Search Results (639)

The Kubuqi Desert, China’s seventh-largest desert, is characterized by a severe water supply–demand imbalance and ecological fragility. This study conducted a multi-dimensional dynamic evaluation of the water resources carrying capacity (WRCC) of the desert and its subordinate banners using the TOPSIS model with game theory-based combined weighting. The main obstacle factors were subsequently identified via the obstacle degree model. The results indicated that the comprehensive WRCC index increased from 0.351 in 2010 to 0.584 in 2023, showing a stepwise upward trend. The WRCC grade gradually shifted from Grade II in 2010 to Grade III in 2023. The ecological environment and socioeconomic conditions subsystems improved most markedly, with their contributions to the comprehensive WRCC increasing year by year. The water resources subsystem fluctuated within a narrow range and remained largely at Grade III. The WRCC of each banner exhibited significant spatiotemporal heterogeneity, forming a spatial pattern of “high in the east and low in the west”. WRCC values were ranked in descending order as Jungar Banner, Dalad Banner, and Hangjin Banner, with multi-year averages of 0.541, 0.516, and 0.492, respectively. From 2010 to 2014, all banners except Jungar Banner remained in an overloaded state for most years. Since 2015, the carrying status of each banner has generally improved alongside rising WRCC, and the entire region has reached a critically bearable state. The main obstacle factors constraining WRCC included the ecological water use rate, soil erosion rate, water supply modulus, aridity index, water conservancy and environmental investment rate, water resources exploitation rate, water quality compliance rate in water function zones, water use per 10⁴ CNY GDP, and forest coverage rate. Among these, three belonged to the water resources subsystem, four to the ecological environment subsystem, and two to the socioeconomic conditions subsystem, indicating that socioeconomic indicators exerted the weakest restrictive effect on WRCC. Future WRCC development and governance should adhere to the rigid constraints of water resources, prioritize the optimization of the industrial structure and urban layout, implement targeted soil erosion control, and steadily increase forest coverage, thereby promoting the green, low-carbon, and efficient development of the Kubuqi Desert. Full article

Groundwater-dependent irrigated agriculture in semi-arid basins is increasingly threatened by climate variability and aquifer depletion. Karapınar district, located within Türkiye’s Konya Closed Basin, represents a water-stressed melon-producing area where deep-well drip irrigation and rigid calendar-based scheduling remain common. This study developed a prototype AquaCrop-based decision-support framework for adapting mature and pickled melon irrigation to climatic conditions classified by the crop-season weighted three-month Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI-3). SPI-3 was selected to represent short-term seasonal precipitation anomalies relevant to agricultural water availability, and three historical years were used as representative scenarios: Dry (2020), Normal (2018), and Wet (2017). Fourteen irrigation treatments, including farmer practice and phenologically targeted Late-Season Event (L.S.E.) deficit strategies, were simulated using FAO AquaCrop v7.1. Irrigation timing was more important than seasonal irrigation volume alone. Under Normal conditions, an L.S.E. strategy that redistributed irrigation toward four late fruit-development events (T4.2) maintained yield stability comparable to farmer practice (CV < 2%), increased mature melon yield by 12.7% relative to farmer practice, and reduced applied irrigation by 19–21%. Under Dry conditions, a lower-volume L.S.E. strategy with the same late-season targeting (T4.3) maintained baseline-level yield while reducing applied irrigation by 28–31%. The resulting SPI-based decision matrix is forecast-compatible but not operationally validated; field validation, long-term climate testing, and forecast-skill evaluation remain necessary before deployment. Full article

China’s rapid urbanization and industrialization have led to a severe shortage of water resources. China’s water scarcity problem is characterized by the mismatch between water resources, economic development, and the spatial distribution of production factors. Therefore, it is significant to study the complex dynamic relationship of water resource flow in space to alleviate regional water scarcity and realize sustainable development. In this study, the spatial effects and key influencing factors of the inter-provincial water-resource flow network in China were examined using water-resource consumption as a measure. The results show that the total water footprint showed an upward trend during the study period, and the water footprints of Xinjiang and Jiangsu were much higher than those of other regions. The hotspot areas of inter-provincial water footprint of inflow (WFI) were mainly concentrated in water-abundant areas, while the hotspot areas of water footprint of outflow (WFO) were concentrated in water-scarce areas, and the flow pattern lacked rationality. The local spatial structures of WFI and WFO were found to be relatively stable and showed a trend of synergistic change, with a higher degree of spatial agglomeration in WFO compared to WFI. Considering China’s future water resource security and sustainable development, economic development and scientific and technological inputs should play a more important role in alleviating pressure on the major water-resource-exporting provinces and optimizing the inter-provincial water-resource flow pattern. Full article

Freshwater scarcity can weaken water governance when hydrological pressure interacts with intensive agricultural demand, regulatory weakness, and political conflict. This research evaluates whether Irrigation District 005 (IR 005) in Chihuahua, northern Mexico, demonstrates local water-governance fragility across three domains: public security, the rule of law, and the ability to sustain water access and food production. A mixed-methods approach integrates legal and human rights documentation, institutional records, published studies, and a structured media review with hydrological, agricultural, climatic, and reservoir data. Water balances were analysed for 1998–2023, precipitation trends for 1980–2020, and crop water requirements were estimated using the Food and Agriculture Organization’s Irrigation and Drainage Paper No. 56 (FAO-56) Penman–Monteith framework, the crop coefficient (Kc), the water-stress coefficient (Ks), the United States Soil Conservation Service (SCS) Curve Number method, and application-efficiency assumptions. The 2020 water conflict resulted in fatalities, injuries, arrests, and documented human rights violations. Rule-of-law capacity was further diminished by unauthorised withdrawals, cultivation beyond authorised irrigation plans, and limited enforcement. The annual water balance shifted to persistent deficits after 2016, reaching an estimated deficit of 2268 cubic hectometres (hm³) in 2020. Annual precipitation did not exhibit a statistically significant monotonic decline during 1980–2020 (Mann–Kendall Z = −0.79, τ = −0.0878, p = 0.4251; Sen’s slope = −1.1628 mm yr⁻¹; Mann–Whitney p = 0.5313), indicating that recent stress is more closely linked to production scale, crop mix, governance conditions, and irrigation efficiency than to a long-term reduction in rainfall. Sensitivity analysis revealed that ±15% changes in Kc and Ks altered gross water requirements by approximately ±16–17%, while equivalent changes in effective precipitation produced changes of only 1–3%. These results demonstrate heightened water-governance fragility resulting from mutually reinforcing hydrological, institutional, and conflict-related pressures. Future research should refine locally calibrated water-demand parameters and develop reproducible monitoring systems that combine hydrological, institutional, satellite, and participatory data to support anticipatory, transparent, and rights-based water governance. Full article

Water security is a prerequisite for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, yet water insecurity remains a critical challenge in urban slums. This study assesses the water security in the slums of Dhaka City, Bangladesh by integrating multiple dimensions of water security, such as water supply, sanitation and hygiene, water environment, water and climatic risks, and water governance. Suitable indicators and variables are used to capture the key dimensions of water security. A mixed-method approach, incorporating quantitative water quality assessment, waterlogging assessment and household survey, and qualitative focus group discussions, in-depth interviews and key informant interviews, is followed for data collection. The results reveal that the water security index (WSI), on a scale of 5.00, varies from 1.72 for Rajur slum to 3.34 for Nabinagar Housing slum. Among the dimensions, the score varies from 1.86 for water environment to 3.05 for water supply. Thus, there is a wide variation in WSI from slum to slum and in score from dimension to dimension. The study suggests improving drainage, sewerage and household solid waste collection systems, cleaning water bodies, improving drinking water quality, and raising awareness on menstrual hygiene management for enhancing water security in Dhaka’s slums. Full article

Population growth, increasing water demands for data centers, and the need for more sustainable water practices are prompting advancement of next-generation water resource management strategies including water reuse. In the Midwestern United States (U.S.), where non-traditional approaches to augmenting water supply, including water reuse, are relatively new, full advanced water treatment (AWT), which includes microfiltration/ultrafiltration (MF/UF) and reverse osmosis (RO), produces a concentrate stream that is expensive to address (i.e., brine disposal). Carbon-based advanced treatment (CBAT), which combines ozonation, biofiltration, and granular activated carbon, has been shown to be a viable alternative with select advantages over the traditional RO approach, including the lack of brine generation. Two novel pilots were conducted in the Midwestern U.S., one at a large (>100 MGD) and one at a small (~10 MGD) wastewater reclamation facility (WRF), to provide proof of concept that CBAT could meet distinct regional needs. While additional demonstration data are ultimately needed for future regulatory approvals, results from the pilots showed that water quality objectives were met with treated water quality of <0.5 mg/L total Kjeldal nitrogen (TKN), <2 mg/L total organic carbon (TOC), and substantial reduction in constituents of emerging concern (CECs). If nitrate removal is required to meet drinking water standards (10 mg/L), additional treatment optimization at the source WRFs would be required. Areas for further research identified by this effort include mitigating the potential for ozonation to contribute to the formation of disinfection byproducts such as bromate and N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA). Along with the treatment performance demonstrated at these pilots, the study provided an opportunity to engage with key stakeholders to build trust in the AWT approach, which is critically important for regulatory and public acceptance. Based on two field-scale pilot studies in the U.S. Midwest, this paper analyzes CBAT application advantages and challenges in municipal water reuse and identifies research directions for the industry. Full article

The scarcity of resources is a major challenge for the livability of cities and sustainable urbanization. This study explores the socioeconomic dimensions of water scarcity in four low-income neighborhoods of Amman, the capital of Jordan, using a qualitative approach. The study investigates how water scarcity intersects with socioeconomic vulnerability, spatial injustice, and behavioral adaptation. The main research findings are that income, the quality of the neighborhood, and infrastructure access commonly shape residents’ coping strategies and perceptions of fairness. While households adopt a range of adaptive behaviors, limited affordability and institutional neglect intensify existing inequalities. Temporal shifts in service provision, spatial disparities within and between neighborhoods, and gaps in awareness and governance deepen the sense of water insecurity. The study concludes that water scarcity in Amman is not only a technical or economic challenge but a socially embedded problem that requires equity-oriented policies, participatory planning, and spatially targeted investments. Full article

A comprehensive understanding of the spatiotemporal evolution of water use efficiency (WUE) and its driving mechanisms is essential for sustainable water resource management in the Huang–Huai–Hai Plain (HHHP), a critical agricultural production base in northern China. Based on multi-source remote sensing datasets from 2001 to 2024, this study adopted the Sen-MK trend test and optimized XGBoost-SHAP framework to characterize the spatiotemporal variations in WUE and quantify corresponding driving forces: (1) WUE exhibited a predominantly rising trend across 78.53% of the study area, with significant increases concentrated in the southwestern Shandong hilly region; high WUE values (1.68–1.74 g C·m⁻²·mm⁻¹) occurred in the eastern Shandong hills and southwestern North China Plain, while low values (1.50–1.56 g C·m⁻²·mm⁻¹) were found in the northern North China Plain and southeastern Bohai Bay area. (2) Among vegetation types, shrubland showed the highest multi-year mean WUE (1.75 g C·m⁻²·mm⁻¹) and wetland the lowest (1.34 g C·m⁻²·mm⁻¹); cropland displayed the most rapid increasing trend (0.0045 g C·m⁻²·mm⁻¹·a⁻¹), while wetland showed a decreasing trend. (3) The HHHP showed low interannual volatility and strong persistence of WUE, with stable interannual WUE and historical persistence suggesting that the increasing trend may continue in most areas. (4) Spatial variation in WUE is primarily driven by NDVI and temperature, with NDVI having the greatest influence, accounting for approximately 40.36% of the vegetated area, while temperature accounts for 26.43%, ranking second; precipitation and the aridity index exerted secondary regulatory effects, with positive effects mainly in the Huang–Huai Plain and negative effects in the North China Plain. This study elucidates the evolutionary mechanisms of WUE under coupled climate–vegetation influences, providing critical scientific evidence for optimizing regional water resource allocation and management and promoting sustainable agricultural practices in this water-limited region. Full article

The increasing impacts of climate change and drought have made water-efficient management of urban green spaces a critical issue in semi-arid cities. This study evaluates the water-saving potential of xeriscape landscape design principles in two major recreational areas in Ankara, Türkiye: Batıkent and Bademlidere. In the first stage, existing planting designs were inventoried, and annual crop water consumption was calculated using the Penman–Monteith method and species-specific crop coefficients (Kc). In the second stage, xeriscape-based alternatives composed of lower-water-use species were developed and compared with the existing designs. The results showed that total annual water consumption was 90,591 m³ for Bademlidere and 185,566 m³ for Batıkent. For Batıkent, the proposed xeriscape design reduced annual demand to 82,835 m³, corresponding to a saving of 102,731 m³ (55.4%), or approximately the annual domestic water use of 600 households. Notably, clover groundcover, which is often promoted as a lawn alternative, was calculated to consume more water per square meter (1.31 m³ m⁻² yr⁻¹) than turfgrass (1.14 m³ m⁻² yr⁻¹) when a green appearance was maintained. These findings show that xeriscaping can substantially reduce irrigation demand in semi-arid urban landscapes; however, the water-saving performance of turf alternatives depends strongly on species composition, planting density, and site-specific management. Full article

In Northeast Brazil, rainwater-harvesting cisterns implemented through the One Million Cisterns Program (P1MC) aim to secure dry-season water supply for low-income households. In the Forquilha Valley, where 88% of households own cisterns, unequal access persists for those without them. In practice, however, cisterns are used year-round and frequently support neighboring households through hydrosolidarity, diverging from program assumptions. This study combines monitored cistern data, household surveys, and rainfall records to assess water management practices. Scenario-based reconstructions were developed to evaluate cistern performance and hydrosolidarity potential during drought across different rainfall capture areas and consumption modalities. Results show predominantly conservative consumption, with a daily rate below 75% of P1MC recommendations. Although sharing occurred on fewer days, it accounted for the majority of extracted volumes, reaching up to 69% annually. Scenario results indicate that cistern performance is primarily controlled by rainfall capture area: mean storage increased from 3% (12 m²) to 46% (40 m²) and 81% (77 m²). Under adaptive conditions, dryness reduction was limited for small capture areas (by 3%) and higher for both intermediate (8%) and large areas (10%). These findings highlight that while capture area governs reliability, sharing and adaptive practices shape cistern water availability under drought, providing grounded socio-hydrological insights. Full article

Water security is crucial for human well-being and environmental sustainability. The rapid increase in urbanization, climate change, pollution, etc., leads to water scarcity in many parts of the world. Therefore, it is important to understand the concept and growing challenges of water security. Using the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) framework, 146 articles were identified for this study. The results highlight a novel aspect of the definition of water security, presenting it in a simpler, broader way with key components. The indicators for assessing water security are categorized into quantitative, qualitative, and combined types, and are further arranged across different dimensions, domains, and spatial scales. The study also examines Urban Water Security assessment methods and categorizes them into distinct methodological groups. Additionally, the studies show that only 25 articles explore artificial intelligence in the context of water security indicators. This reveals the need to address the gap between artificial intelligence and the assessment of water security. From these limited articles, artificial intelligence types and models were identified, and their applications were grouped into thematic categories. In general, this study supports improved assessment, decision-making, and sustainable water security management. Full article

Sustainable southern highbush blueberry production in Florida is increasingly constrained by freshwater competition, variable rainfall, and the chemical vulnerability of coarse-textured and organic-based production media. Reclaimed water irrigation and biochar amendment are promising strategies for improving water use efficiency and root zone function, but their combined implications for blueberry systems remain insufficiently understood. This review synthesizes the current knowledge on blueberry production requirements, the regulatory and operational context of reclaimed water use, and the physical and chemical roles of biochar in sandy and pine bark-based substrates relevant to horticulture in Florida. Particular emphasis is placed on mechanistic links among reclaimed water chemistry, substrate properties, and root zone processes that govern salinity, pH drift, nutrient retention, and solute leaching. The literature indicates that reclaimed water can improve irrigation reliability and provide supplemental nutrients, but may also introduce sodium, chloride, boron, and other constituents, as well as alkalinity, which alter substrate chemistry and increase the risk of salinity stress and nutrient imbalance. Biochar may enhance water retention, cation exchange, and sorption capacity, but its effects are strongly dependent on feedstock, production conditions, aging, application rate, and substrate context. Overall, successfully integrating reclaimed water and biochar into blueberry systems requires substrate-specific and constituent-resolved evaluation under production conditions relevant in Florida. Full article

Demand for irrigation water varies substantially between upstream and downstream reaches of river basins due to spatial variability in rainfall, agro-climatic situations, and management practices. Upstream areas often experience over-irrigation and waterlogging, while downstream regions are challenged with water scarcity, timing mismatches, and allocation conflicts. This study proposes a novel SWAT–AquaCrop–optimization nexus framework to minimize both the frequency (DDF) and severity (DDS) of irrigation demand deficit under hydro-climatic uncertainty. To enhance numerical stability and a realistic representation of system stress, deficit frequency is formulated using a smooth, differentiable exceedance function instead of conventional binary thresholds. The framework integrates SWAT-based hydrological projections with AquaCrop simulations of crop yield and evapotranspiration-driven water demand, simultaneously evaluating three interlinked objectives: allocation-disparity deficit (equity), yield deficit (productivity), and irrigation-efficiency deficit (operational performance). Hydro-climatic uncertainty is represented through a quantile-based classification, with favorable (S₁), normal (S₂), and extreme (S₃) scenarios defined by the 33rd and 66th percentiles of the time-varying deficit ratio. The results indicate that stage-specific irrigation timing adjustments (advanced by 2–5 days) better align water applications with peak crop water requirements during flowering and grain-filling stages. This enhances downstream reliability, mitigates upstream over-irrigation, and substantially reduces both demand deficit frequency and severity. Full article

Japanese modern irrigation management is considered a successful model of water governance worldwide. However, debates continue over whether this success is due to natural water abundance or to water management practices. This study evaluates pre-modern water scarcity risk for six irrigation schemes, developed during that period in the Kinu River Basin (1603–1868); a period without large reservoirs, canal systems, or modern regulatory technologies. As the methodology, pre-modern river flows were reconstructed by removing the effects of four modern dams from the present-day river discharge, adjusting the conveyance efficiency, changes in paddy field area, rainfall input, and return flows. Water demand was assessed using Japanese irrigation standards of 5 mm/d (minimum water demand corresponding to evapotranspiration) and 20 mm/d (easy management), and risk was evaluated under both the prior appropriation and Equal Water Distribution rules. Results show that modern flow in the dry season is approximately 25 m³/s, whereas reconstructed natural flow during drought years declines to 10–18 m³/s, and about 15 m³/s after rainfall adjustment. Under the 20 mm/d demand scenario, scarcity occurred in four schemes (2 of 17 years in the third scheme and 7 of 17 years for the sixth scheme), while no scarcity occurred under the minimum-demand scenario (5 mm/d), even during low-flow conditions. This indicates that the available water in these schemes was at a level where drought damage could occur under extensive irrigation management, but could be avoided by intensive irrigation management to supply the minimum necessary water to all paddy fields. Full article

Freshwater scarcity increasingly constrains agricultural sustainability and global food security, particularly where crop production and trade shape national water balances. This study quantifies Ecuador’s green (soil moisture/rainfall) and blue (surface and groundwater) virtual water flows associated with seven strategic crops (banana, cocoa, pineapple, maize, rice, barley and potato) from 2000 to 2023 using the Hoekstra–Mekonnen accounting framework, and FAOSTAT production and bilateral trade data. Furthermore, Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index (LMDI) decomposition analysis was applied to identify the key drivers influencing virtual water trade, including economic growth, population, product structure, and water intensity. Results reveal that Ecuador operates as a persistent net exporter of virtual water, with export flows dominated by green water, reflecting the country’s reliance on rainfall-supported production. Virtual water exports increased from 3000 to >15,000 Mm³·yr⁻¹ over the study period, while imports remained substantially smaller, confirming Ecuador’s structurally export-oriented agricultural economy. The LMDI outcomes show that export growth is driven primarily by economic expansion (8.28 × 10⁸ m³) and shifts in the crop export mix, partially offset by improvements in water intensity. These findings highlight Ecuador’s vulnerability to trade-related water pressures and demonstrate the value of virtual water indicators for guiding water governance and SDG-aligned trade strategies, thereby promoting the decoupling of economic growth from water resource consumption and connecting virtual water trade to domestic water scarcity. Full article