Evaluating the Performance of Irrigation Using Remote Sensing Data and the Budyko Hypothesis: A Case Study in Northwest China
Evaluating the performance of irrigation water use is essential for efficient and sustainable water resource management. However, existing approaches often lack systematic quantification of irrigation water consumption and fail to differentiate between the use of precipitation and anthropogenic appr...
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MDPI AG
2025-03-01
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| Series: | Remote Sensing |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/17/6/1085 |
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| author | Dingwang Zhou Chaolei Zheng Li Jia Massimo Menenti Jing Lu Qiting Chen |
| author_facet | Dingwang Zhou Chaolei Zheng Li Jia Massimo Menenti Jing Lu Qiting Chen |
| author_sort | Dingwang Zhou |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Evaluating the performance of irrigation water use is essential for efficient and sustainable water resource management. However, existing approaches often lack systematic quantification of irrigation water consumption and fail to differentiate between the use of precipitation and anthropogenic appropriation of water flows. Building on the green–blue water concept, consumptive water use, assumed equal to actual evapotranspiration (ET<sub>a</sub>), was partitioned into green ET (GET) and blue ET (BET) using remote sensing data and the Budyko hypothesis. A novel BET metric of consumptive irrigation water use was developed and applied to the irrigated lands in northwest China to evaluate the performance of irrigation from 2001 to 2021. The results showed that in terms of total available water resources (precipitation + gross irrigation water (GIW)) compared to irrigation water demand, estimated as reference evapotranspiration (ET<sub>0</sub>), Ningxia has sufficient water supply to meet irrigation demand, while the Hexi Corridor faces increasing risks of unsustainable water use. The Hetao irrigation scheme has shifted from a fragile supply–demand balance to a situation where water demand far exceeds availability. In Xinjiang, the balance between water supply and demand is tight. Furthermore, when considering the available water (GIW) relative to the net irrigation water demand (ET<sub>0</sub>-GET), the Hexi Corridor faces significant water deficits, and Ningxia and Xinjiang are close to meeting local irrigation water demands by relying on current water availability and efficient irrigation practices. It is noteworthy that the BET remains lower than the GIW in northwest China (excluding the Hexi Corridor in recent years). The ratio of the BET to GIW is an estimate of the scheme irrigation efficiency, which was equal to 0.54 for all irrigation schemes taken together. In addition, the irrigation water use efficiency, estimated as the ratio of BET to net irrigation water, was evaluated in detail, and it was found that in the last 10 years the irrigation water use efficiency improved in Ningxia, the Hetao irrigation scheme, and Xinjiang. However, the Hexi Corridor continues to face severe net irrigation water deficits, suggesting the likelihood of groundwater use to sustain irrigated agriculture. BET innovatively separates consumptive use of precipitation (green water) and consumptive use of irrigation (blue water), a critical advancement beyond conventional approaches’ estimates that merge these distinct hydrological components to help quantifying water use efficiency. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ba9e2c901b1f40ad9f155fa0c97657f3 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2072-4292 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Remote Sensing |
| spelling | doaj-art-ba9e2c901b1f40ad9f155fa0c97657f32025-08-20T03:44:03ZengMDPI AGRemote Sensing2072-42922025-03-01176108510.3390/rs17061085Evaluating the Performance of Irrigation Using Remote Sensing Data and the Budyko Hypothesis: A Case Study in Northwest ChinaDingwang Zhou0Chaolei Zheng1Li Jia2Massimo Menenti3Jing Lu4Qiting Chen5State Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth, Aerospace Information Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth, Aerospace Information Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth, Aerospace Information Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth, Aerospace Information Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth, Aerospace Information Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth, Aerospace Information Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaEvaluating the performance of irrigation water use is essential for efficient and sustainable water resource management. However, existing approaches often lack systematic quantification of irrigation water consumption and fail to differentiate between the use of precipitation and anthropogenic appropriation of water flows. Building on the green–blue water concept, consumptive water use, assumed equal to actual evapotranspiration (ET<sub>a</sub>), was partitioned into green ET (GET) and blue ET (BET) using remote sensing data and the Budyko hypothesis. A novel BET metric of consumptive irrigation water use was developed and applied to the irrigated lands in northwest China to evaluate the performance of irrigation from 2001 to 2021. The results showed that in terms of total available water resources (precipitation + gross irrigation water (GIW)) compared to irrigation water demand, estimated as reference evapotranspiration (ET<sub>0</sub>), Ningxia has sufficient water supply to meet irrigation demand, while the Hexi Corridor faces increasing risks of unsustainable water use. The Hetao irrigation scheme has shifted from a fragile supply–demand balance to a situation where water demand far exceeds availability. In Xinjiang, the balance between water supply and demand is tight. Furthermore, when considering the available water (GIW) relative to the net irrigation water demand (ET<sub>0</sub>-GET), the Hexi Corridor faces significant water deficits, and Ningxia and Xinjiang are close to meeting local irrigation water demands by relying on current water availability and efficient irrigation practices. It is noteworthy that the BET remains lower than the GIW in northwest China (excluding the Hexi Corridor in recent years). The ratio of the BET to GIW is an estimate of the scheme irrigation efficiency, which was equal to 0.54 for all irrigation schemes taken together. In addition, the irrigation water use efficiency, estimated as the ratio of BET to net irrigation water, was evaluated in detail, and it was found that in the last 10 years the irrigation water use efficiency improved in Ningxia, the Hetao irrigation scheme, and Xinjiang. However, the Hexi Corridor continues to face severe net irrigation water deficits, suggesting the likelihood of groundwater use to sustain irrigated agriculture. BET innovatively separates consumptive use of precipitation (green water) and consumptive use of irrigation (blue water), a critical advancement beyond conventional approaches’ estimates that merge these distinct hydrological components to help quantifying water use efficiency.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/17/6/1085performance of irrigation useblue ETBudyko hypothesisgreen ETETMonitor |
| spellingShingle | Dingwang Zhou Chaolei Zheng Li Jia Massimo Menenti Jing Lu Qiting Chen Evaluating the Performance of Irrigation Using Remote Sensing Data and the Budyko Hypothesis: A Case Study in Northwest China Remote Sensing performance of irrigation use blue ET Budyko hypothesis green ET ETMonitor |
| title | Evaluating the Performance of Irrigation Using Remote Sensing Data and the Budyko Hypothesis: A Case Study in Northwest China |
| title_full | Evaluating the Performance of Irrigation Using Remote Sensing Data and the Budyko Hypothesis: A Case Study in Northwest China |
| title_fullStr | Evaluating the Performance of Irrigation Using Remote Sensing Data and the Budyko Hypothesis: A Case Study in Northwest China |
| title_full_unstemmed | Evaluating the Performance of Irrigation Using Remote Sensing Data and the Budyko Hypothesis: A Case Study in Northwest China |
| title_short | Evaluating the Performance of Irrigation Using Remote Sensing Data and the Budyko Hypothesis: A Case Study in Northwest China |
| title_sort | evaluating the performance of irrigation using remote sensing data and the budyko hypothesis a case study in northwest china |
| topic | performance of irrigation use blue ET Budyko hypothesis green ET ETMonitor |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/17/6/1085 |
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