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Solar-based groundwater pumping for irrigation: Sustainability, policies, and limitations

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  • Closas, Alvar
  • Rap, Edwin

Abstract

The increasing demand for solar-powered irrigation systems in agriculture has spurred a race for projects as it potentially offers a cost-effective and sustainable energy solution to off-grid farmers while helping food production and sustaining livelihoods. As a result, countries such as Morocco and Yemen have been promoting this technology for farmers and national plans with variable finance and subsidy schemes like in India have been put forward. By focusing on the application of solar photovoltaic (PV) pumping systems in groundwater-fed agriculture, this paper highlights the need to further study the impacts, opportunities and limitations of this technology within the Water-Energy-Food (WEF) nexus. It shows how most policies and projects promoting solar-based groundwater pumping for irrigation through subsidies and other incentives overlook the real financial and economic costs of this solution as well as the availability of water resources and the potential negative impacts on the environment caused by groundwater over-abstraction. There is a need to monitor groundwater abstraction, targeting subsidies and improving the knowledge and monitoring of resource use. Failing to address these issues could lead to further groundwater depletion, which could threaten the sustainability of this technology and dependent livelihoods in the future.

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  • Closas, Alvar & Rap, Edwin, 2017. "Solar-based groundwater pumping for irrigation: Sustainability, policies, and limitations," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 33-37.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:104:y:2017:i:c:p:33-37
    DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2017.01.035
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    2. Rubio-Aliaga, Á. & García-Cascales, M.S. & Sánchez-Lozano, J.M. & Molina-García, A., 2019. "Multidimensional analysis of groundwater pumping for irrigation purposes: Economic, energy and environmental characterization for PV power plant integration," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 138(C), pages 174-186.
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    6. Ahmad Hamidov & Katharina Helming, 2020. "Sustainability Considerations in Water–Energy–Food Nexus Research in Irrigated Agriculture," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(15), pages 1-20, August.
    7. Rubio-Aliaga, Alvaro & García-Cascales, M. Socorro & Sánchez-Lozano, Juan Miguel & Molina-Garcia, Angel, 2021. "MCDM-based multidimensional approach for selection of optimal groundwater pumping systems: Design and case example," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 163(C), pages 213-224.
    8. Kafle, Kashi & Balasubramanya, Soumya & Stifel, David, 2022. "Solar-powered irrigation in Nepal: Adoption and consequences for fossil fuel use," 2022 Annual Meeting, July 31-August 2, Anaheim, California 322256, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
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    11. Patil, Sumeet & Kenia, Nandish & Gunatilake, Herath, 2021. "Divide and Prosper? Impacts of power-distribution feeder separation on household energy-use, irrigation, and crop production," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 156(C).
    12. Elshurafa, Amro M. & Alatawi, Hatem & Hasanov, Fakhri J. & Algahtani, Goblan J. & Felder, Frank A., 2022. "Cost, emission, and macroeconomic implications of diesel displacement in the Saudi agricultural sector: Options and policy insights," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 168(C).
    13. Espinosa-Tasón, Jaime & Berbel, Julio & Gutiérrez-Martín, Carlos, 2020. "Energized water: Evolution of water-energy nexus in the Spanish irrigated agriculture, 1950–2017," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 233(C).
    14. Illiassou Naroua & Abdoulkadri Laouali & Abdoulsalam Koroney, 2022. "Technical Feasibility Of Using Solar Energy In Smallscale Irrigation In Tillabéri, Niger Republic," International Journal of Agriculture and Environmental Research, Malwa International Journals Publication, vol. 8(6), December.
    15. Foster, Timothy & Adhikari, Roshan & Adhikari, Subash & Justice, Scott & Tiwari, Baburam & Urfels, Anton & Krupnik, Timothy J., 2021. "Improving pumpset selection to support intensification of groundwater irrigation in the Eastern Indo-Gangetic Plains," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 256(C).
    16. Pourmohamad, Yavar & Alizadeh, Amin & Mousavi Baygi, Mohammad & Gebremichael, Mekonnen & Ziaei, Ali Naghi & Bannayan, Mohammad, 2019. "Optimizing cropping area by proposing a combined water-energy productivity function for Neyshabur Basin, Iran," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 217(C), pages 131-140.
    17. Chatterjee, Juhi & Kanitkar, Tejal, 2024. "A Shift to Solar Irrigation Pump-Sets: A Case Study from Uttar Pradesh, India," Review of Agrarian Studies, Foundation for Agrarian Studies, vol. 14(1), June.
    18. Nihit Goyal, 2021. "Limited Demand or Unreliable Supply? A Bibliometric Review and Computational Text Analysis of Research on Energy Policy in India," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(23), pages 1-23, December.
    19. Parvaresh Rizi, Atefeh & Ashrafzadeh, Afshin & Ramezani, Azita, 2019. "A financial comparative study of solar and regular irrigation pumps: Case studies in eastern and southern Iran," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 138(C), pages 1096-1103.
    20. Otoo, Miriam & Lefore, Nicole & Schmitter, Petra & Barron, Jennie & Gebregziabher, Gebrehaweria, 2018. "Business model scenarios and suitability: smallholder solar pump-based irrigation in Ethiopia. Agricultural Water Management – Making a Business Case for Smallholders," IWMI Reports 273354, International Water Management Institute.

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