Irrigation implementation promotes increases in salinity and nitrate concentration in the lower reaches of the Cidacos River (Navarre, Spain)

dc.contributor.authorMerchán Elena, Daniel
dc.contributor.authorSanz, L.
dc.contributor.authorAlfaro, A.
dc.contributor.authorPérez, I.
dc.contributor.authorGoñi Garatea, Mikel
dc.contributor.authorSolsona, F.
dc.contributor.authorHernández García, Iker
dc.contributor.authorPérez, C.
dc.contributor.authorCasalí Sarasíbar, Javier
dc.contributor.departmentIngenieríaes_ES
dc.contributor.departmentIngeniaritzaeu
dc.date.accessioned2020-05-29T07:13:40Z
dc.date.available2022-03-01T00:00:15Z
dc.date.issued2020
dc.description.abstractThe shift from rainfed to irrigated agriculture is associated with a change in the fertilization rates due to increases in expected production and the fact of growing more N demanding crops. In addition, the circulation of irrigation return flows (IRF) mobilizes soluble salts stored in soils or geological materials. As a consequence, it implies severe modifications in the dynamics and total amount of soluble salts and nitrogen exported, especially in semi-arid watersheds. In this study, long-term data collected by the regional authorities was used to assess the effects of irrigation implementation on salinity (using electrical conductivity, EC, as a proxy) and nitrate concentration (NO3 −) after the transformation of ca. 77 km2 from rainfed to irrigated agriculture in the Cidacos River (CR) watershed. The results indicate that water quality in the lower reaches of the CR was significantly modified after the diffuse incorporation of IRF. In contrast, neither EC nor NO3 − were different in those monitoring stations whose contributing watersheds did not include transformed area. In addition, the temporal dynamics in the analysed variables shifted from a rainfed land signal typical in the region to an irrigated land signal, and the hydrochemical type of the CR shifted from mixed-to-Na+-mixed-to-HCO3 – to mostly Na+-mixed type, typical of waters affected by IRF in the region. Groundwater EC and NO3 − also increased in those wells located within the irrigated area. Although there are great uncertainties in the actual amount of salt and N reaching the CR via IRF, the expected contribution of waste water spilled into the CR is minor in comparison to other sources, mostly agricultural sources in the case of N. The observed changes have promoted the designation of the lower reaches of the CR as 'affected' by NO3 − pollution, and the whole CR watershed as a Nitrate Vulnerable Zone, with the emergent question about whether irrigation implementation as carried out currently in Spain is against the environmental objectives of the Water Framework Directive.en
dc.description.sponsorshipThis work received funding from 'Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad' (Government of Spain) via the Research Project CGL2015-64284-C2-1-R and support to D. Merchán ('Juan de la Cierva - Formación' program, FJCI-2015-24920 ) and I. Hernández-García (FPI program, BES-2016-078786 ). It also benefited from the LIFE-Nitrates Project (LIFE+10 ENV/ES/478 ; www.life-nitratos.eu).en
dc.embargo.lift2022-03-01
dc.embargo.terms2022-03-01
dc.format.extent39 p.
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdfen
dc.identifier.doi10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.135701
dc.identifier.issn0048-9697
dc.identifier.urihttps://academica-e.unavarra.es/handle/2454/36995
dc.language.isoengen
dc.publisherElsevieren
dc.relation.ispartofScience of The Total Environment, 2020, 706, 135701en
dc.relation.projectIDinfo:eu-repo/grantAgreement/MINECO//CGL2015-64284-C2-1-R/ES/
dc.relation.publisherversionhttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.135701
dc.rights© 2019 Elsevier B.V. This manuscript version is made available under the CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0en
dc.rights.accessRightsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
dc.subjectLand use changeen
dc.subjectIrrigation return flowsen
dc.subjectWater qualityen
dc.subjectSalinization of water bodiesen
dc.subjectNitrate pollutionen
dc.titleIrrigation implementation promotes increases in salinity and nitrate concentration in the lower reaches of the Cidacos River (Navarre, Spain)en
dc.typeinfo:eu-repo/semantics/article
dc.type.versioninfo:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersion
dspace.entity.typePublication
relation.isAuthorOfPublication2b384316-333b-4c24-8fad-d9844d03df76
relation.isAuthorOfPublicatione3d87a7d-494a-4457-be74-a7f48f023336
relation.isAuthorOfPublicationeaa98eab-2fed-4668-bc9f-fb5526fe7761
relation.isAuthorOfPublicatione3cfccd0-e410-4e7e-a9f6-c3825f946a14
relation.isAuthorOfPublication.latestForDiscovery2b384316-333b-4c24-8fad-d9844d03df76

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