Ending groundwater overdraft without affecting food security

Groundwater development is key to accelerating agricultural growth and to achieving food security in a climate crisis. However, the rapid increase in groundwater exploitation over the past four decades has resulted in depletion and degradation, particularly in regions already facing acute water scar...

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Main Authors: Perez, Nicostrato, Singh, Vartika, Ringler, Claudia, Xie, Hua, Zhu, Tingju, Sutanudjaja, Edwin H., Villholth, Karen G.
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: Springer 2024
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/145304
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author Perez, Nicostrato
Singh, Vartika
Ringler, Claudia
Xie, Hua
Zhu, Tingju
Sutanudjaja, Edwin H.
Villholth, Karen G.
author_browse Perez, Nicostrato
Ringler, Claudia
Singh, Vartika
Sutanudjaja, Edwin H.
Villholth, Karen G.
Xie, Hua
Zhu, Tingju
author_facet Perez, Nicostrato
Singh, Vartika
Ringler, Claudia
Xie, Hua
Zhu, Tingju
Sutanudjaja, Edwin H.
Villholth, Karen G.
author_sort Perez, Nicostrato
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Groundwater development is key to accelerating agricultural growth and to achieving food security in a climate crisis. However, the rapid increase in groundwater exploitation over the past four decades has resulted in depletion and degradation, particularly in regions already facing acute water scarcity, with potential irreversible impacts for food security and economic prosperity. Using a climate–water–food systems modelling framework, we develop exploratory scenarios and find that halting groundwater depletion without complementary policy actions would adversely affect food production and trade, increase food prices and grow the number of people at risk of hunger by 26 million by 2050. Supportive policy interventions in food and water systems such as increasing the effective use of precipitation and investments in agricultural research and development could mitigate most negative effects of sustainable groundwater use on food security. In addition, changing preferences of high-income countries towards less-meat-based diets would marginally alleviate pressures on food price. To safeguard the ability of groundwater systems to realize water and food security objectives amidst climate challenges, comprehensive measures encompassing improved water management practices, advancements in seed technologies and appropriate institutions will be needed.
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publishDate 2024
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spelling CGSpace1453042025-12-08T10:11:39Z Ending groundwater overdraft without affecting food security Perez, Nicostrato Singh, Vartika Ringler, Claudia Xie, Hua Zhu, Tingju Sutanudjaja, Edwin H. Villholth, Karen G. agriculture food security groundwater climate change adaptation Groundwater development is key to accelerating agricultural growth and to achieving food security in a climate crisis. However, the rapid increase in groundwater exploitation over the past four decades has resulted in depletion and degradation, particularly in regions already facing acute water scarcity, with potential irreversible impacts for food security and economic prosperity. Using a climate–water–food systems modelling framework, we develop exploratory scenarios and find that halting groundwater depletion without complementary policy actions would adversely affect food production and trade, increase food prices and grow the number of people at risk of hunger by 26 million by 2050. Supportive policy interventions in food and water systems such as increasing the effective use of precipitation and investments in agricultural research and development could mitigate most negative effects of sustainable groundwater use on food security. In addition, changing preferences of high-income countries towards less-meat-based diets would marginally alleviate pressures on food price. To safeguard the ability of groundwater systems to realize water and food security objectives amidst climate challenges, comprehensive measures encompassing improved water management practices, advancements in seed technologies and appropriate institutions will be needed. 2024-08 2024-06-17T19:23:35Z 2024-06-17T19:23:35Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/145304 en Open Access Springer Perez, Nicostrato; Singh, Vartika; Ringler, Claudia; Xie, Hua; Zhu, Tingju; Sutanudjaja, Edwin H.; and Villholth, Karen G. 2024. Ending groundwater overdraft without affecting food security. Nature Sustainability 7: 1007–1017. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-024-01376-w
spellingShingle agriculture
food security
groundwater
climate change adaptation
Perez, Nicostrato
Singh, Vartika
Ringler, Claudia
Xie, Hua
Zhu, Tingju
Sutanudjaja, Edwin H.
Villholth, Karen G.
Ending groundwater overdraft without affecting food security
title Ending groundwater overdraft without affecting food security
title_full Ending groundwater overdraft without affecting food security
title_fullStr Ending groundwater overdraft without affecting food security
title_full_unstemmed Ending groundwater overdraft without affecting food security
title_short Ending groundwater overdraft without affecting food security
title_sort ending groundwater overdraft without affecting food security
topic agriculture
food security
groundwater
climate change adaptation
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/145304
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