Summary (En)

This study proposes a performance appraisal framework for agricultural water distribution systems based on the Water-Food-Energy Nexus perspective. To analyze and evaluate agricultural water distribution systems with this framework, various methods of improving the operational management were developed and tested under the conventional and water shortages in operational scenarios. The Water-Food-Energy Nexus indicators were then calculated for performance appraisal of the water distribution systems in a study area, located in central Iran. The results indicated that by upgrading the manual operation to an automatic control system, gave the best results from the nexus indicators perspectives. The Bayesian Network model was used to present a probabilistic approach that could assist managers and decision-makers in evaluating the performance of the system, based on the nexus perspective. For this purpose, various configurations of the Bayesian Network structures were developed based on an export-oriented approach, and the most appropriate model was determined for the test case. The calibration and validation process of the selected configuration approved a high accuracy in fulfilling the objective of the study. The developed framework can be employed as a decision support model to prioritize options for modernizing agricultural water distribution systems.

The interconnectedness of food, energy, and water systems – commonly referred as the FEW nexus - calls for the integrated study of these systems to improve resiliency of these natural resources and adapt to our changing world. In this article, we explore the state of FEW nexus research in Guatemala to highlight progress while also pointing out future research needs. A systematic literature review was conducted to identify peer-reviewed articles and grey literature published on this topic from January 2000 to May 2020. Articles were reviewed and classified to identify the Guatemalan study location, type, topic, and data sources. Only a limited number of studies explored the interconnectedness of FEW systems; 26% of articles (36 out of 138) focused on two aspects of the FEW nexus, while 20% (27 out of 138) focused on all three aspects. Water issues were the most commonly studied, with drinking water, hydroelectricity, and wastewater management being frequently discussed. We also identified a low rate of primary data generation, with only 42% articles (58 of 138) generating new data, and greater emphasis of nexus research in the grey literature. The Guatemalan FEW connections revolve primarily around three separate yet related spheres: clean water and sanitation, climate change and renewable energy, and urbanization and modernization. Further expanding initiatives that simultaneously address these three spheres would yield improved understanding of the interconnected roles that food, energy, and water play in improving the resiliency of natural resources and reducing multidimensional poverty in Guatemala.

This study aimed to quantitatively evaluate the performance of practical alternatives in modernization projects of water distribution in irrigation networks based on the water-food-energy nexus using the AHP-Entropy-WASPAS technique. Three methods of improved manual operation, decentralized automatic operation, and centralized automatic operation were developed under normal and water shortage operation scenarios and modeling the current status of water distribution in the main canal of the Rudasht irrigation network as a case study. Water-based, energy-based and food-based indicators were used to develop the nexus evaluation framework. The results showed that the average values of the water-food-energy nexus index in the manual operation method were estimated at 0.49 and 0.16 under normal and water shortage operation scenarios, respectively. These average values were estimated at 0.53 and 0.17 under normal and water shortage operation scenarios, respectively, by improving the method to the improved manual operation method. The decentralized automatic operation method improved these average values to 0.82 and 0.39 under normal and water shortage operation scenarios. Finally, using the centralized automatic operation method, these average values were 0.94 and 0.35 under normal and water shortage operation scenarios. Since the downstream secondary off-takes of the irrigation network receive no water even by upgrading the surface water distribution system to the decentralized automatic operation method under the water shortage operation scenario, it can be said that the performance of the centralized automatic operation method is more efficient than the decentralized automatic operation method due to the fair and uniform distribution of water in both normal and water shortage scenarios.

The International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID) has organized its 23ʳᵈ International Congress in Mexico City during the period 08–‐14 October 2017. Its overall theme was: Modernizing Irrigation and Drainage for a new Green Revolution. Two Questions 60 and 61 were addressed and concerned respectively the following issues: Question 60 on Water Productivity: Revisiting the concepts in light of water, energy and food nexus, and Question 61 on State of knowledge of irrigation techniques and practicalities within given socio‐economic settings. The present paper aims at giving a summary of the main axis covered by the various contributions on Question 60. In fact, 91 contributions from 27 countries analyzed and discussed the three following sub themes related to Question 60, namely: i) Emerging issues and challenges of water saving, including impact of transferring water out of agriculture; ii) Understanding water productivity, water and energy use efficiency and water footprint of crops; iii) Water security for growth and development. A summary of the main ideas and findings emerged, for each sub theme mentioned above, are herein presented. Majors conclusions and recommendations are also included at the end of this paper. © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

This paper proposes a framework for the identification, assessment and analysis of the water–energy–food nexus at a basin scale. This methodology is applied to the Duero river basin in Spain to detect the most important conflicts derived from water, food and energy interdependencies. Some of the most important issues are the limitations posed by rising energy prices for irrigated agriculture due to modernization, limitations to water treatment, and the possible emergence of new water demands for energy by hydraulic fracturing for oil and gas and enhanced bioenergy.

Biomass is a promising resource in Malaysia for energy, fuels, and high value-added products. However, regards to biomass value chains, the numerous restrictions and challenges related to the economic and environmental features must be considered. The major concerns regarding the enlargement of biomass plantation is that it requires large amounts of land and environmental resources such as water and soil that arises the danger of creating severe damages to the ecosystem (e.g. deforestation, water pollution, soil depletion etc.). Regarded concerns can be diminished when all aspects associated with palm biomass conversion and utilization linked with environment, food, energy and water (EFEW) nexus to meet the standard requirement and to consider the potential impact on the nexus as a whole. Therefore, it is crucial to understand the detail interactions between all the components in the nexus once intended to look for the best solution to exploit the great potential of biomass. This paper offers an overview regarding the present potential biomass availability for energy production, technology readiness, feasibility study on the techno-economic analyses of the biomass utilization and the impact of this nexus on value chains. The agro-biomass resources potential and land suitability for different crops has been overviewed using satellite imageries and the outcomes of the nexus interactions should be incorporated in developmental policies on biomass. The paper finally discussed an insight of digitization of the agriculture industry as future strategy to modernize agriculture in Malaysia. Hence, this paper provides holistic overview of biomass competitiveness for sustainable bio-economy in Malaysia.

Sustainable agricultural intensification requires irrigation methods and strategies to minimize yield penalties while optimizing water, land and energy use efficiencies. We assessed, from a silo-based and integrated water-energy-food (WEF) nexus perspective, the performance of irrigation technologies in different agro-climatic regions. Secondary to this, we assessed the impact of adopting systematic approaches such as the WEF nexus on improving efficiency in irrigated agriculture through irrigation modernization. The evidence-based perspectives of silo-based performances individually considered the metrics of yield (Y), water use efficiency (WUE), and energy productivity (EP). The WEF nexus approach applied sustainability polygons to integrate the three metrics into a nexus index representing the holistic performance of the irrigation technologies. Silo-based performance in temperate regions suggests net gains for WUE (+1.10 kg m-3 ) and Y (+6.29 ton ha-1 ) when transitioning from furrow to sprinkler irrigation, with a net loss in EP (-3.82 ton MJ-1 ). There is potential for a net loss on EP (-3.33 ton MJ-1 ) when transitioning from furrow to drip system in temperate regions. The best performance of irrigation technologies in dry regions in water, energy and food silos was achieved by sprinkler, drip and furrow irrigation systems, respectively. Thus, appraising irrigation technologies from a silos perspective promotes individual silos, which renders an unsustainable picture of the performance of irrigation systems. The integrative WEF nexus approach successfully highlighted the trade-offs and synergies in the nexus of water, energy and food in irrigated agriculture. Drip irrigation led all irrigation technologies in WEF nexus performance in dry (21.44 unit2 ), tropical (23.98 unit2 ), and temperate regions (47.28 unit2 ). Overall, the irrigation modernization pathway to drip technology from either furrow or sprinkler systems improves irrigated agriculture’s WEF nexus performance in all three regions for more crop per drop per joule per hectare under climate change. This can promote inclusive and sustainable irrigation development within the planetary boundaries.