Resumen

CANDO BAUTISTA, Jefferson Francisco; ESPINOSA MARIN, Jorge Andrés; BASTIDAS GUEVARA, Wellington Augusto  y  MONTUFAR DELGADO, Carlos Lenin. Determination of difference in flow distribution in the quantification of the hydric demand for land use. Case study Tumbaco’s irrigation channel, Pichincha, Ecuador. Siembra [online]. 2024, vol.11, n.1, e6264. ISSN 2477-8850.  https://doi.org/10.29166/siembra.v11i1.6264.

In Ecuador, the administration, operation, and maintenance of irrigation systems are the responsibility of water irrigation boards. These organizations distribute water resources facing different problems related to unknown water demands of crops and other specific system parameters, which creates an imbalance between offer and demand. This research proposes the development of a methodology to estimate water requirements in the Tumbaco irrigation canal, to optimize the use of this resource. The methodology incorporates variables such as cultivable land area, crop type, edaphic(land) factors, and climate conditions, to accurately quantify flow rates that should be delivered to the sectors directly influenced by the canal. The proposed methodology is adaptable to various territories, and different water application strategies have been considered according to each system’s reality. Among the main results, it was found that the current irrigation of the branches that make up the canal is higher than the actual demand. For the Alangasí-La Merced branch, a requirement of 28.80 l s ha-1 was established, which compared to the flow delivered by the irrigation board, it was observed that 247.22% more water is distributed than necessary. Similar overestimation results were found in all other branches analyzed: Chichipata 241.66 l s ha-1 (+44.83%), Churoloma branch 132.79 l s ha-1 (+35.55%), El Pueblo branch 97.3 l s ha-1 (+54.16%), Ilaló branch 220.83 l s ha-1(+44.91%), La Viña 68.34 l s ha-1 (+119.49%), and San Blas 20.13 l s ha-1 (+496.12%). The developed methodology can be applied to manage large-scale sustainable water management programs and as a water resource management model. It can also serve as a baseline for establishing econometric models in the collection of irrigation water consumption fees.

Palabras clave : irrigation; land use; optimization of water; hydric demand; evapotranspiration.

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