Impacts of farming practices on water resources sustainability for arid lands: the case of Abu Dhabi

ABSTRACT

The agricultural expansion in Abu Dhabi Emirate has increased the pressure on the emirate’s groundwater reserves, with projections that they will be completely depleted within a few decades. This study quantitatively examines the impacts of current farming practices on the sustainability of groundwater resources. Participants from 344 farms were surveyed. The study found that 76% of the farms rely on groundwater as their main source of water, with significant occurrence of low water productivity. The findings highlight the need to develop and implement effective strategies to maintain the sustainability of groundwater and agricultural development.

KEYWORDS:

• Groundwater sustainability
• agriculture policy
• arid lands
• Abu Dhabi farming
• food security

Acknowledgments

The authors thank all the survey respondents (farmers and farm owners) who devoted their time to answering the detailed survey questions.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed here.