A Water-Withdrawal Input–Output Model of the Indian Economy

Managing freshwater allocation for a highly populated and growing economy like India can benefit from knowledge about the effect of economic activities. This study transforms the 2003–2004 economic input–output (IO) table of India into a water withdrawal input–output model to quantify direct and ind...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental science & technology 2016-02, Vol.50 (3), p.1313-1321
Main Authors: Bogra, Shelly, Bakshi, Bhavik R, Mathur, Ritu
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Agriculture
Environmental science
Food
Food products
Fresh Water
India
Industry
Knowledge
Models, Economic
Models, Theoretical
Water
Water Supply - economics
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Managing freshwater allocation for a highly populated and growing economy like India can benefit from knowledge about the effect of economic activities. This study transforms the 2003–2004 economic input–output (IO) table of India into a water withdrawal input–output model to quantify direct and indirect flows. This unique model is based on a comprehensive database compiled from diverse public sources, and estimates direct and indirect water withdrawal of all economic sectors. It distinguishes between green (rainfall), blue (surface and ground), and scarce groundwater. Results indicate that the total direct water withdrawal is nearly 3052 billion cubic meter (BCM) and 96% of this is used in agriculture sectors with the contribution of direct green water being about 1145 BCM, excluding forestry. Apart from 727 BCM direct blue water withdrawal for agricultural, other significant users include “Electricity” with 64 BCM, “Water supply” with 44 BCM and other industrial sectors with nearly 14 BCM. “Construction”, “miscellaneous food products”; “Hotels and restaurants”; “Paper, paper products, and newsprint” are other significant indirect withdrawers. The net virtual water import is found to be insignificant compared to direct water used in agriculture nationally, while scarce ground water associated with crops is largely contributed by northern states.
ISSN:0013-936X
1520-5851
DOI:10.1021/acs.est.5b03492