scholarly journals Extension Participants and Nonparticipants Differ in Water Conservation Normative Beliefs, Intentions, and Behaviors

2016 ◽  
Vol 26 (6) ◽  
pp. 852-861 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura A. Warner ◽  
Anil Kumar Chaudhary ◽  
Sebastian Galindo-Gonzalez
Keyword(s):  
Water Use ◽  
Water Conservation ◽  
Urban Landscape ◽  
Limited Resource ◽  
Extension Education ◽  
Extension Programs ◽  
Landscape Water ◽  
Outdoor Water Use ◽  
Uncertain Future ◽  
Irrigation Practices

Uncertain future availability of water is one of the most critical current issues, and outdoor water use contributes substantially to the strain on water resources. Much of the nation’s outdoor water use is through urban landscape irrigation, and one solution for conservation of this limited resource is to change home landscape irrigation practices. Thus, households that use landscape irrigation are an important audience for Florida extension programs. Complex, statewide water conservation programs are difficult to evaluate because of program variability and limited resources, yet evaluation is an important task that reveals the success, or failure, of a program. This study compared factors between people who have or have not engaged in Florida extension programs. The targeting outcomes of programs model and theory of planned behavior were used as a basis for measuring different levels of possible outcomes. There were no differences in attitudes toward good irrigation practices and perceived ability to adopt them between extension participants and nonparticipants. There were differences between the two groups in perceived normative attitudes, intent to adopt good irrigation practices, and actual engagement in landscape water conservation practices. Findings demonstrate a relationship exists between these characteristics and engagement with extension. The greatest differences were stronger social norms and more engagement in complex conservation behaviors among people who had attended extension programs. It is not known how much externalities play a role in leading certain people to seek out extension education. Extension professionals should use the findings of this study to target nonparticipants and deliver more impactful programs.

scholarly journals Water Conservation in the Urban Landscape

HortScience ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 549E-549
Author(s):  
Roger Kjelgren ◽  
Larry Rupp
Keyword(s):  
Water Use ◽  
Water Conservation ◽  
Woody Plants ◽  
Urban Landscape ◽  
Reference Evapotranspiration ◽  
Stomatal Closure ◽  
Pressure Gradients ◽  
Evaporative Demand ◽  
Landscape Water ◽  
Peak Summer

As populations become increasingly urbanized, landscape water conservation becomes more important. Landscape water consumption can increase municipal water use up to 4-fold during the growing season, and account for half the total yearly water use. Landscape water conservation is important in decreasing peak summer water demand to reduce the strain on delivery systems, and to reduce total demand so that development of new sources can be forestalled. Potential water savings from existing landscapes can be estimated by comparing historical usage gleaned from water meter readings to plant water needs estimated from reference evapotranspiration. Estimating water needs for turf is straightforward because of the few species involved and the uniformity of turf landscapes. Estimating water needs of woody plants is more difficult because of the heterogeneity of woody plants and how they are used, and woody plants respond to evaporative demand differently than turfgrass. Many woody plants will actually use less water as reference evapotranspiration increases due to stomatal closure induced by high leaf-air vapor pressure gradients. Landscape water is then conserved by either applying water more effectively in scheduling when and how long to irrigate based on estimating water use again from reference evapotranspiration, or by replacing areas in turfgrass with plants more-adapted to the existing conditions. Encouraging water conservation by end users is the final and largest challenge. Automated irrigation systems makes wasting water easy, while conserving water takes more effort. Education is the key to successful landscape water conservation.

Improving scheduling, benchmarking and forecasting to boost irrigation productivity

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Western ◽  
Danlu Guo ◽  
Arash Parehkar ◽  
Zitian Gao ◽  
Dongryeol Ryu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Conservation ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Limited Resource ◽  
Irrigation Scheduling ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Multiple Sources ◽  
Project Outcomes ◽  
Crop Types ◽  
Irrigation Practices

<p>Irrigation water is an expensive and limited resource, and optimized water use is beneficial to saving water while boosting productivity. This project aims to develop integrated irrigation scheduling, benchmarking and forecasting capabilities to inform optimal irrigation practices and the suitable tools and information required for this. To achieve this, we designed a three-year project which combines simulations and field-scale monitoring. One aspect of this project is to develop a comprehensive uncertainty framework to better understand the uncertainty in scheduling, which is informed by soil water models, along with multiple sources of information such as soil, crop, weather and field management. Besides, we are also conducting large-scale benchmarking study to identify better irrigation practices across multiple farms, fields, crop types and seasons. The project outcomes will be integrated with our partner, Rubicon’s water ordering portal and adopted by most Australian irrigation farmers, with significant long-term benefits expected in agricultural production and water conservation. </p>

scholarly journals Periodic Versus Real-time Adjustment of a Leaching Fraction-based Microirrigation Schedule for Container-grown Plants

HortScience ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeff B. Million ◽  
Thomas H. Yeager
Keyword(s):  
Plant Growth ◽  
Real Time ◽  
Water Use ◽  
Water Conservation ◽  
Irrigation System ◽  
Irrigation Schedule ◽  
Irrigation Scheduling ◽  
Leaching Fraction ◽  
Reduced Water ◽  
Irrigation Practices

Two experiments were conducted to determine if a leaching fraction (LF)-guided irrigation practice with fixed irrigation run times between LF tests (LF_FX) could be improved by making additional adjustments to irrigation run times based on real-time weather information, including rain, using an evapotranspiration-based irrigation scheduling program for container production (LF_ET). The effect of the two irrigation practices on plant growth and water use was tested at three target LF values (10%, 20%, and 40%). For both Viburnum odoratissimum (Expt. 1) and Podocarpus macrophyllus (Expt. 2) grown in 36-cm-diameter containers with spray-stake microirrigation, the change in plant size was unaffected by irrigation treatments. LF_ET reduced water use by 10% compared with LF_FX in Expt. 2 but had no effect (P < 0.05) on water use in Expt. 1. Decreasing the target LF from 40% to 20% reduced water use 28% in both experiments and this effect was similar for both irrigation practices. For the irrigation system and irrigation schedule used in these experiments, we concluded that an LF-guided irrigation schedule with a target LF of 10% resulted in plant growth similar to one with a target LF of 40% and that the addition of a real-time weather adjustment to irrigation run times provided little or no improvement in water conservation compared with a periodic adjustment based solely on LF testing.

scholarly journals Using County Typology Informed by Population Size to Understand Key Audience Characteristics for Tailored Landscape Water Conservation Programs

EDIS ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura A. Sanagorski Warner ◽  
John M. Diaz
Keyword(s):  
Water Conservation ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Metropolitan Areas ◽  
Landscape Management ◽  
Conservation Strategies ◽  
Conservation Practices ◽  
Extension Programs ◽  
Conservation Programs ◽  
Homeowners Association ◽  
Landscape Water

A major priority for UF/IFAS is the promotion of science-based landscape management practices to conserve water resources. This publication outlines specific opportunities that exist for tailoring landscape water conservation programs to Floridians who live in more and less metropolitan areas. People who live in more populated counties in Florida tend to have longer residency tenure, are more likely to live within a community governed by a homeowners’ association, and to hire a landscape professional. This audience demonstrates increased engagement with specific water conservation practices as compared to other conservation strategies. Understanding these differences among audience subgroups can provide insights to guide impactful Extension programs.

Water conservation education as a tool to empower water users to reduce water use

2015 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 202-207 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Hoy ◽  
S. Stelli
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Water Use ◽  
Water Conservation ◽  
Limited Resource ◽  
Conservation Education ◽  
Conservation Strategies ◽  
Human Consumption ◽  
Awareness Campaigns ◽  
Water Users ◽  
Education And Awareness

There is a finite supply of global fresh water available for human consumption, which is in great demand from both humans and the environment. As technology and populations increase, so do the demands and pressure on this limited resource. Demand far too often outstrips supply, requiring authorities to impose restrictions on water use. Recent research undertaken by Rand Water, in the Rand Water supply area (in and around Gauteng, South Africa) points to the desire from end users to be empowered with knowledge to make their own decisions on water use reduction, rather than to have authoritative restrictions imposed on them. This observation indicates the importance of water conservation education and awareness campaigns to facilitate the reduction in water consumption by consumers, and suggests that education is a priority in the implementation of water conservation strategies.

scholarly journals Considering Participants’ Personal Wellness in Conservation-Based Extension Programs: Opportunities for Integrative Development and Evaluation

EDIS ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
John Diaz ◽  
Erica Odera ◽  
Laura Warner
Keyword(s):  
Water Resource ◽  
Water Conservation ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Educational Programs ◽  
Extension Programs ◽  
Environmental Behaviors ◽  
Water Users ◽  
Residential Landscape ◽  
Personal Wellness ◽  
Landscape Water

Extension organizations are at the forefront of water resource issues, using educational programs to drive participant behaviors towards water conservation. The effectiveness of these efforts centers on designing programs with considerations of the factors that will change relevant decisions and behaviors among residential landscape water users. We conducted a statewide study to explore the concept of wellness and well-being, and these characteristics' relationship to water conservation behaviors. Our results show that psychosocial measures influence current and future residential landscape water conservation behaviors differently. Perception of well-being is the more consistent predictor for both current behaviors and future intentions. These results demonstrate an opportunity for those focused on environmental behaviors to pair and embed programs focused on personal well-being to empower communities to work toward achieving conservation goals.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc370

scholarly journals Balancing Landscape Preferences and Water Conservation in a Desert Community

2004 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 72-77 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jane E. Spinti ◽  
Rolston St. Hilaire ◽  
Dawn VanLeeuwen
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Water Use ◽  
Water Conservation ◽  
Desert Plants ◽  
Property Value ◽  
Desert Environment ◽  
Water Shortages ◽  
Residential Landscapes ◽  
Landscape Water ◽  
Willingness To Use

We surveyed homeowners with residential landscapes in Las Cruces, N.M., to determine design features participants valued in their landscapes, their attitudes toward the landscape use of desert plants and opinions on factors that would encourage respondents to reduce landscape water use. We also determined whether the willingness to use desert plants in their landscapes related to the length of residency in the southwestern United States. At least 98% of respondents landscaped to enhance the appearance of their home and increase their property value. About half (50.6%) of the participants strongly agreed or agreed that the main reason to landscape was to display their landscape preferences. Many participants indicated they would use desert plants to landscape their front yard (80.3%) and back yard (56.3%), but relatively lower percentages of participants actually had desert landscapes in their front yard and back yard. Regardless of their property value, respondents were more likely to use desert plants in their backyard the shorter their stay in the desert. Data revealed that participants rank water shortages as the factor that would most likely cause them to reduce the amount of water they applied to their landscapes. We conclude that homeowners report willingness to use desert plants but desert-type landscapes are not a widespread feature of managed residential landscapes. Furthermore, water shortages and the length of time respondents spent in a desert environment would most likely influence water use in their landscapes.

Quantifying Urban Landscape Water Conservation Potential Using High Resolution Remote Sensing and GIS

2011 ◽  
Vol 77 (11) ◽  
pp. 1113-1122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fayek A. Farag ◽  
Christopher M.U. Neale ◽  
Roger K. Kjelgren ◽  
Joanna Endter-Wada
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
High Resolution ◽  
Water Conservation ◽  
Urban Landscape ◽  
Remote Sensing And Gis ◽  
Landscape Water ◽  
Urban Landscape Water
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