Subirrigation as measure for climate change adaptation: from technological development and participatory monitoring to guidelines for implementation

“We are increasingly confronted with drought damage in agriculture and nature (both terrestrial and aquatic). Parallel, the pressure increases on the availability of water for high-grade applications such as the production of drinking water. Strategies are being developed to manage these risks and to secure supplies of freshwater to all water users in the long term. This includes increasing regional self-sufficiency to better match supply with demand for freshwater and improving the utilization of the available freshwater sources. We provide results of pilot studies in which surface water and treated wastewater (both from domestic and industrial origin), that are usually discharged from the drainage basin, are used for local-scale water supply by subirrigation. The use of these freshwater sources for subirrigation purposes may be an effective strategy to contribute to both improved water availability for crops and a reduced pressure on the regional groundwater system. However, besides technological field-scale knowledge, a proper knowledge base for both farmers and regional water authorities about the propagation of the measure through the water system is required for responsible implementation of the measure.”

(Citation: Bartholomeus, R. P. (., de Wit, J. A. (., van Huijgevoort, M. H. J. (., van den Eertwegh, G. A. P. H. (., Breman, B. C. (., Brakkee, E. (., and Worm, P. B. (.: Subirrigation as measure for climate change adaptation: from technological development and participatory monitoring to guidelines for implementation, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-8992, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-8992, 2021)

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