Delineation of Agricultural Water Rights to Individual Households in Regions Overexploiting Groundwater for Irrigation

Abstract

【Objective】 Promote the rational use of groundwater resources and solve the problem of groundwater overexploitation. 【Method】 This paper conducts an economic analysis on the property of the "tragedy of the commons" over-exploitation of groundwater in the well-irrigated area, proposes a solution to the "tragedy of the commons" in the over-exploitation of groundwater in the well-irrigated area, and studies the initial distribution model of agricultural water rights in the well-irrigated area. It also analyzes the benefits and costs of household-based agricultural water rights in well-irrigated areas, and puts forward improvement suggestions for household-based agricultural water rights in well-irrigated areas. 【Result】 The overexploitation of groundwater is related to the "unrestricted" water intake of farmers in well irrigation areas. The existing agricultural water rights in well irrigation areas belong to the "village group" water rights system, and the definition of water rights is vague. Farmers use excessive groundwater for farmland irrigation, leading to the "tragedy of the commons" of groundwater overexploitation in well irrigation areas. The high cost of defining agricultural water rights in well-irrigated areas is the root cause of the unclear definition of agricultural water rights in well-irrigated areas. 【Conclusion】 The clear definition of agricultural water rights to households is helpful to solve the problem of groundwater overexploitation "the tragedy of the commons". In the process of defining water rights, measures should be taken to improve the construction of modern metering facilities, establish farmers' water use associations, introduce contractual water-saving management models and Measures such as establishing a transfer mechanism for surplus water rights in well-irrigated areas can reduce the cost of defining agricultural water rights, thereby promoting the definition of agricultural water rights in well-irrigated areas to households, improving the efficiency of agricultural water rights in well-irrigated areas, and optimizing the allocation of groundwater resources in well-irrigated areas.

Keywords

• definition of water rights
• groundwater overexploitation
• well-irrigated areas
• tragedy of the commons