2 nd International Conference Graz October 10 th, 2012 Water allocation and efficient water use in agriculture Local Council Association – LCA (Malta) Regional Agency for Rural Development FVG – ERSA (Italy)

Malta – agriculture and irrigation 11,453 ha  Total UAA amounted to 11,453 ha 3,498 ha  Total UAA served by irrigation: 3,498 ha 550 mm/year  annual rain precipitation: 550 mm/year  agricultural sector water demand: mainly from groundwater (80%)  treated effluent and rainwater harvesting: marginal importance  most widespread irrigation pattern: borholes that abstract water from the mean sea level acquifers  water requirements for agriculture cannot be met by groundwater alone but further alternative resources should developed recover efficiency for water used for irrigation purposes  need to recover efficiency for water used for irrigation purposes

Region FVG – Facts sheet Total UAA 227,000 ha Arable crops 142,000 ha Vineyards 23,000 ha Arable crops 142,000 ha Vineyards 23,000 ha Orchards 1,800 ha Forages 33,000 ha

Average annual rain precipitation in the Region FVG: 1,500 – 2,000 mm Region FVG: present challenges Region FVG: present challenges Surface system Surface system 20.4% of the served area 20.4% of the served area Sprinkler system Sprinkler system 26.8% of the served area 26.8% of the served area 145,400 ha  in FVG total area served by irrigation is ca 145,400 ha...but… droughts occurred in FVG in 2003, 2006 and 2012 drought occurred in 2006 resulted in overall losses estimated in 51 MEuro

Increasing efficiency If the rate of utilization of the system components cannot change, no improvement can be achieved No flexible system: higher rate in a given component = higher consumption of the whole system Flexible system: higher rate of utilization of a component can be compensated by a lower rate applied to another component, same amount of available water can be allocated more efficiently C - 1C - 1 C - 3C - 3 C - 2C - 2 C - 4C - 4 C - 1C - 1 C - 3C - 3 C - 2C - 2 C - 4C - 4 Fixed utilization rate, no flexibility, no increase in efficiency Higher rate in C-1 is generated by a lower rate in C-2 and C-4. Increase in efficiency through reallocation of the resources among the components

How to increase efficiency At which level we could act in order to increase the system efficiency? Farms awareness on water issues Irrigation technique Expert system (ICT) ICT at higher hierarchical level WaterGovernance Planning: works, investments, crop systems

Increasing efficiency - 1 Irrigation technique Different irrigation techniques exhibit different water consumption, hence different efficiency for water use:  Surface system (SU)  Sprinkler system (SP)  Drip system  Other systems 2.2 l/(s*ha)  “Surface technique”, SU: 2.2 l/(s*ha) 0.9 l/(s*ha)  “Sprinkler technique”, SP: 0.9 l/(s*ha) 1.3 l/(s*ha)  Potential savings estimation: 1.3 l/(s*ha) Theoretical average water consumption

Increasing efficiency - 2 Costs borne for water consumed, changing supply pattern and fees applied  acting on the water pricing: «Flat rate» vs. «Binomial fee»  water pricing and water supply: from «scheduled» towards «on demand» pattern  advantages for the farms pursuing water savings Guided irrigation  role of advisory services: enhancement in cultivation techniques  information on plant-soil water balance, farms are advised on «when» and how much to irrigate, via SMS or through Internet web services Farms awareness on water issues

Increasing efficiency - 3 ES Soil-Plant water balance data from sample areas integrated by an expert system (ES) ES Devices and apparatus of the water network coordinated by the outputs generated by the ES ES The ES coordinates irrigation operations, water inflow of the system results optimized Flow-meters of an irrigation district can be switched on/off and controlled by the ES under the supervision of the water management team (remote control) Expert system (ICT)

Increasing efficiency - 4 ICT and technology can be coupled at a higher hierarchical level, i.e the basinswithdrawl points whole network sharing common basins or withdrawl points DSS irrigation water managementwhole district over the whole season Data on the observed precipitation, water stored in the basins and weather forecast information can be integrated and used by a DSS to assist the irrigation water management of a whole district over the whole season ES can supervise the pumps and the devices control of the network according to the indications provided by the DSS/water management ICT at higher hierarchical level

Increasing efficiency - 5 investments and works to remove such obstacles Critical points of the network hampering the system flexibility should be identified: investments and works to remove such obstacles technological connection Higher rate of resources utilization in a given area can be achieved through a reduced utilization of resources in areas showing lower needs: promote the technological connection among different irrigation districts so as to increase the overall flexibility of the irrigation system Crop systems Crop systems: propose different cultivations or different irrigation systems in areas with soil having low water capacity (AWC) Crop systems and new irrigated areas Crop systems and new irrigated areas: cost/benefits assessment for new areas to be served by irrigation: - works or investments for irrigation are feasible? - different irrigation techniques to be considered - areas with soil with low AWC: which crops, which irrigation technique? Planning: works, investments, crop systems

Increasing efficiency - 6 Promote the cooperation and information exchange among Authorities involved in water management Coordinate the decisions and the irrigation water management of different areas so as to take advantage of the flexibility margins Coordination among the different final users management: industrial, civil and irrigation where efficiencyshould be retrieved Coordination among Authorities/stakeholders on future works/investments and plans: where efficiency should be retrieved? WaterGovernance

The point of view of the experts The point of view of the experts Interview with Ing. Stefano Bongiovanni, Director of the Association of land reclamation and irrigation consortia FVG EFFECTIVENESS (0 – 10) FEASIBILITY (0 – 5) Irrigation techniques (SP vs. SU) Irrigation techniques and soil AWC Connections among districts Connections among Basins/Reservoirs Water losses and net maintenance works Land use: which cultivations and crops Water pricing system ICT based on water balance at district level ICT and water balance inform. for farmers ICT and whole network water flow control Advisory service for farmers Coordination among planners Remove obst. and critical points in the system

Transferability of the solutions Experiences or solutions pursued in a certain region cannot be simply exported to another Keep in mind: different rules, different organization and differences in land use and crops system Some general remarks can be applied: flexibility maximization  increase the system efficiency through flexibility maximization  effect of the existing plans on water management optimisation ICT potential  ICT potential in water management for irrigation purposes water management authorities  coordination among water management authorities farmers awareness  increase the farmers awareness on the cost of water and the marginal utility of the irrigation interventions farm advisory services  role of farm advisory services

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