Investigating the Water Balance for Sustainable Agriculture Water Management in Prince Edward Island

本项目将评估爱德华王子岛（PEI）地表和地下水平衡在气候变化下的波动，以证明补充灌溉的潜力。目前，政府颁布了一项禁令，禁止为高容量井的农业灌溉发放额外的许可证。在政府考虑如何根据新的水法管理灌溉时，生成可靠的数据可以用来指导政府，这符合卡文迪什农场的利益，实际上也符合整个省的利益。PEI在降水量、时间、强度和空间分布等方面受气候变化的影响。降雨情况的变化，特别是在生长季节，对马铃薯的产量和质量产生不利影响，因为所需的水量不能在适当的时间供植物吸收。本研究旨在探讨气候变化下PEI的水分平衡情况，以评估采用补灌方式应对气候变化的可行性。本研究的目的是：1)研究气候变化对水资源平衡和可利用性的影响；2)证明补充灌溉满足作物需水量的潜力；3)评估补给和排放模式；4)研究地下水开发潜力，以促进农业资源水资源的可持续管理。本研究将为水资源可持续管理提供新的知识基础。在适当的时候，根据作物的需要明智地利用水资源，可以通过确保水资源的可持续性来提高农场的盈利能力。

This project will evaluate the fluctuations in surface and groundwater balance of Prince Edward Island (PEI) in relation to climate change to testify the potential for supplement irrigation. Currently there is a government imposed moratorium in place which prohibits additional permits being issued for agricultural irrigation supply by high capacity wells. It is in the interest of Cavendish Farms, and indeed the province as a whole to generate credible data that could be used to guide government as it considers how to manage irrigation under the new Water Act. PEI is affected by the climate change in term of precipitation amounts, time, intensity, and spatial distribution. Changes in the rainfall scenarios especially during growing season are adversely affecting the potato yield and quality, as required amounts of water is not available for plant uptake at right time. This studyis designed to investigate the water balance of PEI under the changing climate to evaluate the feasibility of using supplemental irrigation to cope with the changes caused by climate change. The objectives of this research are to: 1) study the impact of climate change on the water balance and availability, 2) testify the potential for supplemental irrigation to meet the crop water requirements, 3) evaluate the recharge and discharge patterns, and 4) examine the groundwater development potential for sustainable management of water for agriculture resources. This research will provide a new knowledge base for sustainable water management. Wise use of water based on crop need, at right time, has a strong potential to improve farm profitability by ensuring sustainability of water resources.