Participatory modelling to support decision making in water management. A case study in the middle Guadiana basin, Spain.

The objective of this research was the implementation of a participatory process for the development of a tool to support decision making in water management. The process carried out aims at attaining an improved understanding of the water system and an encouragement of the exchange of knowledge and views between stakeholders to build a shared vision of the system. In addition, the process intends to identify impacts of possible solutions to given problems, which will help to take decisions.

The Extended Water Footprint and illegal groundwater use in the Upper Guadiana Basin (Spain)

Tablas de Daimiel National Park is located in the Upper Guadiana Basin and represents one of the largest and most important wetlands in Europe. The long term ecological integrity of this wetland is inherently associated with the maintenance of a shallow groundwater table, namely the Western Mancha aquifer (WMA) or Aquifer 23. The intensive use of groundwater, mainly for irrigation, has led over the last decades to deep socio‐economic changes. Such intensive use has also lowered the water table of Aquifer 23, drastically reducing the flooded area of the wetland and threatening its ecological integrity. A number of plans and measures have been developed and implemented since the declaration of overexploitation of Aquifer 23 in the year 1987. The most recent one is the Special Plan for the Upper Guadiana (SPUG), approved in 2008. This Plan is the main measure to comply with achieving the objective of good quantitative and qualitative status required under the Water Framework Directive (2000). This paper offers a new type of integrated analysis which allows assessing under a common lens the physical, economic and social dimensions of groundwater use in the area. The first objective is to calculate the groundwater footprint of agricultural production in the Upper Guadiana basin and its evolution during 2000‐2008. For this purpose, we have applied the Extended Water Footprint (EWF) methodology ‐a novel approach based on the classical Water Footprint (WF) approach‐ that includes an assessment of the water productivity from an economic and social perspective. Compared to the classical WF, the EWF allows for a more complete overview of the sector, providing new insights for policy decisions (e.g. to define options and possibilities on water re‐allocation in order to achieve both better ecosystem conservation and social equity). The second objective is to use the EWF to compare the existing authorized and non‐authorized or illegal use of water. This allows us to discuss current initiatives by public authorities in relation to the existing frame of water rights

Análisis de la evaluación e interrelación de los parámetros de calidad de las masas de agua de una cuenca : zona media de la Cuenca Hidrográfica del Guadiana

El presente trabajo de investigación, pretende realizar un estudio de la evaluación y control de los parámetros de calidad en varias masas de agua de una misma cuenca. En este sentido, se ha concretado el trabajo en las principales masas de agua de la Cuenca Hidrográfica del Guadiana, donde se encuentran, dos de los principales embalses nacionales; el embalse de La Serena, que con sus 3.219 Hm3 de capacidad es el mayor de España y el embalse de Cijara (6º de mayor capacidad del estado con 1.505 Hm3) El resto de embalses sobre los que versa el presente trabajo están, de una manera u otra forma, ligados geográfica e hidrológicamente a los dos mencionados. Se han analizado y estudiado diferentes series de datos de las características físico-químicas, características físicas, características químicas, características químico-biológicas y características bacteriológicas de los embalses de Cijara, Garcia Sola, Orellana, La Serena y Zújar entre los años 2000 y 2012. De éste análisis se desprende que existen relaciones entre líneas de tendencias de diferentes parámetros para los embalses estudiados de la Zona Media de la Cuenca Hidrográfica del Guadiana durante la serie estudiada. En la misma línea, se concluye que, por un lado existen relaciones entre diferentes parámetros de calidad de un mismo embalse, y por otro, que existen relaciones entre varios parámetros de diferentes embalses, con lo que conocido un valor de un parámetro determinado de un embalse se podría estimar (de forma aproximada) otro parámetro determinado de un embalse distinto de la misma cuenca. The present work of investigation tries to conduct a study of the evaluation and control of the quality parameters in several bodies of water in a basin. In this sense, is has completed work in the main bodies of water of the Guadiana hydrographic basin, where they are, two of the main national reservoirs; the reservoir of La Serena, which with its 3.219 Hm3 capacity is the largest in Spain and the embalse de Cíjara (6th largest State with 1.505 Hm3 capacity). The other reservoirs on which deals with this work are, in one way or another way, linked geographical and hydrologic to the two mentioned. They have been analyzed and studied different data series of physicochemical characteristics, physical characteristics, chemical properties, chemical-biological characteristics and features bacteriological of reservoirs of Cíjara, García single, Orellana, La Serena and Zújar between 2000 and 2012. This analysis shows that there are relations between lines of trends of different parameters for the studied reservoirs in the area average of the river Guadiana basin during the series studied. In the same vein, it is concluded that, on the one hand relationships exist between different quality parameters of a reservoir, and on the other, that there are relationships between various parameters of different reservoirs, with known value for a particular parameter of a reservoir could estimate (in approximate form) other specific parameter of a reservoir other than the same basin.

Analyzing adaptation to climate change in the water and the agricultural sectors in the Spanish Guadiana basin.

1. Introduction: setting and problem definition 2. The Adaptation Pathway –2.1 Stage 1: appraising risks and opportunities •Step 1: Impact analysis •Step 2: Policy analysis •Step 3: Socio-institutional analysis –2.2 Stage 2: appraising and choosing adaptation opt ions •Step 4: identifying and prioritizing adaptation o ptions 3. Conclusions

Supporting decision making under uncertainty: Development of a participatory integrated model for water management in the middle Guadiana river basin.

Following the Integrated Water Resources Management approach, the European Water Framework Directive demands Member States to develop water management plans at the catchment level. Those plans have to integrate the different interests and must be developed with stakeholder participation. To face these requirements, managers need tools to assess the impacts of possible management alternatives on natural and socio-economic systems. These tools should ideally be able to address the complexity and uncertainties of the water system, while serving as a platform for stakeholder participation. The objective of our research was to develop a participatory integrated assessment model, based on the combination of a crop model, an economic model and a participatory Bayesian network, with an application in the middle Guadiana sub-basin, in Spain. The methodology is intended to capture the complexity of water management problems, incorporating the relevant sectors, as well as the relevant scales involved in water management decision making. The integrated model has allowed us testing different management, market and climate change scenarios and assessing the impacts of such scenarios on the natural system (crops), on the socio-economic system (farms) and on the environment (water resources). Finally, this integrated assessment modelling process has allowed stakeholder participation, complying with the main requirements of current European water laws.

Participatory modelling to support decision making in water management under uncertainty: Two comparative case studies in the Guadiana river basin, Spain.

A participatory modelling process has been conducted in two areas of the Guadiana river (the upper and the middle sub-basins), in Spain, with the aim of providing support for decision making in the water management field. The area has a semi-arid climate where irrigated agriculture plays a key role in the economic development of the region and accounts for around 90% of water use. Following the guidelines of the European Water Framework Directive, we promote stakeholder involvement in water management with the aim to achieve an improved understanding of the water system and to encourage the exchange of knowledge and views between stakeholders in order to help building a shared vision of the system. At the same time, the resulting models, which integrate the different sectors and views, provide some insight of the impacts that different management options and possible future scenarios could have. The methodology is based on a Bayesian network combined with an economic model and, in the middle Guadiana sub-basin, with a crop model. The resulting integrated modelling framework is used to simulate possible water policy, market and climate scenarios to find out the impacts of those scenarios on farm income and on the environment. At the end of the modelling process, an evaluation questionnaire was filled by participants in both sub-basins. Results show that this type of processes are found very helpful by stakeholders to improve the system understanding, to understand each others views and to reduce conflict when it exists. In addition, they found the model an extremely useful tool to support management. The graphical interface, the quantitative output and the explicit representation of uncertainty helped stakeholders to better understand the implications of the scenario tested. Finally, the combination of different types of models was also found very useful, as it allowed exploring in detail specific aspects of the water management problems.

How can irrigated agriculture adapt to climate change? Insights from the Guadiana Basin in Spain

Climate change is already affecting many natural systems and human environments worldwide, like the semiarid Guadiana Basin in Spain. This paper illustrates a systematic analysis of climate change adaptation in the Guadiana irrigation farming region. The study applies a solution-oriented diagnostic framework structured along a series of sequential analytical steps. An initial stage integrates economic and hydrologic modeling to evaluate the effects of climate change on the agriculture and water sectors. Next, adaptation measures are identified and prioritized through a stakeholder-based multi-criteria analysis. Finally, a social network analysis identifies key actors and their relationships in climate change adaptation. The study shows that under a severe climate change scenario, water availability could be substantially decreased and drought occurrence will augment. In consequence, farmers will adapt their crops to a lesser amount of water and income gains will diminish, particularly for smallholder farms. Among the various adaptation measures considered, those related to private farming (new crop varieties and modern irrigation technologies) are ranked highest, whereas public-funded hard measures (reservoirs) are lowest and public soft measures (insurance) are ranked middle. In addition, stakeholders highlighted that the most relevant criteria for selecting adaptation plans are environmental protection, financial feasibility and employment creation. Nonetheless, the social network analysis evidenced the need to strengthen the links among the different stakeholder groups to facilitate the implementation of adaptation processes. In sum, the diagnostic framework applied in this research can be considered a valuable tool for guiding and supporting decision making in climate change adaptation and communicating scientific results.

Retos de la planificación hidrológica y la aplicación de la Directiva Marco del Agua en la cuenca del Guadiana

La Directiva Marco del Agua (DMA) (CE, 2000) ha supuesto un importante salto cualitativo en la política del agua europea y española, a través de la introducción del concepto de la Gestión Integrada de los Recursos Hídricos y de una perspectiva fundamentalmente medioambiental en cuanto a la planificación de cuencas hidrográficas. Este nuevo enfoque ofrece importantes oportunidades para una gestión más eficiente y sostenible de los recursos hídricos pero plantea también importantes retos, tanto para las autoridades en esta materia como para los usuarios del agua. La DMA constituye el marco común europeo para la gestión del agua y marca las directrices fundamentales que han de guiar la planificación y la gestión de los recursos hídricos en los Estados miembros. El objetivo de la DMA es alcanzar el buen estado ecológico de las masas de agua en las cuencas europeas en el año 2015, aunque establece distintos plazos hasta el año 2027 en caso de que existan impedimentos para lograr este objetivo.

Optimización del Abonado Nitrogenado en el Melón (Cucumis Melo L.) Tipo Piel de Sapo

Spain is the fifth-largest producer of melon (Cucumis melo L.) and the second exporter in the world. To a national level, Castilla-La Mancha emphasize and, specifically, Ciudad Real, where is cultivated 27% of national area dedicated to this crop and 30% of melon national production. Melon crop is cultivating majority in Ciudad Real and it is mainly located in the Alto Guadiana, where the major aquifers of the region are located, the aquifer 23 or Mancha Occidental and the aquifer 24 or Campo de Montiel, both declared overexploited and vulnerable zones to nitrate pollution from agricultural sources. The problem is exacerbated because in this area, groundwater is the basic resource of supply to populations, and even often the only one. Given the importance of melon in the area, recent research has focused on the irrigation of melon crop. Unfortunately, scant information has been forthcoming on the effect of N fertilizer on melon piel de sapo crop, so it is very important to tackle in a serious study that lead to know the N requirements on the melon crop melon by reducing the risks of contamination by nitrate leaching without affecting productivity and crop quality. In fact, the recommended dose is often subjective and practice is a N overdose. In this situation, the taking of urgent measures to optimize the use of N fertilization is required. To do it, the effect of N in a melon crop, fertirrigated and on plastic mulch, was studied. The treatments consisted in different rates of N supply, considering N fertilizer and N content in irrigation water, so the treatment applied were: 30 (N30), 85 (N85), 112 (N112) and 139 (N139) Kg N ha-1 in 2005; 93 (N93), 243 (N243) and 393 (N393) kg ha-1 in 2006; and 11 (N11), 61 (N61), 95 (N95) and 148 (N148) kg ha-1 in 2007. A randomized complete-block design was used and each treatment was replicated four times. The results showed a significant effect of N on dry biomass and two patterns of growth were observed. On the one hand, a gradual increase in vegetative biomass of the plant, leaves and stem, with increasing N, and on the other hand, an increase of fruit biomass also with increasing N up to a maximum of biomass corresponding to the optimal dose determined in 90 kg ha-1 of N applied, corresponding to 160 kg ha-1 of N available for melon crop, since this optimum dose, the fruit biomass suffers a decline. A significant effect was observed in concentration and N uptake in leaf, steam, fruit and whole plant, increasing in all of them with increasing of N doses. Fast N uptake occurred from 30-35 to 70-80 days after transplanting, coinciding with the fruit development. The N had a clear influence on the melon yield, its components, skin thickness and flesh ratio. The melon yield increased, as the mean fruit weight and number of fruits per m2 with increasing N until achieve an above 95% of the maximum yield when the N applied is 90 kg ha-1 or 160 kg ha-1 of N available. When N exceeds the optimal amount, there is a decline in yield, reducing the mean fruit weight and number of fruits per square meter, and was also observed a decrease in fruit quality by increasing the skin thickness and decrease the flesh ratio, which means an increase in fruit hollowed with excessive N doses. There was a trend for all indexes of N use efficiency (NUE) to decline with increasing N rate. We observed two different behaviours in the calculation result of the NUE; on the one hand, all the efficiency indexes calculated with N applied and N available had an exponential trend, and on the other hand, all the efficiency indexes calculated with N uptake has a linear trend. The linear regression cuts the exponential curve, delimiting a range within which lies the optimum quantity of N. The N leaching as nitrates increased exponentially with the amount of N. The increase of N doses was affected on the N mineralization. There was a negative exponential effect of N available on the mineralization of this element that occurs in the soil during the growing season, calculated from the balances of this element. The study of N leaching for each N rate used, allowed to us to establish several environmental indices related to environmental risk that causes the use of such doses, a simple way for them to be included in the code of Best Management Practices.

Presa de Huesa (Jaén)

La razón primaria para la construcción de la presa objeto del presente proyecto. es la dotación de agua para regadío a la subcuenca del río Guadiana Menor aguas abajo del embalse del Negratín. Además, se cubrirá la creación de 2500 nuevas hectáreas de regadío, principalmente por transformación de los actuales cultivos de secano, debido a que todavía queda cultivo por transformar según las perspectivas fijadas en el Plan Nacional de Regadíos, cuyo primer horizonte es el año 2008 y cuyo objetivo es impulsar un mayor aprovechamiento de las zonas de cultivo así como un incremento de la producción. De forma adicional, y considerando la importante inversión que se va a realizar, se buscará satisfacer el resto de demandas existentes en la zona, tanto de abastecimiento, como industriales (está prevista la implantación de almazaras para aprovechar el cultivo de olivar que posee la zona), y como ecológicas, liberando la zona de futuras necesidades no cubiertas.

Mecanización del tomate de industria. Sistemas de manejo y transporte post-recolección

El sector del tomate de industria tiene un gran potencial en España. Durante los últimos quince años se han venido realizando ensayos de variedades de tomate mecanizables, y estudios y ensayos de mecanización de la recolección, principalmente en las Vegas del Guadiana. Existen muchos factores que afectan a las pérdidas de calidad y de producto durante el transporte y el manejo del fruto a granel. En este trabajo, presentado en su primera versión en el l. Congreso Mundial y 3. Symposium Internacional sobre el Tomate de Industria en Avignon (Francia) se contemplan estos factores y sus causas, y se presentan sistemas para mejorar la calidad y reducir las pérdidas de producto.

Experiencias sobre el cultivo del tomate de industria.

Las Vegas del Guadiana es la principal zona de cultivo de tomate de industria de nuestro país. A lo largo de estas Vegas, que tienen más de 100.000 Has. de regadío, se encuentran instaladas una veintena de industrias conserveras cuya capacidad de transformación se aproxima a - las 500.000 Tm. de tomate fresco. Un porcentaje muy elevado de esta capacidad de transformación está representado por 5 fábricas, de dimensiones considerable que prácticamente no se dedican más que a la transformación de tomate.

Variedades de tomate para recolección mecánica : Ensayos de campo y de laboratorio.

La mecanización del cultivo del tomate para industria ha alcanzado un alto nivel de desarrollo, incluso en nuestro país, en la zona de Vegas del Guadiana y a pesar de los enormes problemas que se arrastran desde hace unos años. Se vienen realizando ensayos que comprenden un amplio abanico de características y que han producido a lo largo de estos años resultados apreciables. Comprenden ensayos de variedades (producción, fechas de siembra, densidad-de siembra, resistencia a rotura y dureza de los frutos, calidad industrial) y de cultivo (fertilización, riego, preparación del terreno, recolección y otras). Se exponen las técnicas de ensayo utilizadas para la determinación de las propiedades mecánicas de los frutos, así como los resultados obtenidos en estas y en el resto de variables estudiadas.

Cultivos hortícolas industriales en las alternativas de regadío: Productividades y mano de obra empleada.

El cultivo de especies hortícolas con destino industrial se considera como el elemento que puede mejorar a corto plazo la productividad económica y de la mano de obra de las explotaciones de regadío de las Vegas del Guadiana. Se estudian cinco alternativas que incluyen en total siete cultivos diferentes y para dos niveles de explotación (5 ha y 20 ha de superficie). Se calculan las necesidades y distribución anuales de la mano de obra, las productividades y la incidencia de la mecanización de la recolección en las especies hortícolas en que ello es hoy posible. Las diferencias en mano de obra empleada entre las distintas alternativas estudiadas son muy importantes, así como las productividades. La incidencia de la mecanización de la recolección tiende a favorecer la introducción de cultivos hortícolas industriales en explotaciones de mayor dimensión, hoy dedicadas a la producción de grano.

16. Conferencia Internacional de Mecanización Agraria.

El cultivo del tomate para industria está concentrado en España en los regadíos de las Vegas del Guadiana. La recolección del tomate, tradicionalmente efectuada a mano, comenzó a mecanizarse a principios de los años 70 cuando las empresas conserveras adquirieron 15 cosechadoras importadas de California, posteriormente, la crisis eco nómica provocó la aparición de mano de obra desocupada que arrincona a las cosechadoras y ha hecho que últimamente se hayan utilizado unas pocas horas al año. También en el Delta del Ebro se dedican algunas hectáreas al cultivo del tomate para industria, así como en ciertas áreas de Andalucía, existiendo varias cosechadoras. Es típico ver, en las fincas en las que trabajan las cosechadoras, ciertas cantidades de tomates que quedan en el suelo; al ser su color rojo muy llamativo, se obtiene la impresión de que la máquina se deja una gran parte de la cosecha. Durante el transporte a fábrica se aprecia que del camión o remolque cae un pequeño chorro de jugo de tomate procedente de los tomates rotos. En los últimos dos años se ha venido realizando un proyecto cooperativo de investigación sobre cultivo y recolección mecánica de tomate de industria, entre el Departamento de Mecanización Agraria y otros Departamentos y Organismos, como el Servicio de Extensión Agraria, Universidad de Evora en Portugal y la Dirección General, de la Producción Agraria, con unos objetivos amplios en su - mayor parte ya superados, y extensamente publicados (v. Bibliografía). En este trabajo se describen los ensayos realizados para cuantificar la calidad del trabajo de las cosechadoras de tomate en términos de porcentajes recogido y dañado. Las experiencias comenzaron en la campaña de 1979 y, en 1983, se ensayó también una nueva máquina fabricada en Portugal, de menor tamaño y precio que las californianas.