Henning Bjornlund

ABSTRACT This paper analyses farmers’ adoption of hard and soft technology in relation to irrigation technologies, production changes and water management changes in Alberta, Canada. Greater significance was found in modelling the adoption of hard technology (such as irrigation infrastructure technologies) than modelling the adoption of soft technology (water management or irrigation area changes). Overall, some of the most important influences include farm size, irrigation technology, off-farm income and being a member of an irrigation district. Few socio-economic variables were found to be important. Adoption of soft technology most likely leads to greater water efficiencies and in the future greater attention should be paid to a wider variety of factors and influences in order to model water management and trading behaviour. Keywords: hard and soft irrigation water technology, water management skills, water trading, Alberta, Canada. 1 Introduction Due to increased water scarcity and escalating environmental problems across the globe there is an increased push to reduce water use and improve water use efficiency, especially for irrigation [1]. Some areas in Canada have faced increasing water shortages since the early 1990s, with irrigators traditionally being the largest water consumer. The majority of irrigated land in Canada is in Alberta (64%), with most of this irrigation in the South Saskatchewan River Basin (SSRB) and it accounts for 71% of consumptive use of surface water [2].

ABSTRACT Increasing water extraction, a lack of environmental flows and escalating urban demand for water has intensified the political need to find acceptable ways of sharing available water. This paper studies the public's views towards water sharing and policy options in four locations in the South Saskatchewan River Basin (SSRB) in Alberta, Canada, each experiencing differing levels of resource dependence. Two locations are in the southern region of the SSRB which is most affected by scarcity and environmental degradation due to the current level of water extraction; while the two locations in the northern region have far less exposure to these problems. Regression analysis on policy preferences for water sharing found that people who live in areas that are more urban (measured by population density and resource dependence) tend to support policies that prioritize the environment, as well as policies that vest a high level of control in government. People who live in areas that are more rural tend to support policies that protect existing water right holders. Other important influences on people's views include age, income, membership of environmental and water groups and having had a rural childhood. Other analysis suggests that the differing levels of scarcity and environmental degradation in different locations are associated with policy preferences, especially when it comes to policies aiming at reducing existing licence holders' access to water in order to secure more water for the environment.

ABSTRACT During the 2000s there has been severe and ongoing drought in the southern Murray Darling Basin, with irrigators facing considerable cuts to their water allocations corresponding with a period of falling commodity prices. Ongoing work has suggested that strategies such as the buying and selling of allocation and entitlement water, the buying and selling of land, reducing the area under irrigation, changing crops and adopting more efficient irrigation infrastructure all have played differing roles in allowing farmers to cope with drought and manage farm viability. This study analyses the influences on irrigator strategy choice during this period of drought; in particular it seeks to answer why some irrigators choose to follow mainly intensive strategies (such as buying land/water, increasing irrigation area and adopting infrastructure), while others choose predominantly defensive strategies (selling land/water and decreasing irrigation area). Two key irrigation areas are studied, the Riverland in South Australian and the Goulburn Murray Irrigation District in Victoria, using 624 telephone surveys from 2008-09. The two irrigation areas are not homogenous, and there are different influences on irrigators’ strategies. Irrigator characteristics, farm characteristics, attitudes and off-farm income all play important roles. Keywords: drought strategies, water, Australia, irrigators, intensive, defensive. 1 Introduction Water scarcity is intensifying in many irrigation regions in semiarid parts of the world. This increased scarcity is partly caused by an increase in and intensification of drought events but is also policy induced as governments have

ABSTRACT Up to one fifth of all irrigators in the Murray-Darling Basin had sold water entitlements to the Australian Government’s Restoring the Balance program by 2012. The sale of water entitlements can have many direct and indirect consequences for irrigators, irrigator organisations, tourism, rural communities and the environment. This study specifically focuses on the consequences for irrigators, and provides an overview of the reasons why farmers sell water, and fluctuations in water use by irrigators over time. It predicts that, on average, irrigators that have sold water to the Australian Government in the southern Murray-Darling Basin have sold all their surplus water. As a consequence, without further water management or farm changes, they are likely to face water shortages three to four years every decade in the future. Keywords: water entitlements, Australia, irrigators, water use.

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ABSTRACT Sustainable irrigation Alberta perspectives H. Bjornlund1,2 & W. Xu1 1University of Lethbridge, Canada 2University of South Australia, Australia Abstract The problem of water scarcity is emerging in Southern Alberta, and the environment starts to feel its impact. Among 33 main stem river reaches in the South Saskatchewan River Basin (SSRB), 22 of them are rated as ‘moderately impacted’, five as heavily impacted, and three as degraded due to the current level of water extraction. At the same time, the region experiences significant population and economic growth. Community values and attitudes toward the environment are also changing, with increased demand for leaving more water in the rivers for improved ecosystem health and recreational benefits. In response to these transformations, the SSRB was closed in 2005 and no new applications for water licenses will be accepted. As a result, policy pressures are mounting on using existing licenses more efficiently. There is an urgent need to find ways of sharing the water already allocated and to leave more water in the rivers to meet water conservation objectives. Because it currently controls 70–80% of all allocated water within the SSRB, irrigation clearly needs to play a critical role in meeting Alberta’s future water allocation objectives. For irrigation to remain sustainable it needs to be more efficient and productive with its water use and to find ways of sharing its water with the rest of the community. Otherwise, political pressure will mount for non-voluntary sharing arrangements, which could result in an unsustainable irrigation industry. Recent attempts to share irrigation water in Alberta have been subject to persistent opposition. This paper will discuss the recent development in Alberta and will explore the reasons for the opposition both from irrigators and non-irrigators. The paper is based on seven major surveys conducted during the 2006–12 period. Keywords: sustainable irrigation water sharing, Alberta, Canada.

Chapter 5 ELEMENTS OF AN INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF WATER FOR POVERTY REDUCTION IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES Henning Bjornlund University of South Australia, Australia Jennifer McKay University of South Australia, Australia 1. ...

Tradeable water entitlement (TWE) policies and water laws in South Australia, Victoria, and New South Wales are very different, reflecting the local economic, geographical, and historical circumstances. Such introspectivity is not uncommon, but in resource development it creates particular problems. Prior to the involvement by the Council of Australian Governments in 1994, no attempts have been made to consider other

ABSTRACT This study uses factor analysis to analyse the results of a telephone survey undertaken in the Riverland, South Australia (n = 324) and the Goulburn Murray Irrigation District of Victoria (n = 300) in 2008–09, a time of severe drought in the southern Murray Darling Basin. It reports the results of 56 different attitudinal questions, covering the dimensions of family, profit, land, water, community, lifestyle, and technology/innovation. Factor analysis was used to identify the underlying value constructs from these questions, with five main factors identified. They were named Succession (variables all related to the dimension of family); Commerce (related to the profitability of the farm business); Tradition (related to the lifestyle of farming); Environment (related to the environment); and Technology (related to adopting new technologies). Our findings were very similar to other typology research conducted with irrigators in different areas of the Murray Darling Basin. Keywords: irrigator attitudes, values, water, Australia, factor analysis. 1 Introduction Private land owners are critical to the sustainable management of natural resources. Consequently, efforts are growing to better understand the motivations, needs, and behaviours of these private land managers, as sustainable land management often requires changes in their land management practices. However, understanding land managers’ decisions is neither straight-forward nor simple. While a number of studies have attempted to identify land managers’

ABSTRACT The need for mechanisms to facilitate a reallocation of water to meet demands from new users and to improve the environmental conditions of many rivers in semiarid regions of the world is increasing. Given past allocation policies, which have vested control of often more than 80% of water resources with irrigators, this will require a reallocation of water out of irrigation. Such reallocation can take place in many ways but is likely to cause pain for irrigators and their communities. This paper investigates the acceptance of water reallocation policies in the context of Alberta, Canada. We explore the influences of demographic and attitudes on the acceptance of water reallocation policies and investigate whether such acceptance differs between urban and rural residents. We find that urban dwellers are more likely to favour government intervention while rural dwellers are more likely to support policies that aim to protect irrigators’ water rights. We also find that people, both in urban and rural areas, can be divided into three groups depending on their values and attitudes towards water and the environment: 1) pro-environment; 2) pro-economic and 3) undecided. The urban resident is more likely to belong to the pro-environmental group while rural residents are more likely to belong to the undecided group. Keywords: water reallocation, environmental needs, rural urban differences. 1 Introduction There is growing pressure on many water resources throughout the world, especially in semiarid regions. Population and economic growth as well as urbanization have caused water extraction to increase to critical levels so that many of the worlds’ major rivers no longer flow into the oceans during long

The debate about farm adjustment and structural change within Australian agriculture has been persistent for many years. Within this journal Lawrence (1992b, 1994) and Gow (1994, 1996) have had an exchange of views from two opposing trenches - the 'neo-classical ...

ABSTRACT Farming is still primarily a family concern in Australia. Having a farm successor in place is important as it is associated with the likelihood of the current farmer adapting to external conditions and hence may have long-term implications for the structure and profitability of agriculture. We used current and historical surveys across a number of irrigation districts in the southern Murray-Darling Basin to study the changing nature of farm succession. Irrigation farms with (and without) a named successor have decreased over time, while uncertainty about succession has increased rapidly. There was strong evidence that the identification of a successor is positively associated with the current and future management of farms. Those with no successor in place are more likely to go into a period of stagnation (such as selling land, not adopting efficient irrigation infrastructure and not increasing irrigated area). One key finding is that increasing uncertainty about succession among irrigated farmers in recent years has been influenced by issues surrounding water security in the Murray-Darling Basin.

ABSTRACT Future water policy strategies to address low environmental flows in the River Murray in Australia may include the continued development of programmes for irrigators to donate water. We identify and control for the interdependence between irrigators' recognition of the need for increased flows and their stated intention to donate seasonal allocations over time. The increased uncertainty of seasonal water allocations played one of the largest roles in negatively influencing both recognition and intention. An increase in the opportunity cost of water donation over time was negatively associated with intention. The identification of significant willingness to donate allocations supports the movement towards a more adaptive water policy approach.

ABSTRACT Climate change is likely to require irrigators in Australia's Murray-Darling Basin to cope with less water, which will require ongoing farm adjustment. Possible incremental adjustment strategies include expansive and accommodating responses, such as irrigators buying land and water, increasing their irrigated area, changing crop mix and adopting efficient infrastructure. Contractive strategies include selling land and water, and decreasing their irrigated area. Using historical surveys we provide a comparison of irrigators’ planned and actual strategies over the past fifteen years, thereby offering a strong foundation to support analysing future adaptation strategies. We explore influences associated with farm adjustment strategies, and in particular the role that climate change beliefs play. Farmers convinced that climate change is occurring are more likely to plan accommodating, but not expansive, strategies. The relationship between climate change belief and adopting various adaptive strategies was found to be often endogenous, especially for accommodating strategies. Such results suggest the need for irrigation farming policies to be targeted at improving irrigators’ adaptability to manage water variability, and its link with farm future viability.