Drainwater Management for Salinity Mitigation in Irrigated Agriculture

Salinity and drainage management options include source control, reuse, and evaporation ponds. This article identifies efficient strategies to maintain hydrologic balance in closed drainage basins and evaluates their impact on regional agricultural profits. Theoretical analysis suggests that economic efficiency requires acknowledgment of the nonseparability between water use and land value. Empirically, our solution involves a modest amount of source control, a substantial amount of reuse, and the elimination of evaporation ponds often associated with large environmental damages, while maintaining grower income. Various policy instruments and options are introduced and discussed, including a system of drainwater charges, marketable permits, and land retirement.