Determinants of Farmer's Attitudes towards Sustainability Dimensions of Farms under Wastewater Irrigation: The Case of Marvdasht County

The population of the planet is increasingly dependent on irrigation for food. Access to water in Iran like other arid and semi-arid regions of the world is a major limiting factor for agricultural production. Appropriately treated domestic sewage can be regarded as ideal for irrigation and fertilization purposes, particularly in the (semi)arid climate regions. However, the sustainability of wastewater use in agricultural production as perceived by farmers is a major issue. Therefore, the aim of this research was to find the determinants of farmers’ attitudes towards different sustainability dimensions of wastewater use in agricultural production in two villages in Marvdasht county, Fars province, Iran. A survey research was used with systematic random sampling technique to select 99 farmers from the 203 who irrigated their farm with wastewater. The findings indicated that the most important determinants of different dimensions of sustainability are farmer's knowledge and wastewater management skills. Recommendations are offered to improve the sustainability of wastewater use for crop production.