Trade-Offs in Net Life Cycle Energy Balance and Water Consumption in California Almond Orchards
Perennial cropping systems, such as almond orchards and vineyards, increasingly dominate California’s agricultural landscape. In California’s leading agricultural region, the Central Valley, woody perennials comprise about half of total farmland. Woody perennial orchards produce high value food crop...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2020-06-01
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| Series: | Energies |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/13/12/3195 |
| _version_ | 1797564749632765952 |
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| author | Elias Marvinney Jin Wook Ro Alissa Kendall |
| author_facet | Elias Marvinney Jin Wook Ro Alissa Kendall |
| author_sort | Elias Marvinney |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Perennial cropping systems, such as almond orchards and vineyards, increasingly dominate California’s agricultural landscape. In California’s leading agricultural region, the Central Valley, woody perennials comprise about half of total farmland. Woody perennial orchards produce high value food crops such as almonds, but also generate significant woody biomass which, where feasible, is used to generate biomass-derived electricity. Because of its semi-arid climate, California agriculture is heavily dependent on irrigation, which in some regions, requires energy-intensive pumping processes for both surface and groundwater. This research study explores the tradeoffs in economic, energy and water efficiency, considering the response of almond orchards to water application rates, using a life cycle basis for calculations and considering water scarcity, to reveal one part of the food-energy-water nexus. Findings indicate economic efficiency, represented by business-as-usual practices by growers, and which prioritizes almond yield, does not correspond to the lowest net-energy consumption (i.e. energy consumption minus bioenergy production). Bioenergy production follows a parabolic relationship with applied water, due to almond yield and growth response to water availability. Thus, the net energy footprint of almond production is minimized at about −45% of business-as-usual applied water, at odds with the economic demands of the almond industry that prioritize high value food production. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T19:02:18Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-84b272ae41e74c36806476ef0f1ca9f1 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1996-1073 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T19:02:18Z |
| publishDate | 2020-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Energies |
| spelling | doaj.art-84b272ae41e74c36806476ef0f1ca9f12023-11-20T04:22:21ZengMDPI AGEnergies1996-10732020-06-011312319510.3390/en13123195Trade-Offs in Net Life Cycle Energy Balance and Water Consumption in California Almond OrchardsElias Marvinney0Jin Wook Ro1Alissa Kendall2Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California Davis, 1 Shields Ave, Davis, CA 95616, USAEnergy Systems, Energy and Efficiency Institute, University of California Davis, 1605 Tilia, Suite 100, Davis, CA 95616, USADepartment of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California Davis, 1 Shields Ave, Davis, CA 95616, USAPerennial cropping systems, such as almond orchards and vineyards, increasingly dominate California’s agricultural landscape. In California’s leading agricultural region, the Central Valley, woody perennials comprise about half of total farmland. Woody perennial orchards produce high value food crops such as almonds, but also generate significant woody biomass which, where feasible, is used to generate biomass-derived electricity. Because of its semi-arid climate, California agriculture is heavily dependent on irrigation, which in some regions, requires energy-intensive pumping processes for both surface and groundwater. This research study explores the tradeoffs in economic, energy and water efficiency, considering the response of almond orchards to water application rates, using a life cycle basis for calculations and considering water scarcity, to reveal one part of the food-energy-water nexus. Findings indicate economic efficiency, represented by business-as-usual practices by growers, and which prioritizes almond yield, does not correspond to the lowest net-energy consumption (i.e. energy consumption minus bioenergy production). Bioenergy production follows a parabolic relationship with applied water, due to almond yield and growth response to water availability. Thus, the net energy footprint of almond production is minimized at about −45% of business-as-usual applied water, at odds with the economic demands of the almond industry that prioritize high value food production.https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/13/12/3195food-energy-water nexuslife cycle assessmentAWAREwater scarcityperennial cropping systemsbiopower |
| spellingShingle | Elias Marvinney Jin Wook Ro Alissa Kendall Trade-Offs in Net Life Cycle Energy Balance and Water Consumption in California Almond Orchards Energies food-energy-water nexus life cycle assessment AWARE water scarcity perennial cropping systems biopower |
| title | Trade-Offs in Net Life Cycle Energy Balance and Water Consumption in California Almond Orchards |
| title_full | Trade-Offs in Net Life Cycle Energy Balance and Water Consumption in California Almond Orchards |
| title_fullStr | Trade-Offs in Net Life Cycle Energy Balance and Water Consumption in California Almond Orchards |
| title_full_unstemmed | Trade-Offs in Net Life Cycle Energy Balance and Water Consumption in California Almond Orchards |
| title_short | Trade-Offs in Net Life Cycle Energy Balance and Water Consumption in California Almond Orchards |
| title_sort | trade offs in net life cycle energy balance and water consumption in california almond orchards |
| topic | food-energy-water nexus life cycle assessment AWARE water scarcity perennial cropping systems biopower |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/13/12/3195 |
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