Introduction
In this Module you will learn the importance of water protection, saving and management with a climate smart agriculture approach from the concept to the practice.
You will particularly learn:
- Climate impact on water resources and farming
- Weather forecasting models and agriculture
- Water quantity and quality control bodies
- Water rational use in sustainable field cultivation
- Water rational use in greenhouses
- Water CSA good practices
Related links: climate-adapt.eea.europa.eu – climate.copernicus.eu
Background knowledge and examples will be provided as a practical and tailored approach implementing the competences needed for a water rational use according to the principles and acting of Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA).
Climate impact on water resources and farming
According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), high level international organization for the evaluation of climate change, a rise in the average global temperature of more than 1.5 °C will cause, particularly in some areas, drought periods followed by a substantial increase in the intensity and frequency of extreme climatic events.
This will worsen the negative impact on water resources, on the functioning of ecosystems, biodiversity, food security, and in general on the life conditions of humans.
The IPCC was established by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), with 194 associated countries. The main aim is providing governments around the world with a clear scientific view of the current state of knowledge on climate change and its potential environmental and socio-economic current and future impacts.
Updated analyses from the international to national and regional levels provide the related authorities with all data needed to assess the follow-up of the objectives to be achieved and to alert against climatic risks, also including drought and potential floodings due to heavy rains.
Projections suggest an increase in the frequency and severity of droughts, especially in the Mediterranean area, due to reduced river flow. In areas such as south-eastern Spain, overexploitation of rivers and aquifers increase vulnerability to future droughts.
Future water quality is expected to decrease as a consequence of reduced flows of rivers. Groundwater quality is predicted to be threatened by climate change and increasing use pressure.
Over exploitation of aquifers, due to irrigation demands and tourism growth, especially in southern Europe, increases the vulnerability of sensitive areas to drought risks. In the medium and long term, the progressive salinization of coastal aquifers, threatens the potability of water in highly populated areas.
Climate models suggest that Europe will see a drastic increase in the frequency and intensity of floods, triggered by intense precipitation events such as heavy rains.
2022 was the most critical summer in the last 500 years due to the level of drought reached in Europe, but also with heavy rains and river floods in various regions, with devastating repercussions on the agricultural sector and damages that caused losses of billions of euros.
Those events seemed to be exceptional but in spring/summer 2023, after a dry winter, drought and floods demonstrated once again how dangerous can be the consequences of the climate crisis and how serious should be the prevention to avoid the repetition of new dramatic disasters and loss of agricultural production and human lives.
The devastating disasters in Romagna, Italy, last spring and fall 2023, and in North-Eastern side of Slovenia, in summer 2023, are only the last demonstration of the consequences of extreme weather events due to climate change. The soils not permeable due to drought, are less and less able to absorb sudden rainfall with such quantities of water in a very few hours and unstoppable floodings.
Climate change increases the rate and extent of land degradation through higher frequency of heavy rainfall and flooding, as well as droughts and rising temperatures, determining melting of ice at the poles, shrinking glaciers and rising of sea level.
Farmers are facing a vicious circle: excessive soil exploitation and other factors also depending on intensive agriculture contribute to climate change and climate change has an impact on soil health and food security.
The world scenario is particularly dangerous for poor countries with high increase of birth and trend to migration, and obvious consequences on the developed countries and more specifically in Europe.
Water is therefore to be considered a limited natural and geostrategic resource and a fundamental asset to be preserved and saved, strictly connected to soil health.
The main problems due to climate change affecting agriculture are:
Decrease in farm productivity due to heat stress, animal vulnerability with increase of pathogens.
This implies increase of controls and readiness to interventions and changes that can be even radical up to crop substitution and decrease of animal breeding (less intensive). An alternative to radical choices can be mitigation actions based on smart techniques and digital technologies complying with water saving, recycling and quality improvement, and soil regeneration based on reuse of crop residues and manure for composting.
Farmers are subject to climate change factors that can be variable and unpredictable as in the case of intense heavy rains, flash floods, landslides with related damages.
Risk analysis, intended as an active ongoing evaluation of risk factors and indicators, can help analyze the potential damages and relevant countermeasures.
The risk analysis can be considered as constituted of two phases: a) preliminary analysis and involvement of stakeholders and b) planning of measures including investments needed (i.e. infrastructures) and insurance funds vs damages.
Enhance attention and action on climate change
Provide a synthesis of scientific knowledge on impacts, risks and interactions for different degrees of drought, warming and related patterns
Outline the main financial needs and investments to reduce terrtorial vulnerability and good practices performed at regional and national level
Contribute to design development strategies aimed to radical changes towards resilience and sustainability
Participate in increasing accessibility and communication of results to help build aware and informed communities
Weather forecasting models and agriculture
Increase in temperatures causes variation in the length of the growing season, earliness of manifestation in the phenological phases and potential shifting of cultivation areas (towards higher latitudes and altitudes).
Acceleration of the growth cycle can limit the period available for the accumulation of biomass and consequently lead to reductions in yield.
Greater decreases in productivity expected for spring-summer cycle crops (corn, sunflower and sugar beet), especially if not irrigated. Possible increases expected for wheat in some areas (i.e. Northern Europe) and reductions in other areas (Southern Europe). Possible positive effects for rice.
Less susceptibility for autumn-winter cycle crops compared to spring-summer ones generates unpredictable risks for extreme weather events and alteration of agricultural landscapes.
Meteorological water monitoring models and systems are therefore fundamental to be updated and prepared to follow the evolution of the weather forecast.
Cultivation needs within ecosystems facing climate changes must necessarily consider basic factors impacting the production:
- phenological monitoring (growth, vegetative development, flowering, ripening);
- maintenance of soil water reserves;
- cultivation practices such as fertilization and treatments.
Climate smart agriculture techniques and technologies can be fundamental to comply with changing climate conditions “doing the right thing at the right time”, as they are more effective and can have less environmental impact if carried out at the most favorable phenological and meteorological time.
Water quantity and quality control bodies
Infrastructures for a regulated use of fresh water exist all over Europe and hydraulic knowledge to create them accompanied the path of many ancient civilizations that thrived in the use of fresh water for the transport of goods and people, production of hydraulic energy and irrigation to grow crops and manage livestock breeding.
In the various European countries, the water authorities at national, regional and local level can hold different roles and tasks, but the water reclamation bodies are strategic to maintain banks and waterways, verify available quantities and quality of water and regulate their use.
Depending also on competences and charges, at the national level, the ministries of environment, agriculture, industry and economic development are responsible for the supervision and control of the territories in which lakes, rivers and other aquifer surfaces are located to optimize their use by the bodies that benefit from them.
Specific responsibilities for water quality control are overseen by Environmental Protection bodies which keep under control the state of the water and any risks for damages from pollution and contamination.
Another important role is that of the Civil Protection body, that perform, in collaboration with geologic scientific institutes, analyses of the hydrogeological areas with risk of instability, earthquakes and catastrophic events, such as overflowing of watercourses and floods, and related first aid in collaboration with firefighters.
Depending also on competences and charges, at the national level, the ministries of environment, agriculture, industry and economic development are responsible for the supervision and control of the territories in which lakes, rivers and other aquifer surfaces are located to optimize their use by the bodies that benefit from them.
The land mapping based on hydrogeological instability, earthquake risk, floods and other potential catastrophic events, is of fundamental importance for prevention, emergency response, adaptation of infrastructures and the planning of new works that contribute to the safety of the territory and its inhabitants.
Water quality, as well as quantity, can be highly impacted by climate change because of reduced water in the rivers and water basins.
| Water use | Water pollution | Water-related risks |
|---|---|---|
|
++ |
++ |
+++ |
|
Irrigation accounts for the highest proportion of water used in Europe. Illegal captation can be a problem, but it has been declining in the last years but water quantity remains a big problem in many countries. |
Key pollutants from the agricultural sector are nutrients (coming from fertilizers and manure) and above all pesticides. One of the Green Deal objectives is the reduction of chemicals, but many farmers seem not to accept this limitation.
|
Droughts are increasingly becoming a structural phenomenon in many Mediterranean countries, also affecting some countries in Northern Europe. The effects on soil fertility are also increasing.
|
Note: +: Minor issue; ++: Problematic issue; +++: Major issue. Source: OECD (2019).
Water rational use in sustainable field cultivation
Water rational use is an absolute necessity for farmers dealing with a limited water availability due to climate change conditions and farm needs.
Main services of water in the farming sector
- Key role in crop irrigation
- Proper animal nutrition
- Health and hygiene at farm level
Risks and weaknesses
- Scarcity (expected reduced availability for the coming years)
- Vulnerability (risk of pollution and salinization)
- Irregular distribution (depending on availability)
Rational water use is an imperative issue specially in the Mediterranean regions
Reduce water consumption
Increase the efficiency of the irrigation systems
Re-use and recycle water
Comparing irrigation systems in the EU
Surface irrigation
(“flood irrigation”)
- low efficiency
- minimal capital investment and energy costs
- high water dispersion
Sprinkler irrigation
- high efficiency
- high energy costs
- uniformity in water distribution
- higher costs than in surface irrigation
- medium water dispersion
Drip irrigation
- high energy efficiency and water saving
- accurate water distribution
- easily automated system
- fewer problems with weeds and fungi
- expensive cost and in need of careful maintaince
Water rational use in greenhouses
Greenhouses are controlled environments for farming allowing automatic measurement of microclimatic conditions and automated interventions on the cultivations. Conducting greenhouse crops involves investments and significant operating expenses and therefore the technology chosen should be designed to allow:
- maximize yield and production quality to have products as required by the market (healthy, meaty, inviting and well presented);
- automate certain processes with savings hours of work and energy;
- provide scientific data for rational use of low quantity of phytosanitary products.
Digital technologies offer currently all the solutions needed also with respect to some specific techniques such as i.e. hydroponic cultivation wherein plants are grown in an inert porous medium transporting water and fertilizer to the roots.
The existing technologies allow to design a digital greenhouse focusing on a more sustainable circular economy-based model and high level of water saving.
The picture aside shows two greenhouses with same dimension and orientation, which are adjacent each other, equipped with: i) the innovative technologies in the high-tech and ii) standard technologies (common/basic) in the low-tech greenhouse (CREA-UNIPISA 2018). Both greenhouses are divided in four main sectors for cultivation: in the first sector, the cultivation system consists of six benches in which plants are cultivated in soilless conditions, the second sector is arranged for plant agamic propagation, the third sector is specialized in the cultivation of potted plants, the fourth sector is designed for hydroponic water cultures of leafy vegetables.
Technologies for data analysis and transmission are positioned in a technical room. 1 -Tank with nutritive solution; 2: Technical area; 3: Conditioned room; 4: Mist propagation, pot cultivation or floating cultivation benches; 5: Tanks for drained water; 6: Hydroponic area; 7: Worktable; A: Temperature and humidity sensors; B: Radiation sensors; C: Sensors for nitrate, ions, electric conductivity, pH value; D: Soil moisture sensors.
Water needs and other parameters in a greenhouse can be regulated by sensors, that can be defined as devices measuring or detecting important parameters for the plant growth and health.
The most common and useful greenhouse sensors are:
- Air temperature sensor (indoor outdoor): useful for optimizing opening and closing the ventilation flaps and turning the fans on or off.
- Air humidity sensor (indoor outdoor): useful for optimizing opening and closing the ventilation doors and turning the fans on or off.
- Electrical conductivity sensor (EC): sensor that measures the conductivity of the soil, useful for optimize fertigation.
- Soil moisture sensor: it allows to check the amount of water present in the soil to optimize irrigation and the treatments.
- Specific inspection sensors can be mounted on drones sending pictures and data to the control system for the early detection of plant diseases.
Water CSA good practices
The digital technologies available enable the farmer to check the data on cell phone without going into the field, using low energy small wireless devices (nodes), working on a battery or with a solar charging panel.
Another advantage concerns the possibility of inserting alerts into monitoring systems, e.g. in the event of low temperatures and risk of frost, or not sufficient field humidity, with an automatic warning and activation of the anti-frost or irrigation devices.
Nowadays, therefore, using a smart phone it is possible to manage the whole irrigation and monitoring system.
Monitoring systems are generally scalable and therefore it is possible to purchase a small supply of sensors to integrate later the irrigation system.
Different ways can be considered to improve efficiency in water management in the farming sector:
Good CSA Practices for
- Irrigation recording sheet
- Irrigation systems of maximum efficiency
- Drip irrigation
- Buried and semi-buried drip irrigation
- Decision support tools for irrigation
- Tools for climate-soil-plant control
- Tele-detection and GIS tools
- Fertilization control tools
- Changing crop type
- Recycling and harvesting (animal breeding farms)
- Automatically alerted flood containment ponds
- Satellite control of ground humidity with water consumption map
- Ponds and lagoons with natural banks from water retention areas
Irrigation recording sheet practice is connected to the methodology for water consumption monitoring based on control actions recommended for medium and high water consumers.
An electronic or paper sheet can be recorded with main data:
a line for each irrigation supply including:
- time devoted to each irrigation;
- flow rate;
- water volume used during the crop cycle;
(total volume and total volume/ha)
- Rainfall, temperature, wind and other meteorological useful data
Its use it is not well extended in the European Union
No mandatory constraints are foreseen
Efficient irrigation systems
DRIP IRRIGATION
Recommended to be used when irrigation water consumption exceeds 2,500 m3/ha/year.
BENEFITS:
- reduced impact of weeds due to less soil with moisture
- more efficient application of fertilizers
- less herbicides needed
- low pressure work (less energy costs)
More than 33% of the irrigated areas of the EU-27 is drip irrigated. In some Mediterranean countries the use of drip irrigation reaches 50% (Spain) or even 75% (Cyprus)
BUT IF DRIP IRRIGATION IS NOT WELL MADE…IT CAN NOT BE A GOOD WAY OF SAVING WATER..
BURIED AND SEMI-BURIED DRIP IRRIGATION
Recommended to be used for specialized field crops.
BENEFITS:
- water use is optimized as it is released closer to the root system
- evaporation is reduced
- reduced risk of tubing damage due to birds and mammals and strong winds
- reduced fungal diseases
- more efficient application of fertilizers
- less herbicides needed
- low pressure work (less energy costs)
Not widely extended in Europe
Advanced knowledge of the irrigation needs and limitations required
Fauna damages or strong winds as driving forces to implementing this practice
Decision Support Systems (DSS) for Irrigation
Digital data collection from the field (sensors) or from the air (satellite/drone) based on crop water needs and weather forecast to provide crops with the right water quantity.
BENEFITS:
- water rational use is depending on water availability from rain, crop needs, data on soil humidity, etc.
- water saving due to limited quantity depending on DSS data report
- control of fungal diseases and parasites from aerial data collection
- more efficient use of fertilizers due to soil analysis report
- weed mapping control with use of less herbicides
- reduced energy costs due to limited use of water and treatments
Some crops make better use of water at night, that can be planned automatically (time and quantity) and also by measuring crop water consumption at different times during the day.
Decision Support Systems (DSS) for Irrigation:
Climate-soil-plant control sensorized systems, by collection and management of digital data from the field (sensors) and air (satellite/drone) based on crop water and soil needs and climate-soil-plant control
EXAMPLES:
- Climate sensors
add local data to the national and regional forecast - Dendrometers
measure plant growth and water use, recording small contractions and expansions in plant tissue. Also commonly used:
Tensiometers, Electric resistance blocks ,Modified atmometers, etc. - Remote Sensing (RS) Satellites
Remote Sensing (RS) satellites, airplanes/drones with multiesprectral camera: identifies areas with water stress, detects nutrient deficiences early identification of pests
Global Positioning System (GPS)
Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
Use of fertilization control tools
BENEFITS:
Control of nutrients, aiming to avoid water pollution due to over-fertilization:
Saving of not necessary quantity of fertilizers causing pollution from nutrients. The most used of these tools is the Multispectral Imaging Camera which can be mounted on a drone. This aerial technology can be implemented with tests on the spot to analyze the content in nutrients and decide whether a new fertilizing application could be necessary or not.
Digital tools for irrigation control are quite recently in use and not so extended in Europe yet. Collective use of these technologies could be a way to reduce costs. Also this kind of technology could be hired, while advice services are often included in the hire contract.
Conclusions
Climate Smart Agriculture can be considered the most advanced way to cope with the current and future challenges of producing more and more sustainably.
The water rational use in farming can be achieved only from the support of world bodies for a more and more precise analysis of the impact of the climate change at international, national and regional level, with the farmers, as main actors of sustainable agriculture supported by new advanced techniques and digital technologies.
Potential and increasingly frequent threats, such as drought, heavy rains, floods and landslides, can be faced only starting a new prevention approach, with collaboration of water reclamation bodies and private water users, namely farmers.
References
Alessandri, A., Catalano, F., De Felice, M., 2017: Multi-scale enhancement of climate prediction over land by increasing the model sensitivity to vegetation variability in EC-Earth. Climate Dynamics 49, 1215–1237 – doi.org/10.1007/s00382-016-3372-4
Artale, V., Calmanti, S., Carillo, A., Dell’Aquila, A., Herrmann, M., Pisacane, G., Ruti, P.M., Sannino, G., Struglia, M.V., Giorgi, F., Bi, X., Pal, J.S., Rauscher, S., 2010: An atmosphere-ocean regional climate model for the Mediterranean area: Assessment of a present climate simulation. Climate Dynamics, 35 (5), pp. 721-740. ISSN: 09307575. ec-earth.org
EC-Earth: FAO, 2016: State of Food and Agriculture – Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security. Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN, Rome.
IPCC, 2019: Rapporto Speciale Cambiamento Climatico e Suolo Special Report Climate Change and Land – ipcc.ch/rccl
MED-GOLD: med-gold.eu/it/home-page-it
Sitz, L.E., Di Sante, F., et Al., 2017: Description and evaluation of the Earth System Regional Climate Model (Reg CM-ES) Journal of Advances in Modelling Earth Systems, 9 (4), pp. 1863-1886
Turuncoglu, U.U., Sannino, G., 2016: Validation of newly designed regional earth system model (RegESM) for Mediterranean Basin. Climate Dynamics, pp. 1-29. DOI: 10.1007/s00382-016-3241-1
