The following is an interview that appeared in Brazil’s AIBA Rural Magazine (pages 8-13), translated from Portuguese to English.
Everardo Mantovani has a Masters in Agricultural Engineering from the Federal University of Viçosa (UFV); PhD in Agronomy - Irrigation Management, from the University of Córdoba-Spain. He has been a professor at UFV since 1983, and is currently a Senior Professor. He was the creator and partner of the company IRRIGER (now part of the Valmont group) and is the general director of the company Irriplus Tecnologia e Equipamentos Científicos Ltda. He has numerous published books, book chapters, works in scientific magazines, congresses and technical magazines. Speaker at the main events of irrigation and irrigated agriculture in Brazil. He works directly with irrigation management and engineering and is the general coordinator of the study of water potential in the western region of Bahia.
AIBA RURAL »
Two years ago, applied research on the water potential of Western Bahia began, including studies on land use and occupation, surface and groundwater. After this time and the first phase of the research, what are the partial results?
EVERARDO MANTOVANI »
We have advanced a lot in the integrated knowledge of the region's water resources, we obtained field information through collections and technical visits, we integrated them with existing data and with satellite images in order to know in detail the land occupation in the region, the climate and identify the evolution of the agricultural area in general, especially the irrigated area. We have improved a lot in the knowledge of superficial water availability and developed a modeling process in order to know the dimension and water availability of the Urucuia aquifer, the interaction with surface waters (rivers) and simulate the evolution of the depth of the water table in different underground abstraction strategies. On a technical basis, the annual water recharge to the aquifer was also defined on the basis of rainfall and the history of soil occupation, information necessary to define the flow available to capture the aquifer. It is also important to mention the OBahia system (simplification of Western Bahia), which is a data and results platform available on the web and which allows access to the main information and results of the study. Access to this platform, the atlas, the final report of the first stage and other information are available on the AIBA website (http://aiba.org.br/). In addition, we managed to develop an extensive discussion and debate about the project, its objectives and results, involving all the main stakeholders and involved in the theme. With that, we help to build a technical and scientific debate, based on information and facts and not the “guess and the emotion.”
All of this was only possible through the partnership with AIBA in the development of the work, through the performance of a multidisciplinary team with a lot of focus, dedication, ethics, experience and the ability to propose objectives according to the understanding of the demands, aptitude and desires of the company. region as a whole. In this sense, I would like to highlight Professor Marcos Heil Costa, one of the most renowned scientists at UFV who was responsible for the area of land use, climatic aspects, survey of the irrigated area and territorial management, professors Eduardo Antônio Gomes Marques (UFV) and Gerson Cardoso da Silva Júnior (UFRJ), responsible for hydrogeological topics and who put all the experience of long years of research work, projects and teaching in the service of knowing and modeling in detail, the Urucuia aquifer, and Professor Aziz Galvão da Silva Júnior, who works on the issues of economic evaluation and governance, involving national and international partnerships and who played a fundamental role in the entire structuring and conduct of the study. It is important to highlight the work to characterize the infiltration of water in the soil, coordinated by Professor Luiz Gustavo Henri-ques do Amaral from UFOB, and the indispensable support of a large number of interns, scholarship holders, graduate students and researchers working on the project. Finally, I would like to highlight a great contribution of the project in the incorporation of parallel and very important objectives, as is the case of the implementation of an integrated monitoring network - which we will comment on later - and the irrigated agriculture project in small areas. postage. It is well known that the large producer has mechanisms that favor his development in the irrigation area, on the other hand, small producers need support to access the most efficient and appropriate technologies. In this sense, several projects were initiated under the coordination of AIBA, with the support of the companies Naan-Dan-Jain and Valley, and work is being done to obtain the necessary resources for its expansion.
AIBA RURAL »
What was the methodology applied and what is the importance of this study in the Western region of Bahia?
EVERARDO MANTOVANI »
The methodology adopted in the studies involves what is most modern from a technical and scientific point of view. Based on available information (secondary), an intense data collection process was carried out in the field (primary) and through satellite images. Based on this information, technologies were used that would allow a deep analysis on a scientific basis, but without forgetting the applicability of the results to improve the management and sustainable development of the West region of Bahia. Thus, all analysis and results went through a sieve of internal and external discussions, so there is no doubt about their representativeness, the need for greater detail and applicability. The project, in its demand for AIBA and conception by UFV, deals with very important themes for the region, but it’s real importance was only shown with the development of studies, through its scientifically-free analyzes, of the format methodological and results that favor an integrated understanding of the situation, strategic partnerships with the government of the state of Bahia (INEMA, SEMA, SEAGRI, SIHS, UNEB) and growing partnerships with federal institutions (UFRJ, ANA, CPRM, EMBRAPA , UFOB), international institutions like the University of Nebraska, USA, with basin associations and committees etc.
Undoubtedly, it is worth highlighting the democratic character adopted in the provision of information, in the broad debate of methodology, content and results, allowing a complete and unrestricted dissemination of information. This last point was and is fundamental to create confidence in the project and its results, neutralizing the unfounded and malicious criticisms to which every project of this size is subject. In conclusion, the project has been enabling information, analysis, discussions and proposals that contribute effectively to the management of water resources and can bring about the sustainable development of irrigated agriculture, in the Western region of Bahia.
AIBA RURAL »
The objective of the study is to make the quantitative and qualitative survey of the water available for multiple uses, including irrigation. Based on the first results and products delivered, what is the background on the region's water availability?
EVERARDO MANTOVANI »
The study, with the objective characterization of the evolution of the occupation of area in the region, allowed a deep analysis, identifying and separating the effects of the impact of the current use of water in the various activities, and of the droughts that devastated the region in the last years. In this sense, as irrigation is the most important user of water resources in the region, hydrographic basins with significant growth in the irrigated area (% of irrigated area in relation to the basin area) were identified, thus separating the region in two situations. well-defined: (1) areas with potential for the use of water resources and (2) areas with great potential for growth in the use of water resources. The important thing about the aforementioned separation is that the two require different actions, that is, the regions that are in the situation (1), which represent a maximum of 18% of the area in the West region of Bahia, need measures that restrict and / or better organize the use of water resources through governance actions based on information, user involvement, smart solutions to access water, etc. On the other hand, the regions that are in the situation (2), representing at least 82% of the region's area, need actions that can bring sustainable regional development, promoting technically irrigated agriculture and with water supply systems on new bases, that is broader and based on current knowledge and technological level.
AIBA RURAL »
Research is now moving to its second stage, when data must be presented with more accurate and relevant information on water availability in the region. Will the results indicate the possibility of expanding or reducing irrigated activity in the region?
EVERARDO MANTOVANI »
Phase 1 of the study was carried out in a record time of two years, considering the complexity and breadth of the study. In this period, there has been a great deal of evolution in knowledge, in the demands for deepening certain themes and in the way of conducting the proposals for the necessary actions. Thus, the second stage was structured to deepen many of the issues raised, promoting debates, analyzes and necessary actions. It is a fact that the West region of Bahia is one of the most important regions in the world in terms of water availability, as in addition to having a wide and well-distributed hydrography, it also has the Urucuia aquifer, which is very important in quantity and quality of water . We know that today the region irrigates an area of 192 thousand hectares and grows, on average, about 11 thousand hectares per year. Based on the information available and compared to other regions with some similarity, I am of the opinion that there is a strong possibility for the expansion of irrigated agriculture, whose sustainability limits, mainly water, we will present a proposal with secure bases at the end of the year. phase 2 of this study, at the beginning of the year 2021.
AIBA RURAL »
Irrigation is, of course, one of the ways to expand agricultural production and is capable of guaranteeing food security for an increasingly large population. However, the activity is sometimes very popular. Could you, who are specialists in the field, clarify about the advantages and disadvantages of the system?
EVERARDO MANTOVANI »
Irrigation is the technology that allows the implantation of irrigated agriculture, that is, continuous planting in the same area regardless of the distribution of rains, being, in this sense, unique in the capacity to generate, in an integral way, expressive gains in production, productivity, generation of jobs, income generation and, in general, in the socioeconomic development of a region. In this way, irrigated agriculture intensifies production, optimizing the use of land and assets (machines, processing systems, infrastructure in general, etc.), generating benefits that explain the strong demand for its growth and development. It is important to consider that this new irrigated agriculture, connected with sustainability and, due to its great capacity to intensify the production of food, fibers and agroenergy without expanding the production area, has a strong strategic connotation for development. This understanding is fundamental in the debate on the availability and use of water resources. Thus, for the development of irrigated agriculture, it is necessary to have safe access to water in surface and underground sources, in order to be able to capture, conduct and distribute to plants. Even if we consider that less than 1% of the applied water is the final part of the production that is removed from the land, and that 99% of the water returns to the atmosphere through evapotranspiration in its purest form and totally free from any pollution, there is a need the need to use water resources properly, because as we have no control over where the water will return in the form of rain, imbalances can occur.
In this way, irrigated agriculture has been the center of debates in many forums, since, on the one hand, it is one of the most important instruments for the intensive production of food, fibers and agro-energy - with quality, quantity and in the right place - for another, it requires large volumes of water. How can the different demands for water be made compatible? How to define water use processes that are understood by everyone involved in the system? Undoubtedly, the answer is not simple, but it involves developing actions that can obtain, organize and systematize scientific information related to water resources, develop modern and efficient management models that allow an adequate distribution for different users. and to monitor the uses and availability to generate actions, in real time that can face risk situations, mainly due to climatic variability and in particular the amount and intensity of rains. In summary, the demands necessary to balance the issue and allow the sustainable development of irrigation are the objectives and products of our project.
AIBA RURAL »
We know the positive impacts of irrigation on the Brazilian economy. But, what are the environmental impacts? How is irrigation conducted in Western Bahia?
EVERARDO MANTOVANI »
It is very important that anyone working in the irrigation area has in-depth knowledge of the impacts that can be caused by irrigated agriculture and, thus, can focus their work in order to avoid or minimize them as much as possible. The irrigated agriculture with so many known and previously mentioned benefits, uses a basic input which is water, in this sense the major and main environmental impact that can occur is the use of volumes of water above that available in the source of water used. Understanding, by this use, that performed by the set of users and, due to this availability, a percentage of the expected flow (surface water) or minimum depth (groundwater) at the point of capture within statistical levels of water security, defined in a technical and scientific way. This entire analysis is defined by a set of federal and state laws and regulations such as Law n. 9433, on January 8, 1997, which institutes the National Water Resources Policy and creates the National Water Resources Management System and in short defines: “Water is a public property, a limited and endowed natural resource of economic value, being its primary use, in conditions of scarcity, for human consumption and animal feed ”.
The issue of water availability concerns everyone, society is increasingly connected to the situation due to the series of water crises that we have had, mainly caused by the decrease in rainfall, but also by poor management in many cases. Within this theme, I would like to highlight the irrigating producer, who depends on this availability to enable his high investment in the irrigated production structure (project, electrical and civil infrastructure, equipment, labor, etc.). In this sense, producers are the main interested in understanding and taking care of this availability, and it was they, organized at AIBA, who requested this study. Thus, it is undoubtedly important to always have up-to-date information on the availability of water resources, as cyclical or permanent changes can bring problems and at this point our study is inserted, which seeks to bring information that can allow the maintenance and expansion of irrigated agriculture. in a sustainable way. Completing the answer, we have the question of how irrigation is conducted in Western Bahia. In the case of large-scale business irrigation, the region is very privileged, due to the topography, extension of the units, investment capacity etc. as it uses the most modern systems available in the world market, as are the central pivots and has one of the most higher indexes of technified management of irrigation decisions on a daily basis. Thus, the region is increasingly combining highly efficient water application equipment with the right decision of the moment and the amount of water to be applied.
I have lived in the region for many years and am witness to the great evolution that has taken place in the awareness of irrigating producers in relation to the need to optimize the use of water, generating production with water and environmental sustainability in general. It is also important to remember that in Brazil another basic irrigation input is electric energy, with the use of diesel engines in some situations and with the forecast of massive use of photovoltaic energy in the future. It is important to understand that the energy input is linked to the water input, since almost all the energy needed is used to capture, conduct and distribute water to plants. With the cost of energy increasingly higher, the need to irrigate efficiently goes beyond the environmental issue and enters the economic area, that is, it is impracticable for the irrigating producer to structure his irrigated production system without the high efficiency of application. and water use. To give an idea of the size of the problem, only in terms of electricity costs does a central pivot normally found in the region (100 ha) require an investment on average of around two thousand reais for around R $ 2,000.00 / turn). This average value, which is very high, can vary from one to three thousand reais (R $ 1,000.00 to 3,000.00 / turn) depending on the quality of the project, the equipment, the operation and the management adopted. Like this, little care is given by irrigating producers, who are aware of this situation and have structured their production systems with these premises.
AIBA RURAL »
Do you believe that, after a thorough analysis of the research results, including the systematization of data available from different institutions on the region, it will be possible to expand the irrigated area that today represents 8% of the total production area, through the contribution of the Urucuia Aquifer System (SAU)?
EVERARDO MANTOVANI »
In my work as a professional in teaching and research and also as an entrepreneur in the irrigation and irrigated agriculture sector, I have always tried to be consistent in order to enhance the development of irrigation in a region while at the same time being concerned with environmental, social and economic sustainability. That said, my opinion is that there is great potential to expand irrigated agriculture to higher levels than the current 192 thousand ha, which corresponds to 8% of the mentioned production area. If, on the one hand, there are basins with a high occupancy rate that need to be cleaned from the point of view of the use of water resources, they represent, at most, 18% of the area of the region. Thus, we have over 82% of the territory of the West region of Bahia, which has great potential for growth in the irrigated area and, thus, in irrigated agriculture. The values we can reach are part of the work in progress, but one thing is certain, we must treat surface and underground water resources as the same source, as we have a very big connection between them.
It is worth remembering that irrigated agriculture has a different role in promoting regional development, generating development (production, jobs and income) with one of the lowest investment levels. Many studies in different regions prove the significant gain from the economic and social point of view. For example, it is estimated that 8% of the irrigated area in the West region of Bahia generates 34.4% of the gross production value. It is a very significant aggregation of values.
AIBA RURAL »
Before starting the study in the Western region of Bahia, the bodies and entities supporting the research sought references in other parts of the world. Representatives of the institutions that are leading or supporting this research went to the North American state of Nebraska to learn about the reality there. Why did Nebraska and what experience did they bring from there? What is their contribution to the process of investigating the water potential of Western Bahia?
EVERARDO MANTOVANI »
The availability of reliable data and information is essential for the success of sustainable management systems in agriculture. The governance model for water resources in Nebraska is a world reference when considering the irrigated area (3.5 million ha), the socioeconomic importance of irrigated agriculture in this American state and, mainly, innovation and efficiency science in the management of surface and groundwater. The Nebraska state government is primarily responsible for managing surface water use and quality, and local districts, called NRDs (Natural Resource Disasters), manage the use of groundwater pumped from the Ogallala aquifer. Rural producers actively participate in NRDs, which have the autonomy to draft laws and implement monitoring and control systems. Efficient information systems that use an extensive data collection network to feed decision systems and models, which generate reliable information for decision making in public agencies, NRDs and rural properties. Governance system of water resources must, necessarily, consider local specificities and, for this reason, they must not be copied. However, getting to know and analyzing successful experiences is highly opportune, especially for an important region in the area of agribusiness such as Western Bahia. In Nebraska, 85% of irrigated agriculture uses central pivot technology with pumped water from the aquifer. Ogallala for about 100 thousand wells, and about 95% of the water removed from the aquifer is used for irrigation. Periodic measurements inform whether withdrawal levels are within the authorization for use and the possibilities of the aquifer at that location and time. This entire integration process was only possible in partnership with the Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute (DWFI) from the University of Nebraska Lincoln (DWFI-UNL) who has been an important partner in technical visits, scientific exchange, discussions of the project's strategy and its results. They have a worldwide presence that allows a vision privileged to support us in this work in the West region of Bahia, and the management of the partnership is made by the Director of Research Professor Christopher Neale, who besides being a renowned irrigation teacher, knows and has experience with irrigation management and irrigated agriculture in Brazil and in several countries around the world.
AIBA RURAL »
In your opinion, what is the importance of water resources monitoring actions (superficial and sub-terrestrial) for water security in the West region?
EVERARDO MANTOVANI»
It is a consensus that, in the development of sustainable resource use water resources in a given region, there is a need for a reliable network for permanent monitoring of water availability. Such network allows the monitoring of water availability throughout the year, assisting in the definition and adjustment of strategies to be adopted in situations of irregular rainfall and variable demand from different users, in addition to future demands. maintenance and expansion of irrigated agriculture, the monitoring network generates information that ensures that the volumes pumped are adequate with the availability at all times, allowing an adequate debate on the topic based on knowledge and, with this, generating tranquility of society as a whole and especially to the producer who invests in the production system. In this sense, our project together with AIBA and DWFI / UNL, have supported INEMA / SEMA in structuring and implementing an efficient and integrated monitoring network for efficient management and safe use of surface and underground water resources in the western region of Bahia.