Rahparast et al. (2026) Innovative Integrated Sustainability Appraisal Approach for Irrigation Water Distribution Automation: A Combined MCDM-Based Food-Energy-Water Nexus

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Identification

• Journal: Water Resources Management
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-07-22
• Authors: Dorsa Rahparast, Seied Mehdy Hashemy Shahdany, Abbas Roozbahani
• DOI: 10.1007/s11269-026-04849-z

Research Groups

• Irrigation Management Department, University of Tehran
• Water Resources Engineering Group, Iran Water Resources Research Center

Short Summary

This study presents a sustainability performance appraisal framework for modernizing irrigation water distribution systems based on the Food-Energy-Water (FEW) nexus. The results show that automation using PI and MPC systems can improve water and energy conservation in normal and water shortage scenarios.

Objective

• Develop an integrated FEW-Nexus index to evaluate the impacts of modernization on water and energy conservation in irrigation districts

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: 800-hectare grid divided into 459 independent units for spatial assessment
• Temporal Scale: Two scenarios were analyzed: normal and water shortage (WS) conditions

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Hydraulic simulation models with two automated control systems: decentralized Proportional-Integral (PI) system and centralized Model Predictive Control (MPC) system
• Data sources: Customized indicators developed using multi-criteria decision-making methods, including AHP-Shannon Entropy and SWARA for indicator weighting, and SAW for the FEW-Nexus index

Main Results

• Surface water delivery increased by 19 − 14%/14–28% in normal-WS scenarios
• Surface Water productivity rose 21 − 2%/38 − 18%
• Economic productivity improved 2.5-0%/47 − 10%
• Energy conservation improved 9–29%/21–39%
• Energy productivity increased 35 − 19%/47 − 27%
• Food economic productivity slightly rose 8-0.2%/21 − 0.8%

Contributions

This study provides an original framework for evaluating the impacts of modernization on water and energy conservation in irrigation districts, contributing to the existing literature by introducing a comprehensive FEW-Nexus index.

Funding

• This research was funded by the Iran Water Resources Research Center (project code: IWRC-2020-01)

Citation

@article{Rahparast2026Innovative,
  author = {Rahparast, Dorsa and Shahdany, Seied Mehdy Hashemy and Roozbahani, Abbas},
  title = {Innovative Integrated Sustainability Appraisal Approach for Irrigation Water Distribution Automation: A Combined MCDM-Based Food-Energy-Water Nexus},
  journal = {Water Resources Management},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.1007/s11269-026-04849-z},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1007/s11269-026-04849-z}
}