Teng et al. (2025) Can alternating irrigation technology drive water saving in agricultural irrigation? Evidence from China

Identification

• Journal: Agricultural Water Management
• Year: 2025
• Date: 2025-10-08
• Authors: K. F. Teng, Shilong Meng, Yaqing Liu
• DOI: 10.1016/j.agwat.2025.109867

Research Groups

• College of Economics and Management, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun, China
• Business School, Huaiyin Institute of Technology, Huaian, China

Short Summary

This study empirically investigates the macro-level impact of Alternating Irrigation Technology (AIT) on agricultural irrigation water consumption (AIWC) across 31 provinces in China from 2004 to 2023. It finds that AIT significantly reduces AIWC, primarily by expanding effective irrigation areas and improving the effective irrigation rate of farmland, with the water-saving effect being more pronounced in major grain-producing areas and regions with higher R&D investment.

Objective

• To systematically analyze the impact of Alternating Irrigation Technology (AIT) on agricultural irrigation water consumption (AIWC) and its underlying mechanisms from a macro perspective in China.
• To test the hypothesis that the application of AIT can reduce AIWC.
• To investigate whether AIT indirectly reduces AIWC by expanding effective irrigation areas and by increasing the effective irrigation rate of farmland.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: 31 provinces in mainland China.
• Temporal Scale: 2004 to 2023.

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Two-way fixed effects model, two-stage least squares (2SLS) with Bartik instrumental variables, and 2SLS with lagged variables as instrumental variables for endogeneity mitigation.
• Data sources:
  • Agricultural Irrigation Water Consumption (AIWC): Calculated using per mu irrigation water use (from China Water Resources Bureau) and effectively irrigated area (from National Bureau of Statistics).
  • Alternating Irrigation Technology (AIT) application and diffusion: Quantified using authorized patent data from the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) based on specific IPC codes, considering within-province application and inter-provincial diffusion.
  • Temperature and precipitation data: National Tibetan Plateau Scientific Data Center.
  • Control variables (e.g., planting area, cultivated land area, water conservancy capacity, human capital, mechanical input): China Statistical Yearbook, National Bureau of Statistics website, and provincial/municipal statistical yearbooks.

Main Results

• The application of Alternating Irrigation Technology (AIT) significantly reduces agricultural irrigation water consumption (AIWC) across Chinese provinces.
• Both within-province AIT application (coefficient: -0.042, p < 0.05) and inter-provincial AIT diffusion (coefficient: -0.018, p < 0.01) contribute to agricultural irrigation water-saving.
• The water-saving effect of AIT is particularly prominent in major grain-producing areas (coefficient: -0.012, p < 0.01) compared to non-major grain-producing areas (not significant).
• AIT based on invention patents shows a stronger water-saving effect (coefficient: -0.132, p < 0.01) than utility model patents (coefficient: -0.018, p < 0.01), but both types contribute to water-saving.
• The water-saving effect of AIT is significant in provinces with high R&D investment (coefficient: -0.018, p < 0.01) but not significant in provinces with low R&D investment, indicating that insufficient R&D investment can hinder the technology's effectiveness.
• AIT achieves water-saving goals primarily through two mechanisms:
  • Expanding effective irrigation areas (coefficient: 0.043, p < 0.05), leading to scale benefits.
  • Improving the effective irrigation rate of farmland (coefficient: 0.002, p < 0.01), leading to technical benefits.

Contributions

• Provides the first macro-level empirical evidence on the impact of Alternating Irrigation Technology (AIT) on agricultural irrigation water consumption (AIWC) in China, addressing a gap in existing literature that primarily focused on micro-level experiments.
• Reveals significant regional heterogeneity in AIT's water-saving effects, highlighting its particular effectiveness in major grain-producing areas.
• Demonstrates the dual-drive mechanism of AIT's water-saving effect, stemming from both within-province technology application and inter-provincial technology diffusion, enriching the theoretical framework of agricultural technology promotion.
• Emphasizes the critical role of Research and Development (R&D) investment in realizing AIT's water-saving potential, suggesting that the lack of significant effects is often linked to insufficient R&D rather than the technology type itself.
• Identifies and quantifies the two main mechanisms through which AIT reduces AIWC: expanding effective irrigation areas (scale benefits) and improving the effective irrigation rate of farmland (technical benefits).

Funding

• Postgraduate Research & Practice Innovation Program of Jiangsu Province (Project number: SJCX25_2201)
• Science and Technology Development Plan of Jilin Province (Project number: 20240701114FG)
• China Academy of Engineering institute of Land Cooperation Consulting Project (Project number: JL2024-22)

Citation

@article{Teng2025Can,
  author = {Teng, K. F. and Meng, Shilong and Liu, Yaqing},
  title = {Can alternating irrigation technology drive water saving in agricultural irrigation? Evidence from China},
  journal = {Agricultural Water Management},
  year = {2025},
  doi = {10.1016/j.agwat.2025.109867},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agwat.2025.109867}
}