Investigation of Water-Energy Productivity and Economic Productivity of Energy in Sprinkler and Surface Irrigation Systems under Using Groundwater (Case Study of Qazvin Plain, Iran)

Water and energy resources are limited; however, water and energy consumption for production of agricultural crops is increasing to meet the food demands of a growing population. The present study compared the energy and economic productivity of sprinkler irrigation with surface irrigation when groundwater is used as an irrigation source. The study used data on irrigation systems and yield of crops cultivated on the Qazvin plain in 2011. The data was obtained by survey from regional farms, design plans for the irrigation systems, and the Qazvin Agricultural Organization. Results showed that maximum and minimum energy productivity of sprinkler irrigation were 9 and 1.3 kg/kWh for wheat, 7.79 and 2.09 kg/kWh for barley, 8.64 and 1.09 kg/kWh for corn, and 3.74 and 3.37 kg/kWh for alfalfa, respectively. The values for surface irrigation were 13.7 and 2.5 kg/kWh for wheat, 20.28 and 2.93 kg/kWh for barley, 15.2 and 1.5 kg/kWh for corn, and 6.3 and 0.3 kg/kWh for alfalfa, respectively. The energy economic productivity for surface and sprinkler irrigation systems for wheat was greater than for the other three crops. The results also showed that energy productivity for the conjunctive use of surface and groundwater for irrigation was greater than for the sole use of groundwater.