Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 12, 2025

Vegetated Treatment Systems for Removing Contaminants Associated with Surface Water Toxicity in Agriculture and Urban Runoff
Published on: May 15, 2017
Suitability of Sustainable Agricultural Drainage Systems for adapting agriculture to climate change
Sergio Zubelzu1, Raúl Sánchez-Calvo1, Daniel Segovia Cardozo1
1Grupo de investigación Hidráulica del Riego (HIDER), Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingeniería Agronómica, Alimentaria y de Biosistemas, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Av. Puerta de hierro 2, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
Abstract:
This paper presents a comprehensive and practical method for Sustainable Agricultural Drainage Systems (SADS) design. It is aimed at studying the suitability of using surface runoff as irrigation source. The method determines the optimum amount of surface runoff to be used for irrigation considering both environmental constraints (aquifers recharge, discharge to natural water courses) and investment and operation costs. The developed method has been applied to the Spanish irrigation district "Villalar de los Comuneros Sector 1" located in Valladolid. The estimation of the optimum SADS provision was calculated for most of the major crops at the irrigation district highlighting that SADS facilities can reduce the amount of external provision of water for irrigation while maintaining the aquifer's recharge and the natural discharge to water courses. The simulations run for climate change forecasting scenarios (Representative Concentration Pathways, RCP, RCP45, RCP60, RCP85) showed that optimum SADS would reduce irrigation requirements and would increase natural fluxes (both aquifers and natural water courses) therefore improving the general water cycle in rural environments with productive agriculture.
Related Concept Videos
Adaptations that Reduce Water Loss
What is Climate?
Responses to Drought and Flooding
Design Example: Design of an Irrigation Channel
Design Example: Analyzing Capacity Contours for Flood Risk Assessment
Gradually Varying Flow

