Staple crops responsible for half of world's water scarcity
Environmental research news – by GreenWise staff
27th September 2011
Staple crops, including wheat, rice and maize, account for just under half of the world's water scarcity, a new study has found.
Researchers studied water consumption and land use of 160 crops worldwide and concluded that, collectively,
wheat,
rice,
cotton,
maize and
sugar cane account for 49 per cent of
water scarcity and 42 per cent of
land resource stress caused by worldwide
crop production. The research, conducted under the
European Union PROSUITE (PROspective SUstaİnability Assessment of TEchnologies) project, was carried out to provide precise estimates of water and land use and their environmental impacts in the face of growing water scarcity around the world.
Agricultural production is already responsible for 85 per cent of the world’s consumption of freshwater, and population growth and demand for food is expected to double that consumption by 2050, alongside increasing land use for agriculture.
Other findingsThe study modelled global water consumption and land use during the cultivation phase of 160 crops. It found that while staple crops collectively were impacting significantly on land and water, on a global average, maize performs better than rice and wheat in terms of their combined impact on these resources. However, it also noted substantial differences on how crops impact on water and land depending on location. Wheat production in central and northern Europe, for example, has minimal impact on water scarcity because it is mostly rain fed. On the other hand, in arid regions such as Texas in the US or northern India, it was found to have a much larger impact on water scarcity.
The study also identified crops that are contributing to water shortages, but are of low economic value. These included oil crops, such as castor and safflower, grown in developing countries.
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