The Impact of Climate Change on Tomato Water Footprint under Irrigation with Saline Water in a Kairouan Irrigated Area (Tunisia Center)

The concept of the water footprint (WF) has not adequately explored the combined effects of climate change and salinity. For this aim, the effects of future climate conditions on tomato WF irrigated with moderately saline water (EC = 2.9 dS m<sup>−1</sup>) were examined, considering an e...

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Main Authors: Khawla Khaskhoussy, Besma Zarai, Marwa Zouari, Zouhair Nasr, Mohamed Hachicha
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-11-01
Series:Horticulturae
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/10/12/1267
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author Khawla Khaskhoussy
Besma Zarai
Marwa Zouari
Zouhair Nasr
Mohamed Hachicha
author_facet Khawla Khaskhoussy
Besma Zarai
Marwa Zouari
Zouhair Nasr
Mohamed Hachicha
author_sort Khawla Khaskhoussy
collection DOAJ
description The concept of the water footprint (WF) has not adequately explored the combined effects of climate change and salinity. For this aim, the effects of future climate conditions on tomato WF irrigated with moderately saline water (EC = 2.9 dS m<sup>−1</sup>) were examined, considering an expected increase in salinity reaching 5.9 dS m<sup>−1</sup> by 2050. Reference evapotranspiration (ETo), effective rainfall (ER), tomato crop evapotranspiration (ETc), leaching requirement (LR), net irrigation requirement (NIR), and tomato yield were estimated using CropWat and AquaCrop models. The blue (WFBlue), green (WFGreen), gray (WFGray), and total WF (TWF) were calculated. Results showed that ETo, ETc, and ER are expected to increase, while tomato yields will show a slight decrease. NIR is expected to increase depending on climate change scenarios and the increasing salinity of water irrigation. Calculated WF components showed significant increases, which consequently led to an increase in WFT exceeding the Tunisian national and regional levels by 15% and 18% between 2023 and 2050 under two scenarios, RCP4.5 and RCP8.5. The results highlighted the importance of WF for developing adaptation strategies to manage limited water resources, while advanced research on a large scale based on smart assessment tools is required to find best practices for water use reduction.
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spelling doaj-art-ffb0629b45f6457a9b522bf47bdb12b52025-08-20T02:53:38ZengMDPI AGHorticulturae2311-75242024-11-011012126710.3390/horticulturae10121267The Impact of Climate Change on Tomato Water Footprint under Irrigation with Saline Water in a Kairouan Irrigated Area (Tunisia Center)Khawla Khaskhoussy0Besma Zarai1Marwa Zouari2Zouhair Nasr3Mohamed Hachicha4Non-Conventional Water Valorization, Water and Forests LR16INRGREF02, National Research Institute of Rural Engineering, University of Carthage, Ariana 2080, TunisiaNon-Conventional Water Valorization, Water and Forests LR16INRGREF02, National Research Institute of Rural Engineering, University of Carthage, Ariana 2080, TunisiaNon-Conventional Water Valorization, Water and Forests LR16INRGREF02, National Research Institute of Rural Engineering, University of Carthage, Ariana 2080, TunisiaNon-Conventional Water Valorization, Water and Forests LR16INRGREF02, National Research Institute of Rural Engineering, University of Carthage, Ariana 2080, TunisiaNon-Conventional Water Valorization, Water and Forests LR16INRGREF02, National Research Institute of Rural Engineering, University of Carthage, Ariana 2080, TunisiaThe concept of the water footprint (WF) has not adequately explored the combined effects of climate change and salinity. For this aim, the effects of future climate conditions on tomato WF irrigated with moderately saline water (EC = 2.9 dS m<sup>−1</sup>) were examined, considering an expected increase in salinity reaching 5.9 dS m<sup>−1</sup> by 2050. Reference evapotranspiration (ETo), effective rainfall (ER), tomato crop evapotranspiration (ETc), leaching requirement (LR), net irrigation requirement (NIR), and tomato yield were estimated using CropWat and AquaCrop models. The blue (WFBlue), green (WFGreen), gray (WFGray), and total WF (TWF) were calculated. Results showed that ETo, ETc, and ER are expected to increase, while tomato yields will show a slight decrease. NIR is expected to increase depending on climate change scenarios and the increasing salinity of water irrigation. Calculated WF components showed significant increases, which consequently led to an increase in WFT exceeding the Tunisian national and regional levels by 15% and 18% between 2023 and 2050 under two scenarios, RCP4.5 and RCP8.5. The results highlighted the importance of WF for developing adaptation strategies to manage limited water resources, while advanced research on a large scale based on smart assessment tools is required to find best practices for water use reduction.https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/10/12/1267climate changesalinitytomatoeswater requirementwater footprint
spellingShingle Khawla Khaskhoussy
Besma Zarai
Marwa Zouari
Zouhair Nasr
Mohamed Hachicha
The Impact of Climate Change on Tomato Water Footprint under Irrigation with Saline Water in a Kairouan Irrigated Area (Tunisia Center)
Horticulturae
climate change
salinity
tomatoes
water requirement
water footprint
title The Impact of Climate Change on Tomato Water Footprint under Irrigation with Saline Water in a Kairouan Irrigated Area (Tunisia Center)
title_full The Impact of Climate Change on Tomato Water Footprint under Irrigation with Saline Water in a Kairouan Irrigated Area (Tunisia Center)
title_fullStr The Impact of Climate Change on Tomato Water Footprint under Irrigation with Saline Water in a Kairouan Irrigated Area (Tunisia Center)
title_full_unstemmed The Impact of Climate Change on Tomato Water Footprint under Irrigation with Saline Water in a Kairouan Irrigated Area (Tunisia Center)
title_short The Impact of Climate Change on Tomato Water Footprint under Irrigation with Saline Water in a Kairouan Irrigated Area (Tunisia Center)
title_sort impact of climate change on tomato water footprint under irrigation with saline water in a kairouan irrigated area tunisia center
topic climate change
salinity
tomatoes
water requirement
water footprint
url https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/10/12/1267
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