Evaluating improvements in irrigation efficiency as a salinity mitigation option in the South Australian Riverland

Anna Heaney, Stephen Beare and Rosalyn Bell

Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, 2001, vol. 45, issue 3, 17

Abstract: A modelling framework incorporating relationships between agricultural production and groundwater hydrology was developed to estimate the benefits of improved irrigation efficiency in the Riverland of South Australia. Increased irrigation efficiency can generate external benefits to downstream users through reduced discharge of saline groundwater. In the Riverland these benefits are large in comparison to the direct value of the irrigation water. However, the non‐exclusive and site‐specific nature of these benefits makes it difficult to fully internalise them through market instruments such as salinity credits. Achieving optimal irrigation efficiency is likely to require institutional arrangements that promote collective investment and public expenditure.

Keywords: Land; Economics/Use (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2001
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (10)

Downloads: (external link)
https://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/117573/files/1467-8489.00153.pdf (application/pdf)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ags:aareaj:117573

DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.117573

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics from Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society Contact information at EDIRC.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by AgEcon Search ().