Water resource portfolio design for optimum water productivity in agriculture

As the demand for food production increases, it is crucial to reassess current water management practices to improve and optimize water use. In this study, the potential of treated sewage effluent in replacing part of the conventional water resources in the agricultural sector is assessed using a mixed integer linear programming optimization model. The proposed model is applied to a case scenario in the state of Qatar, where water from different sources is allocated to four different agricultural subsectors to minimize the carbon footprint while limiting the water stress to a safe global average level which will improve the water productivity of the agricultural sector. Results demonstrate that the proposed model emits twice as much carbon footprint as compared to the base scenario; however, the water stress level is reduced from 323% to 25%, and the water productivity of the agricultural sector increases from $0.0027 m^-3 to $0.036 m^-3.