IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jlands/v14y2025i2p318-d1584023.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Optimizing Water Footprint, Productivity, and Sustainability in Southern Italian Olive Groves: The Role of Organic Fertilizers and Irrigation Management

Author

Listed:
  • Pasquale Garofalo

    (Council for Agricultural Research and Economics, Research Centre for Agriculture and Environment (CREA-AA), Via C. Ulpiani 5, 70125 Bari, Italy)

  • Liliana Gaeta

    (Council for Agricultural Research and Economics, Research Centre for Agriculture and Environment (CREA-AA), Via C. Ulpiani 5, 70125 Bari, Italy)

  • Carolina Vitti

    (Council for Agricultural Research and Economics, Research Centre for Agriculture and Environment (CREA-AA), Via C. Ulpiani 5, 70125 Bari, Italy)

  • Luisa Giglio

    (Council for Agricultural Research and Economics, Research Centre for Agriculture and Environment (CREA-AA), Via C. Ulpiani 5, 70125 Bari, Italy)

  • Rita Leogrande

    (Council for Agricultural Research and Economics, Research Centre for Agriculture and Environment (CREA-AA), Via C. Ulpiani 5, 70125 Bari, Italy)

Abstract

This modeling study evaluates the combined effects of organic fertilization and irrigation regimes on olive productivity and environmental sustainability in southern Italy. Field experiments were conducted in an organic olive grove (cv. Leccino) under Mediterranean conditions, testing four organic fertilization treatments—biochar (BCH), compost (CMP), dried blood (DB), and a commercial organic fertilizer (CTR)—and two irrigation strategies. The CropWat model was employed to simulate additional irrigation scenarios, ranging from full irrigation (Full; 100% ETc) to rainfed conditions. Results showed that biochar-treated olive groves achieved the highest yields (up to 3756 kg ha −1 under full irrigation), outperforming other treatments, with yields of 3191 kg ha −1 (CMP), 2590 kg ha −1 (DB), and 2110 kg ha −1 (CTR). Deficit irrigation strategies, such as ceasing irrigation during the pit-hardening stage (Red_Farm; 1160 m 3 ha −1 ), reduced water use by 67% compared to Full (3600 m 3 ha −1 ) while maintaining satisfactory yields (3070 kg ha −1 vs. 2035 kg ha −1 on average across all fertilization treatments). Water footprint (WFP) analysis revealed that BCH consistently achieved the lowest WFP values (e.g., 1220 m 3 t −1 under Full and 687 m 3 t −1 under rainfed conditions), outperforming CTR (1605 m 3 t −1 ), CMP (1645 m 3 t −1 ), and DB (1846 m 3 t −1 ) under full irrigation and 810 m 3 t −1 , 1219 m 3 t −1 , and 1147 m 3 t −1 with no irrigation water supply. Incremental water productivity (IRincr) and marginal water footprint efficiency (WFP incr ) further demonstrated that BCH optimized both productivity and environmental sustainability, with IRincr values of 0.55 kg m −3 and WFP incr values of 1.58 m 3 kg −1 (averaged for all water regimes), better than CTR (0.40 kg m −3 and 2.14 m 3 kg −1 ), CMP (0.46 kg m −3 and 1.93 m 3 kg −1 ), and DB (0.38 kg m −3 and 2.32 m 3 kg −1 ). An aggregated scoring system, based on standardized and normalized data, ranked BCH under the Red_Farm irrigation strategy as the most effective management approach, achieving the highest overall score compared to the other fertilizer treatments in combination with the different irrigation strategies, thereby balancing high yields with significant water savings.

Suggested Citation

  • Pasquale Garofalo & Liliana Gaeta & Carolina Vitti & Luisa Giglio & Rita Leogrande, 2025. "Optimizing Water Footprint, Productivity, and Sustainability in Southern Italian Olive Groves: The Role of Organic Fertilizers and Irrigation Management," Land, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-28, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jlands:v:14:y:2025:i:2:p:318-:d:1584023
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/14/2/318/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/14/2/318/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Arjen Y. Hoekstra, 2017. "Water Footprint Assessment: Evolvement of a New Research Field," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 31(10), pages 3061-3081, August.
    2. Luca Rossi & Luca Regni & Sara Rinaldi & Paolo Sdringola & Roberto Calisti & Antonio Brunori & Francesca Dini & Primo Proietti, 2019. "Long-Term Water Footprint Assessment in a Rainfed Olive Tree Grove in the Umbria Region, Italy," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 10(1), pages 1-11, December.
    3. Garofalo, Pasquale & Mastrorilli, Marcello & Ventrella, Domenico & Vonella, Alessandro Vittorio & Campi, Pasquale, 2020. "Modelling the suitability of energy crops through a fuzzy-based system approach: The case of sugar beet in the bioethanol supply chain," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 196(C).
    4. Teshome, Fitsum T. & Bayabil, Haimanote K. & Schaffer, Bruce & Ampatzidis, Yiannis & Hoogenboom, Gerrit & Singh, Aditya, 2023. "Exploring deficit irrigation as a water conservation strategy: Insights from field experiments and model simulation," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 289(C).
    5. Garofalo, Pasquale & Campi, Pasquale & Vonella, Alessandro Vittorio & Mastrorilli, Marcello, 2018. "Application of multi-metric analysis for the evaluation of energy performance and energy use efficiency of sweet sorghum in the bioethanol supply-chain: A fuzzy-based expert system approach," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 220(C), pages 313-324.
    6. Perry, Chris, 2014. "Water footprints: Path to enlightenment, or false trail?," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 134(C), pages 119-125.
    7. Imran Ali Lakhiar & Haofang Yan & Chuan Zhang & Guoqing Wang & Bin He & Beibei Hao & Yujing Han & Biyu Wang & Rongxuan Bao & Tabinda Naz Syed & Junaid Nawaz Chauhdary & Md. Rakibuzzaman, 2024. "A Review of Precision Irrigation Water-Saving Technology under Changing Climate for Enhancing Water Use Efficiency, Crop Yield, and Environmental Footprints," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-40, July.
    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. Pasquale Garofalo & Alessandro Vittorio Vonella, 2025. "A Multi-Objective Evaluation Tool (MUVT) for Optimizing Inputs in Cropping Systems: A Case Study on Three Herbaceous Crops," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-24, March.

    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. Fernández, J.E. & Alcon, F. & Diaz-Espejo, A. & Hernandez-Santana, V. & Cuevas, M.V., 2020. "Water use indicators and economic analysis for on-farm irrigation decision: A case study of a super high density olive tree orchard," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 237(C).
    2. Maria Isabella Sifola & Linda Carrino & Eugenio Cozzolino & Mario Palladino & Mariarosaria Sicignano & Daniele Todisco & Luisa del Piano, 2025. "The Effect of Eco-Friendly/Sustainable Agricultural Practices (Legume Green Manure and Compost Soil Amendment) on a Tobacco Crop Grown Under Deficit Irrigation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(2), pages 1-25, January.
    3. Ehsan Qasemipour & Farhad Tarahomi & Markus Pahlow & Seyed Saeed Malek Sadati & Ali Abbasi, 2020. "Assessment of Virtual Water Flows in Iran Using a Multi-Regional Input-Output Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(18), pages 1-18, September.
    4. Long Zhang & Xiaoyu Luan & Xinyi Chen & Shuhao Zhang & Yukun Liang & Zhaojie Cui, 2022. "Water Footprint Inventory Construction of Cathode Copper Products in a Chinese Eco-Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-15, May.
    5. Arjen Y. Hoekstra, 2017. "Water Footprint Assessment: Evolvement of a New Research Field," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 31(10), pages 3061-3081, August.
    6. George Tsakiris, 2017. "Facets of Modern Water Resources Management: Prolegomena," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 31(10), pages 2899-2904, August.
    7. Dimitrios P. Platis & Christos D. Anagnostopoulos & Aggeliki D. Tsaboula & Georgios C. Menexes & Kiriaki L. Kalburtji & Andreas P. Mamolos, 2019. "Energy Analysis, and Carbon and Water Footprint for Environmentally Friendly Farming Practices in Agroecosystems and Agroforestry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-11, March.
    8. Li, Zhibin & Feng, Bianbian & Wang, Wei & Yang, Xi & Wu, Pute & Zhuo, La, 2022. "Spatial and temporal sensitivity of water footprint assessment in crop production to modelling inputs and parameters," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 271(C).
    9. Messay Abera & Mekete Dessie & Hailu Kendie Addis & Desale Kidane Asmamaw, 2025. "Modeling Maize Production and Water Productivity Under Deficit Irrigation and Mulching as Sustainable Agricultural Water Management Strategies in Semiarid Areas," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(4), pages 1-26, February.
    10. Tomaz, Alexandra & Palma, José Ferro & Ramos, Tiago & Costa, Maria Natividade & Rosa, Elizabete & Santos, Marta & Boteta, Luís & Dôres, José & Patanita, Manuel, 2021. "Yield, technological quality and water footprints of wheat under Mediterranean climate conditions: A field experiment to evaluate the effects of irrigation and nitrogen fertilization strategies," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 258(C).
    11. Marta Antonelli & Martina Sartori, 2014. "Unfolding the Potential of the Virtual Water Concept. What is still under debate?," IEFE Working Papers 74, IEFE, Center for Research on Energy and Environmental Economics and Policy, Universita' Bocconi, Milano, Italy.
    12. Zafar Hussain & Zongmin Wang & Jiaxue Wang & Haibo Yang & Muhammad Arfan & Daniyal Hassan & Wusen Wang & Muhammad Imran Azam & Muhammad Faisal, 2022. "A comparative Appraisal of Classical and Holistic Water Scarcity Indicators," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 36(3), pages 931-950, February.
    13. Papagianni, Stavroula & Capellán-Pérez, Iñigo & Adam, Alexandros & Pastor, Amandine, 2024. "Review and meta-analysis of Energy Return on Investment and environmental indicators of biofuels," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 203(C).
    14. Elio Romano & Pasquale De Palo & Flavio Tidona & Aristide Maggiolino & Andrea Bragaglio, 2021. "Dairy Buffalo Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) Affected by a Management Choice: The Production of Wheat Crop," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-20, October.
    15. Pasquale Garofalo & Anna Rita Bernadette Cammerino, 2025. "Modeling the Performance of a Continuous Durum Wheat Cropping System in a Mediterranean Environment: Carbon and Water Footprint at Different Sowing Dates, Under Rainfed and Irrigated Water Regimes," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-30, January.
    16. Cai, Beiming & Jiang, Ling & Liu, Yu & Wang, Feng & Zhang, Wei & Yan, Xu & Ge, Zhenzi, 2023. "Regional trends and socioeconomic drivers of energy-related water use in China from 2007 to 2017," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 275(C).
    17. Orsolya Tompa & Anna Kiss & Matthieu Maillot & Eszter Sarkadi Nagy & Ágoston Temesi & Zoltán Lakner, 2022. "Sustainable Diet Optimization Targeting Dietary Water Footprint Reduction—A Country-Specific Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-21, February.
    18. Radini, Serena & Marinelli, Enrico & Akyol, Çağrı & Eusebi, Anna Laura & Vasilaki, Vasileia & Mancini, Adriano & Frontoni, Emanuele & Bischetti, Gian Battista & Gandolfi, Claudio & Katsou, Evina & Fat, 2021. "Urban water-energy-food-climate nexus in integrated wastewater and reuse systems: Cyber-physical framework and innovations," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 298(C).
    19. Emily Grubert, 2023. "Yellow, red, and brown energy: leveraging water footprinting concepts for decarbonizing energy systems," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 25(7), pages 7239-7260, July.
    20. Karandish, Fatemeh & Šimůnek, Jiří, 2019. "A comparison of the HYDRUS (2D/3D) and SALTMED models to investigate the influence of various water-saving irrigation strategies on the maize water footprint," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 213(C), pages 809-820.

    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:gam:jlands:v:14:y:2025:i:2:p:318-:d:1584023. 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: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    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.