Evaluación de los efectos de aplicación de una política de gestión del agua de riego en los agricultores de dos zonas de Ecuador

Abstract

VI food availability was observed at rates up to t = 0.05USD m 3 when an increase in water price is applied. Moreover, the effect of applying a pricing policy on water demand and farmers' benefits is sensitive to very low water price increases. This is subject to the level of income that each farm produces in each cycle, which determines a change in farmers' behavior, influenced by tariffs between US $ 0.01/m 3 and US $ 0.20/m 3. The results for the case of the Manuel de Jesús Calle system (SMJC), demonstrate a threshold for the cost of the highest irrigation water (t = 0.20USD/m 3). The conditions of system administration, as well as the characteristics of the type of irrigation used, influence the responsiveness of farmers. In a comparative way, it was observed that farmers with access to irrigation water, belonging to the SMJC, were less inclined to pay more for water. On the other hand, in the case of SPRN, it was seen that farmers would be more willing to do so. In short, there is a need to add efforts to improve the trust in the institutions responsible for managing and regulating water resources, as this would aid in the implementation of a pricing policy. Furthermore, the application of a pricing policy is contingent on farmers' yields, this being a restriction when setting consumption rates, which determines differentiation according to the farmers' capacity for each zone.