Assessment of water footprint based on estimated crop evapotranspiration for paddy, sugarcane and banana under semi-arid climate

Abstract

Climate change impact has adverse effects on water use in crop production. A better crop water use indicators to decide upon the water use policies of that region or country is necessary. Water footprint indicates relationship between water use and crop yield. Rice, sugarcane and banana are the major crops which require a significant amount of water in Lalgudi block of Trichy district in Tamil Nadu. This study analyzed the total water requirement, blue and green crop evapotranspiration, blue and green crop water use and blue, green and total water footprint for paddy, sugarcane and banana in Lalgudi block. The crop water footprint estimated by using FAO56-Kc for paddy, sugarcane and banana was 2173 m3 ton-1, 304 m3/ton and 501 m3/ton respectively. And by using ClimAdj-Kc, the crop water footprint for paddy, sugarcane and banana was 2228 m3 ton-1, 307 m3/tonand 503 m3/tonrespectively. It was found that quantity of water used for producing per ton of yield was higher in paddy in comparison to banana and sugarcane.

Keywords

• Banana
• Paddy
• Sugarcane
• Water Footprint