Discourse over the sustainability of irrigation with desalinated water in light of the water-energy-food nexus
Zolghadr-Asli, B; McIntyre, N; Djordjevic, S; et al.Farmani, R; Pagliero, L; Aitken, D
Date: 28 June 2023
Conference paper
Publisher
European Water Resources Association (EWRA)
Related links
Abstract
Desalinated seawater has gained increasing popularity as an option for water-stressed regions
worldwide to meet a general increase in water demand across most sectors. Considering current water and
food crises that are exacerbating in many regions, desalination has gained traction as a suitable solution to
alleviate these problems ...
Desalinated seawater has gained increasing popularity as an option for water-stressed regions
worldwide to meet a general increase in water demand across most sectors. Considering current water and
food crises that are exacerbating in many regions, desalination has gained traction as a suitable solution to
alleviate these problems as a potentially limitless alternative water source. The agricultural industry is the
largest global water consumer and the sector that is most likely to benefit from this technology to meet the
increasing demand for irrigation. Despite the technology’s considerable potential, there are numerous
issues related the technology’s sustainability that may prevent it from becoming a widely used solution for
irrigation purposes. However, being affected by numerous interconnected factors, water resources
problems are nuanced and multi-disciplinary. To account for these intricacies in the evaluation of the
sustainability of this option for irrigation, the concept of the Water-Energy-Food (WEF) Security Nexus can
be used. This paper provides a preliminary evaluation of the sustainability of the use of desalinated water
for irrigation considering the WEF Security Nexus.
Engineering
Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy
Item views 0
Full item downloads 0