Solar-powered irrigation in Nepal: implications for fossil fuel use and groundwater extraction
In recent years, use of solar-powered irrigation pumps (SIPs) has increased significantly in the agricultural plains (terai) of Nepal. Federal and local governments there have subsidized the pumps in an effort to expand irrigated agriculture using renewable energy. We use data from a cross-sectional...
| Autores principales: | , , , |
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| Formato: | Journal Article |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés |
| Publicado: |
IOP Publishing
2024
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/149320 |
| _version_ | 1855534679863590912 |
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| author | Kafle, Kashi Balasubramanya, Soumya Stifel, D. Khadka, Manohara |
| author_browse | Balasubramanya, Soumya Kafle, Kashi Khadka, Manohara Stifel, D. |
| author_facet | Kafle, Kashi Balasubramanya, Soumya Stifel, D. Khadka, Manohara |
| author_sort | Kafle, Kashi |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | In recent years, use of solar-powered irrigation pumps (SIPs) has increased significantly in the agricultural plains (terai) of Nepal. Federal and local governments there have subsidized the pumps in an effort to expand irrigated agriculture using renewable energy. We use data from a cross-sectional survey of 656 farming households in the terai to examine how SIPs affect fossil fuel use and groundwater extraction. We find that most SIP users continued to use their fossil-fuel pumps, as very few completely replaced them with solar pumps. Farmers who received SIPs operated their irrigation pumps more hours than those who did not receive SIPs. Taken together, these findings suggest that groundwater use has increased, as SIP recipients ‘stack’ their pumps. We also find that solar pumps were more likely to be owned by richer households and those with better social networks than those who were poorer and had relative social disadvantage. As Nepal expands the use of solar pumps in agriculture, policy efforts may benefit from managing expectations about the carbon-mitigation potential of this technology, managing groundwater risks as SIP use expands, and making SIPs more inclusive. |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | CGSpace149320 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2024 |
| publishDateRange | 2024 |
| publishDateSort | 2024 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| publisherStr | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1493202025-10-26T12:55:50Z Solar-powered irrigation in Nepal: implications for fossil fuel use and groundwater extraction Kafle, Kashi Balasubramanya, Soumya Stifel, D. Khadka, Manohara solar powered irrigation systems fossil fuels groundwater water extraction pumps energy consumption government subsidies social networks equity farmers households socioeconomic environment policies In recent years, use of solar-powered irrigation pumps (SIPs) has increased significantly in the agricultural plains (terai) of Nepal. Federal and local governments there have subsidized the pumps in an effort to expand irrigated agriculture using renewable energy. We use data from a cross-sectional survey of 656 farming households in the terai to examine how SIPs affect fossil fuel use and groundwater extraction. We find that most SIP users continued to use their fossil-fuel pumps, as very few completely replaced them with solar pumps. Farmers who received SIPs operated their irrigation pumps more hours than those who did not receive SIPs. Taken together, these findings suggest that groundwater use has increased, as SIP recipients ‘stack’ their pumps. We also find that solar pumps were more likely to be owned by richer households and those with better social networks than those who were poorer and had relative social disadvantage. As Nepal expands the use of solar pumps in agriculture, policy efforts may benefit from managing expectations about the carbon-mitigation potential of this technology, managing groundwater risks as SIP use expands, and making SIPs more inclusive. 2024-08-01 2024-07-31T04:01:34Z 2024-07-31T04:01:34Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/149320 en Open Access IOP Publishing Kafle, Kashi; Balasubramanya, Soumya; Stifel, D.; Khadka, Manohara. 2024. Solar-powered irrigation in Nepal: implications for fossil fuel use and groundwater extraction. Environmental Research Letters, 19(8):084012. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ad5f46] |
| spellingShingle | solar powered irrigation systems fossil fuels groundwater water extraction pumps energy consumption government subsidies social networks equity farmers households socioeconomic environment policies Kafle, Kashi Balasubramanya, Soumya Stifel, D. Khadka, Manohara Solar-powered irrigation in Nepal: implications for fossil fuel use and groundwater extraction |
| title | Solar-powered irrigation in Nepal: implications for fossil fuel use and groundwater extraction |
| title_full | Solar-powered irrigation in Nepal: implications for fossil fuel use and groundwater extraction |
| title_fullStr | Solar-powered irrigation in Nepal: implications for fossil fuel use and groundwater extraction |
| title_full_unstemmed | Solar-powered irrigation in Nepal: implications for fossil fuel use and groundwater extraction |
| title_short | Solar-powered irrigation in Nepal: implications for fossil fuel use and groundwater extraction |
| title_sort | solar powered irrigation in nepal implications for fossil fuel use and groundwater extraction |
| topic | solar powered irrigation systems fossil fuels groundwater water extraction pumps energy consumption government subsidies social networks equity farmers households socioeconomic environment policies |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/149320 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT kaflekashi solarpoweredirrigationinnepalimplicationsforfossilfueluseandgroundwaterextraction AT balasubramanyasoumya solarpoweredirrigationinnepalimplicationsforfossilfueluseandgroundwaterextraction AT stifeld solarpoweredirrigationinnepalimplicationsforfossilfueluseandgroundwaterextraction AT khadkamanohara solarpoweredirrigationinnepalimplicationsforfossilfueluseandgroundwaterextraction |