In a meeting held at IICA Headquarters, Colombian experts shared their country’s experience with the management of water for the agricultural sector.
San Jose, 10 November 2015 (IICA). The water footprint makes it possible to identify agricultural production’s impact on the environment, so discussing the subject is essential to develop a sustainable vision of water management and promote cooperation among the sectors involved.
This was one of the points highlighted by Colombian experts taking part in a forum in Costa Rica organized by the Flagship Project “Competitiveness and Sustainability of Agricultural Chains” of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) and the EUROCLIMA-IICA Project that is being implemented with funds from the European Union (EU).
The water footprint is the volume of water used in the production of goods and services. There are three different types: the green footprint (rainwater), the blue footprint (rivers, lakes and aquifers), and the gray footprint (polluted water).
The experts explained that while reducing the amount of water consumed in agriculture is important, it is also essential to identify and understand how the water source used can have an impact on the marketing of the products involved.
Agriculture that does not use irrigation systems (green footprint) enjoys the bonus of value added when it comes to marketing, as many consumers seek to buy sustainable products. Although the green footprint is important in Latin America, many farmers do not understand the basic concepts of proper water management.
“Water is a priority issue for the sustainability of agricultural chains, and knowing how to analyze water consumption is key to improving the way in which water is used throughout chains,” observed Viviana Palmieri, an IICA specialist in the management of technological innovation.
“Understanding the water footprint can lead companies and the agricultural sector to work together, involving producers in that common ground, so they can share the challenges and solutions with respect to water,” explained the regional director of Good Stuff International for Latin America and the Caribbean, Diego Arévalo.
Colombia: pioneers of the new concept
During the forum, experts gave details of Colombia’s experience with the issue. In that country, specialists mapped the water footprints of different sectors, including agriculture, and then used the information to plan agricultural activities at the watershed level, adopting an area-based and environmental approach, and to promote public policies for watershed conservation.
“It was shown that proper agricultural management reduces water consumption. In the case of rice growing, 80% less water entered the plots, and the water footprint was reduced by between 20% and 40%,” explained Nilton Díaz, a researcher from the International Center for Tropical Agriculture.
The specialists agreed that understanding and analyzing the water footprint can result in more efficient agriculture and help combat climate change, which is making production in the sector increasingly difficult.
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