Research

Agricultural production in Austria is heavily influenced by water availability and climate change, which pose significant challenges, particularly during periods of drought. In some regions of Austria, irrigation of agricultural crops is a crucial factor in compensating for insufficient rainfall and ensuring agricultural productivity. Projections suggest that irrigation demand could nearly double by 2050 compared to current levels. To safeguard agricultural productivity while sustainably managing natural resources, adaptation measures are essential. In particular, efficient and water-saving solutions must be developed in the field of irrigation. The Austrian Strategy for Adaptation to Climate Change recommends the use of modern technologies to optimize irrigation systems in terms of timing and quantity. Support measures under the CAP Strategic Plan promote investments in innovative irrigation systems, but their efficiency and impact must be evaluated. As part of an evaluation study, key research questions need to be addressed: How can the efficiency of irrigation measures be assessed? What data are required to demonstrate the water-saving potential of irrigation systems? And how can a state-of-the-art standard for new irrigation systems be defined?

Groundwater is one of the most important sources of drinking water. The use of groundwater as drinking water is mainly made possible by ecosystem services in aquifers. These include natural water purification, which can lead to a reduction in pollutants. These pollutants are mainly introduced into the groundwater by anthropogenic activities. These pollutants also include nitrate, which endangers the groundwater quality in many aquifers, but which can be converted by the ecosystem service of denitrification and thus removed from the groundwater in a natural way. To date, however, this service has been insufficiently taken into account in the management of aquifers and in guidelines, partly because there is a lack of instruments that can be used to clearly determine the potential for denitrification. In addition, denitrification can be spatially and temporally variable and is dependent on changing hydrogeochemical conditions, which are often unknown. Therefore, the main objective of this project is to identify processes and properties that lead to denitrification in groundwater. To achieve this goal, we investigate nitrate sources and denitrification processes in groundwater using isotope techniques. In addition, we identify hydrogeochemical situations that influence denitrification. For this purpose, we carry out monitoring at selected field sites in Austria, France and Denmark as well as controlled experiments under laboratory conditions. For different land use sites, we will investigate effects such as water level, temperature, redox conditions, organic carbon concentrations and chemical pollution on denitrification in groundwater. Together with national and international project partners in France, Denmark and Austria, we are developing a toolbox to better characterize aquifers with regard to their denitrification potential and to develop new protocols that could eventually be integrated into groundwater quality monitoring guidelines. This FWF-funded project is part of the Water4All project “DeepThought” of the Joint Transnational Call “Aquatic Ecosystem Services”.

For grain maize, sugar beet, potato, soybean, sunflower and field vegetables (crop type to be determined), the irrigation requirements of the last 30 years (1995 to 2024) are to be determined for two selected reference areas. The reference areas are selected on the basis of the site conditions (a total of 17 areas are available for selection). The irrigation requirement is determined based on the standard method of the FAO (Allen et al., 1998) in accordance with the state of the art. The required weather data is taken from the Andau weather station (Geosphere Austria data hub). Soil data is taken from the digital Austrian soil map (eBOD). Cultivation data (cultivation dates, stages of development, harvest dates) are provided by the client. Information on cultivation areas from the AMA (freely available) will also be used to estimate the total water requirement. Research questions: How has the plant water demand and the irrigation demand of selected crops at selected locations in the Seewinkel region developed over the last decades? - What would be an optimal irrigation strategy under the given site conditions (climate, soil) and local agricultural crops? - What effects do different weather conditions and irrigation scenarios have on yield? rk steps: - Collection and processing of the required weather data from the Andau weather station (temperature (max, min), humidity, wind speed, radiation and precipitation on a daily basis) and presentation in an annual comparison. - Determination of reference evaporation according to FAO Allen et al. (1998). - Determination of soil properties from the digital soil map (eBOD) and estimation of retention properties (storage capacity) from eBOD (usable field capacity, nFK, of the BAW) and/or using pedotransfer functions. - Determination of plant evaporation and plant water requirements based on standard plant coefficients (Allen et al., 1998). - Determination of the irrigation water requirement for the selected crops for two reference areas, taking into account the plant water requirement and soil properties. Presentation and comparison of the results. - Determination of plant water requirements and irrigation water requirements based on AMA area data. Presentation and comparison of the results.