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Comparison of allocated irrigation water rights and irrigation water use under different precipitation probabilities: a case study in North China

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Abstract

A comparison between gross irrigation water use (GIWU) in fields and allocated irrigation water rights amount (AIWA) is critical for evaluating any system of water rights allocation. GIWU in fields under different precipitation probabilities has been rarely calculated and compared with AIWA using households’ survey data. This study developed a method for calculating the GIWU of crops under different precipitation probabilities using field survey data from 391 households and the monitoring data of wells in Chengan County, China. AIWA was compared with the calculated GIWU and irrigation quota. Results showed that AIWA is too small to satisfy the GIWU of the principle crops. The GIWU of main cropping patterns under a precipitation probability of 75% was curtailed between 43 and 77% to fulfill AIWA. AIWA cannot support any cropping patterns when precipitation is lower than the precipitation percentile of 75%. In this condition, farmers are restricted to planting apples, cotton, and sweet potatoes. The uncertainty in precipitation was not fully considered, and the participation of farmers in water rights allocation in Chengan County was limited, which may adversely influence the income and food security of farmers.

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to acknowledge the support of the Plan for National Key R&D Program of China (Grant No. 2016YPC0401402), National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 51609082, 51709107), the ‘948’ Project of Ministry of Water Resources of China (Grant No. 201328), Scientific Innovation Talent of Henan Province in China (Grant No. 144100510014), the Program for the New Century Excellent Talents in University (Grant No. NCET-13-0794), the Program for Innovative Research Team (in Science and Technology) in University of Henan Province (Grant Nos. 15IRTSTHN030, 141RTSTHN028, and 17IRTSTHN026).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou, 450046, China

    Xiaoping Dai, Xiaohong Zhang, Yuping Han & Huiping Huang

  2. Collaborative Innovation Center of Water Resources Efficient Utilization and Support Engineering, Zhengzhou, 450046, Henan Province, China

    Xiaoping Dai, Xiaohong Zhang & Yuping Han

  3. Henan Key Laboratory of Water-Saving Agriculture, Zhengzhou, 450046, China

    Xiaoping Dai

  4. Henan Key Laboratory of Water Environment Simulation and Treatment, Zhengzhou, 450046, China

    Xiaoping Dai

  5. Hohai University, Nanjing, 210098, China

    Jing Chen

Authors
  1. Xiaoping Dai
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  2. Xiaohong Zhang
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  3. Yuping Han
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  4. Jing Chen
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  5. Huiping Huang
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Xiaoping Dai or Yuping Han.

Additional information

Communicated by A. Garrido.

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Dai, X., Zhang, X., Han, Y. et al. Comparison of allocated irrigation water rights and irrigation water use under different precipitation probabilities: a case study in North China. Irrig Sci 37, 49–60 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00271-018-0602-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00271-018-0602-z

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