The livelihoods of poor people living in rural areas of Indus Basin Irrigation System (IBIS) of Pakistan depend largely on irrigated agriculture. Water duties in IBIS are mainly calculated based on crop-specific evapotranspiration. Recent studies show that ignoring the spatial variability of factors affecting the crop water requirements can affect the crop production. The objective of the current study is thus to identify the factors which can affect the water duties in IBIS, map these factors by GIS, and then develop the irrigation response units (IRUs), an area representing the unique combinations of factors affecting the gross irrigation requirements (GIR). The Lower Chenab Canal (LCC) irrigation scheme, the largest irrigation scheme of the IBIS, is selected as a case. Groundwater quality, groundwater levels, soil salinity, soil texture, and crop types are identified as the main factors for IRUs. GIS along with gamma design software GS + was used to delineate the IRUs in the large irrigation scheme. This resulted in a total of 84 IRUs in the large irrigation scheme based on similar biophysical factors. This study provided the empathy of suitable tactics to increase water management and productivity in LCC. It will be conceivable to investigate a whole irrigation canal command in parts (considering the field-level variations) and to give definite tactics for management.

The prevalence and proliferation of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) has been identified as an emerging contaminant of concern and a crucial threat to public health worldwide. To determine the occurrence and distribution of ARGs in artificial agricultural irrigation systems, we designed eight sample sites of farmland drainage in the Hetao Irrigation District, Inner Mongolia, China. Results indicated that the distribution of ARGs in sub-drainage canals is influenced by the local urban area, agriculture, and animal husbandry structure. The blaTEM gene was predominant in the water samples (up to 8.98 ARG copies/16S rRNA genes). The average ARG abundance in drainage channel sampling sites was significantly higher than the influent water from the Yellow River, which means that the artificial agricultural irrigation system enhances the abundance of resistance genes in the study area. Moreover, the effluent water of the whole irrigation system presented a lower abundance of ARGs than the influent water. This demonstrates that the Wuliangsuhai watershed ecosystem plays an important role in regulating the abundance of ARGs in the area. In our study, the mobile gene elements correlated with trB, emrD, mexF, and vanC (P < 0.001) in the irrigation system. Additionally, different correlations exist between other special subtypes of ARGs. These findings provided deeper insights into mitigating the propagation of ARGs and the associated risks to public health.

This study investigates the impacts of climate change on yield of selected cereal crops (wheat and maize) in the northern climatic region of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province of Pakistan for the period 1986–2015. The first-generation unit root tests such as the Levin, Lin, and Chu (LLC), augmented Dickey-Fuller (ADF)–Fisher, and the second-generation unit root tests such as cross-sectional augmented Im-Pesaran-Shin (CIPS) and cross-sectional ADF (CADF) are used to check stationarity of the series. The cointegration among the variables is discovered via Pedroni test and Westerlund method. The long- and short-run impacts of climatic variables (average precipitation, maximum temperature, and minimum temperature) on yield of wheat and maize crops are assessed through the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model. The empirical findings reveal that average precipitation has a significantly positive impact on yield of both crops in long- as well as short-run. The results further reveal that the effect of average minimum temperature on both crops is insignificant in long-run. However, the short-run effect of average minimum temperature is significantly positive on yield of maize crop but insignificant on yield of wheat crop. In long-run, an increase in average maximum temperature negatively affects crop yield. In short-run, however, it positively affects the yield of wheat and maize crops. The study recommends that increase in area under cultivation, development of advanced irrigation system, and farmers’ access to metrological information will help in lowering the drastic impacts of climate change on crop productivity.

Climate change, conventional agricultural management practices, and increasing water scarcity pose a major threat to agricultural production and biodiversity as well as environmental sustainability. Climate-smart agriculture (CSA) is recognized as an efficient, sustainable, and feasible agricultural system that plays a vital role in addressing the potential impacts of climate change in Pakistan. First-hand information was collected from 450 farm households in 24 villages from Okara, Sahiwal, and Khanewal irrigation divisions, having various wheat-based cropping systems of Pakistan. This includes rice–wheat (RW), maize-wheat (MW), and cotton-wheat (CW) cropping systems in the Lower Bari Doab Canal (LBDC) irrigation system. This study estimated and compared the sustainability and efficiency analysis of CSA and conventional agricultural practices. This study also estimated the impact of water-smart practices of the CSA, technical training, and groundwater quality on agricultural production by using production function and bootstrap truncated regression. The findings of this study revealed that adopters of CSA of the wheat-based cropping systems have higher economic benefits and improved resource use efficiencies compared to the conventional farmers. The findings of the study also revealed the increased efficiency of CSA adopters over other two systems in CW cropping system. The water-smart practices of CSA, access to credit, technical training, use of groundwater of varying quality, and other inputs also showed variations in the agricultural production and resource use efficiency. It has been concluded that farmers can earn more profit, save inputs (such as water), and increase their production by adopting water-smart practices of CSA. Hence, the government and other relevant institutions should devise and implement policies that adequately addressed the importance and enhance the use of water-smart practices of CSA in Punjab and beyond.

Water is the most fundamental need for better yield in agriculture. Worldwide, diesel and electricity are typically used to pump water which contributes to atmospheric pollution. Besides, a power outage affects the irrigation process badly. Without water, the crop may wither away, causing a substantial economic loss. This paper discusses the resilience of a solar PV system during a power outage. HOMER Pro software was used to perform the techno-economic analysis of solar-based irrigation for four major divisions of Bangladesh, while 1-hour power outage was assigned in REopt lite to model the survivability of the system against the grid outage. The simulation outcomes showed that the energy cost is $0.1496/kWh, $0.1502/kWh, $0.1557/kWh, and $0.1576/kWh for Rajshahi, Sylhet, Dhaka, and Chattogram, respectively. About 45% of excess electricity can be stored after fulfilling all requirements. The system is more economical than a microgrid-based water pumping system and a diesel-based system, and the photovoltaic system is technically and economically suitable to pump water if the nearest grid connection is impossible. When connected to the main utility grid, the system can survive without grid power for several hours, subject to daytime outages.

Enhancement of water use efficiency (WUE) is considered highly important to cope with the water scarcity challenges in dry regions. Therefore, this study evaluated spatiotemporal characteristics of WUE and its related drivers in the Ω-shaped Region along the Yellow River aiming to provide decision support information for alleviating water shortages in this region. We employed the SBM-DEA (slacks-based measure-data envelopment analysis) model to calculate the WUE considering undesired outputs, analyze temporal and spatial variation based on GIS and statistical methods, and investigate the various factors that influence WUE based on the generalized method of moment (GMM) model. The results are as follows. (1) The WUE followed an increasing–decreasing-increasing trend, suggesting that the expanding agricultural and the second industrial structures are largely dominated by water-intensive activities which add further pressure on the water resources. (2) The spatial discrepancy of WUE among the cities is significant; however, the spatial pattern changes were stable during 2010 to 2019. (3) Analysis of influencing factors provides solutions for improving WUE in the Ω-shaped Region. Irrigation system and water conservancy infrastructure development and the acceleration of industrial transformation are necessary for improving the WUE in the Ω-shaped Region.

The photovoltaic (PV) for irrigation system is an emerging technology to harness the solar energy. The performance of the PV modules depends on the incident solar radiation, geographical location, and the surface temperature of the modules. The performance of the PV system needs to be monitored by manually or embedded controllers. The commercially available technologies for monitoring the system are costlier and need to be optimized. The Arduino controller is used to monitor the performance of the photovoltaic (PV) system in Coimbatore (11.016° N, 76.9558° E), Tamilnadu, India. The PV surface temperature is monitored and controlled by flowing the water above the module by setting the mean ambient temperature as a reference temperature 34 °C when the system exceeds the reference temperature. PV surface temperature is reduced up to 16°C thus improved the electrical efficiency by 17% compare to the reference module. The Arduino controller control the relay to switch on the motor to control the mass flow rate of the water at 0.0028kg/s. The various parameters are measured such as voltage, current, and solar radiation of the location and analyzed. The estimated cost of monitoring system and various sensor is 10$ which cost comparatively 50% lower than the other PV monitoring controllers. This method can be employed in the medium and large-scale irrigation system.

While governments and individuals strive to maintain the availability of high-quality water resources, many factors can “change the landscape” of water availability and quality, including drought, climate change, saltwater intrusion, aquifer depletion, population increases, and policy changes. Specialty crop producers, including nursery and greenhouse container operations, rely heavily on available high-quality water from surface and groundwater sources for crop production. Ideally, these growers should focus on increasing water application efficiency through proper construction and maintenance of irrigation systems, and timing of irrigation to minimize water and sediment runoff, which serve as the transport mechanism for agrichemical inputs and pathogens. Rainfall and irrigation runoff from specialty crop operations can contribute to impairment of groundwater and surface water resources both on-farm and into the surrounding environment. This review focuses on multiple facets of water use, reuse, and runoff in nursery and greenhouse production including current and future regulations, typical water contaminants in production runoff and available remediation technologies, and minimizing water loss and runoff (both on-site and off-site). Water filtration and treatment for the removal of sediment, pathogens, and agrichemicals are discussed, highlighting not only existing understanding but also knowledge gaps. Container-grown crop producers can either adopt research-based best management practices proactively to minimize the economic and environmental risk of limited access to high-quality water, be required to change by external factors such as regulations and fines, or adapt production practices over time as a result of changing climate conditions.

An in situ post tsunami study was conducted to assess the effect of water management and rainfalls in soil properties and water quality at a low-lying coastal area of central Chile affected by Mw8.8 Earthquake Tsunami the night of 27 February 2010. Soil samples were taken at two depths (0 to 20 and 20 to 40 cm) during 2010 and late 2012. Water quality in a local shallow well was also monitored in 2010 and 2012. High soil salinity was recorded 2 months later than tsunami occurs, closely associated to water-soluble chloride and cations (Cl⁻ > > Na⁺ > > Ca²⁺ > Mg²⁺ > K⁺), ionic toxicities, and vegetal inhibition (Vasconcellea pubescens) by less available water to plants. An initial reduction in soil pH due to ionic strength and coarse-textured class of soil was observed and the sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) in soil varied between 5.7 and 11.2 (mmol L⁻¹)⁰.⁵ showing to be saline. Although SARw values are very high (>18 (mmol L⁻¹)⁰.⁵), it does not exist risks of reduction on soil infiltration rates according to ECw (>5 dS m⁻¹) obtained. After 2 years, soil salinity was drastically reduced in the affected areas due to high soil permeability and natural attenuation (rainfalls and leaching effects), with sulfate and bicarbonate concentrations showing excessive values. Further, irrigation water quality returned to pre-tsunami situation, with only levels of sodium slightly exceeding desirable range from health point of view. Finally, it is suggested a proper design of irrigation systems before implementing other management practices.