Naeini et al. (2025) A comprehensive approach to enhancing irrigation network management through the water accounting plus framework

Identification

• Journal: Scientific Reports
• Year: 2025
• Date: 2025-12-26
• Authors: Mahkameh Sadat Naeini, B. Nazari, Abbas Sotoodehnia
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-025-33024-4

Research Groups

• Department of Water Sciences and Engineering, Imam Khomeini International University, Qazvin, Iran.
• Department of Irrigation and Reclamation Engineering, Faculty of Agriculture, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Iran.

Short Summary

This study utilizes the Water Accounting Plus (WA+) framework and WaPOR remote sensing data to analyze water fluxes and productivity in the Qazvin Plain irrigation network from 2009 to 2021. The findings reveal significant spatial imbalances and identify that 28% of evapotranspiration is non-beneficial, highlighting substantial opportunities for water-saving interventions.

Objective

• To evaluate the extent to which the WA+ framework can reveal spatial heterogeneity and inefficiencies in water partitioning and productivity within a managed irrigation network to guide targeted management.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Irrigation network scale (Qazvin Plain, Iran), covering a gross area of approximately 80,000 ha (54,000 ha net cultivated area).
• Temporal Scale: 13-year period (water years 2009–2021).

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Water Accounting Plus (WA+) framework (Resource Base, Evapotranspiration, and Land and Water Productivity sheets); ETLook-WaPOR algorithm for flux estimation.
• Data sources: FAO WaPOR V2.1 database (Actual Evapotranspiration, Transpiration, Evaporation, Interception, and Net Primary Production); ground-based synoptic meteorological station data (precipitation); ArcGIS 10.8.2 for spatial analysis.

Main Results

• Water Inflow Composition: Total net inflow was approximately 10,582 million cubic meters (MCM), derived from storage changes (53%), surface inflow (27%), and precipitation (20%).
• Evapotranspiration Partitioning: Transpiration (T) accounted for 80% of total ET. Beneficial ET (productive use) was calculated at 72%, while non-beneficial ET (soil evaporation and 90% of interception) accounted for 28% (928.60 MCM).
• Productivity Indicators: The network achieved an average land productivity of 53,365.41 kgC/ha and a water productivity of 0.86 kgC/m³.
• Spatial Heterogeneity: Analysis showed a distinct east-west disparity; the eastern region consistently exhibited higher evapotranspiration and productivity, while the western region suffered from water deficits.
• Temporal Trends: Precipitation decreased significantly from 231.83 MCM in 2009 to 109.13 MCM in 2021, while actual evapotranspiration showed a gradual increasing trend since 2013.

Contributions

• Shifts the application of the WA+ framework from broad basin/regional scales to the internal dynamics of a managed irrigation network.
• Provides a quantitative basis for identifying "real water savings" by distinguishing between beneficial and non-beneficial consumption at the network level.
• Demonstrates a scalable approach for using open-access remote sensing data to monitor irrigation performance in data-scarce, semi-arid regions.

Funding

• The authors received support to conduct the study, though the manuscript specifies that the support did not include direct funding for the submitted work and provides no specific project codes.

Citation

@article{Naeini2025comprehensive,
  author = {Naeini, Mahkameh Sadat and Nazari, B. and Sotoodehnia, Abbas},
  title = {A comprehensive approach to enhancing irrigation network management through the water accounting plus framework},
  journal = {Scientific Reports},
  year = {2025},
  doi = {10.1038/s41598-025-33024-4},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-33024-4}
}

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