Abstract
Reducing water evaporation from the soil surface of the cropland is a way to save irrigation water and improve water efficiency. For the first time, we calculated how much water can be saved at the level of a country by reducing soil evaporation and runoff and whether this reduction has an effect on plant production. To determine the effects of reducing soil water evaporation and runoff on crop productivity a modeling system was implemented. The model setup included 2750 combinations of “plant - production conditions - province” spanning 2000 to 2015 (44,000 simulations for each scenario). There were different combinations of reduced soil water evaporation and reduced runoff included in seven scenarios. Approximately 81.7 billion m3 of water was irrigated annually in Iranian crop production, which markedly decreased with a decrease in soil evaporation. For various species groups, the net irrigation water requirement (NIWR) and the gross irrigation water requirement were calculated. The highest NIWR was observed for oil grains (1403 m3t−1), and the lowest values were obtained for vegetables (111 m3t−1). A proper water management under irrigated systems can save an estimated 8.3 billion m3 of water per year at country level. Water savings of this magnitude is comparable with water consumption in industries and urban areas in Iran. In rainfed systems, water productivity increased under different scenarios of reduced soil water evaporation. This system can be useful in long-term planning of agriculture that is often determined by political decisions made by the nations themselves, not by world politics.
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The present paper is part of a joint study by Agricultural Research, Education and Expansion Organization of Iran (AREEO) and Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources (GUASNR), Gorgan, Iran. This research was funded by AREEO.
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Soltani, E., Soltani, A., Alimagham, M. et al. Water conservation in cropping systems through the reduction of soil evaporation: a case study of Iran. Arab J Geosci 16, 198 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-023-11296-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-023-11296-2