.
    4. March, Hug & Therond, Olivier & Leenhardt, Delphine, 2012. "Water futures: Reviewing water-scenario analyses through an original interpretative framework," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 82(C), pages 126-137.
    5. Yaltaghian Khiabani, M. & Hashamy Shahadany, S.M. & Maestre, J.M. & Stepanian, R. & Mallakpour, I., 2020. "Potential assessment of non-automatic and automatic modernization alternatives for the improvement of water distribution supplied by surface-water resources: A case study in Iran," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 230(C).
    6. Mehdi Zomorodian & Sai Hin Lai & Mehran Homayounfar & Shaliza Ibrahim & Gareth Pender, 2017. "Development and application of coupled system dynamics and game theory: A dynamic water conflict resolution method," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 12(12), pages 1-24, December.
    7. Cao, Zhaodan & Zhu, Tingju & Cai, Ximing, 2023. "Hydro-agro-economic optimization for irrigated farming in an arid region: The Hetao Irrigation District, Inner Mongolia," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 277(C).
    8. Lauri Ahopelto & Noora Veijalainen & Joseph H. A. Guillaume & Marko Keskinen & Mika Marttunen & Olli Varis, 2019. "Can There be Water Scarcity with Abundance of Water? Analyzing Water Stress during a Severe Drought in Finland," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-18, March.
    9. Immerzeel, W.W. & Gaur, A. & Zwart, S.J., 2008. "Integrating remote sensing and a process-based hydrological model to evaluate water use and productivity in a south Indian catchment," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 95(1), pages 11-24, January.
    10. Antonio J. Castro & Cristina Quintas-Soriano & Jodi Brandt & Carla L. Atkinson & Colden V. Baxter & Morey Burnham & Benis N. Egoh & Marina García-Llorente & Jason P. Julian & Berta Martín-López & Feli, 2018. "Applying Place-Based Social-Ecological Research to Address Water Scarcity: Insights for Future Research," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-13, May.
    11. Uche T. Okpara & Lindsay C. Stringer & Andrew J. Dougill & Mohammed D. Bila, 2015. "Conflicts about water in Lake Chad: Are environmental, vulnerability and security issues linked?," Progress in Development Studies, , vol. 15(4), pages 308-325, October.
    12. Fateme Heydari & Bahram Saghafian & Majid Delavar, 2016. "Coupled Quantity-Quality Simulation-Optimization Model for Conjunctive Surface-Groundwater Use," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 30(12), pages 4381-4397, September.
    13. Ejovi Akpojevwe Abafe & Yonas T. Bahta & Henry Jordaan, 2022. "Exploring Biblioshiny for Historical Assessment of Global Research on Sustainable Use of Water in Agriculture," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-34, August.
    14. Golam Saleh Ahmed Salem & So Kazama & Shamsuddin Shahid & Nepal C. Dey, 2018. "Groundwater-dependent irrigation costs and benefits for adaptation to global change," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 23(6), pages 953-979, August.
    15. Gong, Feng & Wang, Wenbin & Li, Hao & Xia, Dawei (David) & Dai, Qingwen & Wu, Xinlin & Wang, Mingzhou & Li, Jian & Papavassiliou, Dimitrios V. & Xiao, Rui, 2020. "Solid waste and graphite derived solar steam generator for highly-efficient and cost-effective water purification," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 261(C).
    16. Wang, Rong & Huang, Guanhua & Xu, Xu & Ren, Dongyang & Gou, Jiachao & Wu, Zhangsheng, 2022. "Significant differences in agro-hydrological processes and water productivity between canal- and well-irrigated areas in an arid region," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 267(C).
    17. Alireza Nouri & Bahram Saghafian & Majid Delavar & Mohammad Reza Bazargan-Lari, 2019. "Agent-Based Modeling for Evaluation of Crop Pattern and Water Management Policies," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 33(11), pages 3707-3720, September.
    18. Ignazio Gallo & Nicola Landro & Riccardo La Grassa & Andrea Turconi, 2022. "Food Recommendations for Reducing Water Footprint," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-20, March.
    19. Rossella Vito & Alessandro Pagano & Ivan Portoghese & Raffaele Giordano & Michele Vurro & Umberto Fratino, 2019. "Integrated Approach for Supporting Sustainable Water Resources Management of Irrigation Based on the WEFN Framework," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 33(4), pages 1281-1295, March.
    20. Hatem Jemmali & Mohamed Salah Matoussi, 2012. "A Multidimensional Analysis of Water Poverty at A Local Scale- Application of Improved Water Poverty Index for Tunisia," Working Papers 730, Economic Research Forum, revised 2012.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:agiwat:v:204:y:2018:i:c:p:234-246. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/agwat .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.