Abstract

MULTICRITERIA ANALYSIS FOR SELECTING AGRICULTURAL PARCELS FOR RECLAIMED WATER APPLICATION
Track: Agriculture
Authors: António José Jesus Carvalho

The needs of water for irrigation is expected to increase in the region of Beira Interior (Portugal), and the use of reclaimed water may help to minimize the problem of lack of water for that purpose. Based on five thematic maps and environmental and technical criteria, a Suitability Map was generated for the application of reclaimed water in parcels of corn, olive grove, orchard and vineyard, after manipulating complex information using GIS tools. This analysis involved the overlapping of exclusion and inclusion areas of thematic maps using algebraic operations (multicriteria analysis). The volume of reclaimed water generated between 2009 and 2011 would be sufficient for irrigating all the selected agricultural parcels, after removing the areas with technical or environmental restrictions.