Water Resource Policy Perception And Irrigated Crop Production

Zhangye is located in the middle of Hexi Corridor and an important town on the ancient Silk Road.Heihe River,one of the three inland rivers fed by Qilian Mountain glaciers,flows through Zhangye region,passes Gaotai County and Ejina Banner of Inner Mongolia,and empties into the Juyanhai Lake.Zhangye has a typical desert-oasis natural ecosystem where water resources matter.With very limited rainfall,large evaporation and limited water resources,domestic water requirements for production and living purposes grow every day.This study explores the following three aspects:(1)investigate farmers’cognition degree in agricultural policy,water resources utilization,water management policy,and social development;(2)study the input and output of major irrigated crop production;(3)propose optimization strategies and policy recommendations for the local water resources management.Overall,the thesis aims at promoting the sustainable development of water resources management in the semi-arid Zhangye region.In order to study the above research issues,this article used a stratified random sampling approach and focused on farmers in Ganzhou District,Linze County and Gaotai County of Zhangye,Gansu Province.We finally selected 29 administrative villages and a total of 400 valid questionnaires were generated.Statistical analysis software Stata was used to conduct frequency analysis,descriptive analysis,and Cronbach’alpha using Likert scale data on agricultural policy perceptions,water resource utilization,water management policy and social development as well as analyzing the input and output of major irrigated crops.We investigated the current status of the local agricultural water management and provide strategies and recommendations for policy design.The research results are as follows:(1)We analyze the perception and cognition on agricultural policy and water resources utilization,water management policy and social development as well as the policy needs of farmers.We find that most farmers are not satisfied with the growth of agricultural income(72.25%).In terms of attitudes,most farmers are supportive and willing to participate in the government water resources policy implementation(96.25%),but they are not familiar with the policy(99.75%).From the subjective willingness,farmers show interest in the sustainable development of agricultural water ecology(97.25%);farmers are satisfied with total agricultural irrigation water use(95.5%),but unsatisfied with the advancement status of irrigation systems and the current price of agricultural water(86%and 95.5%,respectively).(2)We analyze the input and output of irrigated crops.We find that there are more farmers in corn-for-grain(53.68%)and corn-for-seed(30.79%),but much more surface water(3352 m~3/ha for corn-for-grain,3083 m~3/ha for corn-for-seed)and groundwater(2786 m~3/ha for corn-for-grain,1464 m~3/ha for corn-for-seed)are consumed for corn-for-grain.The output is moderate(22174 kg/ha of corn-for-grain,15495 kg/ha of corn-for-seed).The output-input ratio is moderate(corn-for-grain 1.74,corn-for-seed 2.28),which leads to moderate profitability.In contrast,although fewer farmers grow seed vegetables(5%),other vegetables(11.58%),and greenhouse vegetables(12.89%),the output-input ratio is higher(2.85,2.2,and 2.29,respectively),indicating a higher benefit from the vegetable production.Combining with the current water management policy,this research suggests that the local government may regulate the operation of water use associations(WUAs),further improve the registration of WUAs,revise the management system of WUAs in irrigation districts,and increase farmers’participation in water resources management.Secondly,other helpful efforts include reinforcing the government financial support,strengthening technical support for water rights trading and water management,and further improving monitoring and measurement equipment,introducing advanced irrigation facilities,and promoting water-saving agriculture.Furthermore,government can regulate the agricultural produce markets,improve water price and transaction mechanisms,and strengthen the reform of water taxes and fees,agricultural water prices,and progressive above-quota pricing system for non-residential water use.Lastly,policy design should incorporate promoting the development of aquatic ecology including residue-back-to-farm and sewage treatment,which may help better manage and control rational allocation of water resources.We must strictly limit the allocation of water resources that do not comply with national industrial policies and promote the sustainable development of water resources in the semi-arid region.