ABSTRACT
Food security is inextricably linked with water and energy use in irrigated agriculture. This article develops an optimization model to evaluate the sustainability of water and energy use for food production, and the coordination among water, energy and carbon footprints. A case study of Heping Irrigation District, China, demonstrates the applicability of the model. We find that 87.47, 86.12, and 83.67 million m3 of irrigation water allocation are sustainable for high, normal, and low flow levels, respectively, considering economic, social and environmental benefits. The structure of surface water and groundwater allocation remains consistent for different subareas.
