water

Review
Sustainable Irrigation in Agriculture: An Analysis of
Global Research
Juan F. Velasco-Muñoz 1 , José A. Aznar-Sánchez 1, * , Ana Batlles-delaFuente 1 and
Maria Dolores Fidelibus 2
1 Department of Economy and Business, Research Centre CAESCG and CIAIMBITAL, University of Almería,
04120 Almería, Spain
2 Department of Civil, Environmental, Land, Building Engineering and Chemistry, Polytechnic University of
Bari, 70126 Bari, Italy
* Correspondence: [email protected]; Tel.: +34-950-015-192




Received: 25 June 2019; Accepted: 20 August 2019; Published: 23 August 2019


Abstract: Irrigated agriculture plays a fundamental role as a supplier of food and raw materials.
However, it is also the world’s largest water user. In recent years, there has been an increase in the
number of studies analyzing agricultural irrigation from the perspective of sustainability with a focus
on its environmental, economic, and social impacts. This study seeks to analyze the dynamics of
global research in sustainable irrigation in agriculture between 1999 and 2018, including the main
agents promoting it and the topics that have received the most attention. To do this, a review and a
bibliometric analysis were carried out on a sample of 713 articles. The results show that sustainability
is a line of study that is becoming increasingly more prominent within research in irrigation. The study
also reveals the existence of substantial differences and preferred topics in the research undertaken by
different countries. The priority issues addressed in the research were climatic change, environmental
impact, and natural resources conservation; unconventional water resources; irrigation technology
and innovation; and water use efficiency. Finally, the findings indicate a series of areas related to
sustainable irrigation in agriculture in which research should be promoted.

Keywords: sustainable irrigation; bibliometric analysis; climate change; innovation and technology;
water use efficiency; unconventional water resources

1. Introduction
The current global context is conditioned by the growth of the world’s population and the
progressive and continuous deterioration of the environment. This creates the challenge of ensuring
the supply of basic resources, such as food and water, and sustainable development [1], where water
plays an essential role in the survival of human society [2] and contributes to the provision of a wide
range of services on which the wellbeing of society is based [3–5]. However, water resources are
subject to severe degradation due to many factors, such as the consequences of global climate change,
alterations in the use of land, agricultural and urban expansion, and overexploitation due to economic
development [6–8]. In parallel with this degradation and overexploitation of ecosystems and water
resources, the demand for the services supplied by these resources is expected to increase.
Agricultural ecosystems are the principal suppliers of food, but they are also the main users of
water resources on a global level [9,10]. These ecosystems use between 60% and 90% of the available
water, depending on the climate and economic development of the region [11,12]. The global area
dedicated to irrigated crops is estimated to be 275 million hectares, with an upward growth trend of
1.3% per year [13]. This accounts for just 23% of farmed land; however, 45% of total food production is
obtained through these types of crops [14,15]. It has been estimated that in order to satisfy the food

Water 2019, 11, 1758; doi:10.3390/w11091758 www.mdpi.com/journal/water

Water 2019, 11, 1758 2 of 26

demand in 2050, world production must increase by 70% [16]. In a scenario of low production, in order
to fulfil this objective, it will be necessary to increase the use of water resources on a global level by
53% [17]—around 50% in developing countries and 16% in developed countries [18]—keeping the
current values of variables like productivity and technology.
Currently, different approaches are being used to address the challenges of food provision and the
supply of water for different uses and to maintain an environmental balance. Some works point to the
development of measures to control demand so that irrigation water sustainability can be reached.
The development of efficient water markets can be an optimal measure in underdeveloped areas and
with a high level of water scarcity, like in South Africa [19,20]. The implementation of joint restrictions
based on the establishment of quotas and the payment of fees can be an effective control system for the
use of agriculture water in developed regions specialized in the production of high-quality crops and
where overexploitation of water resources is currently taking place [21]. Regarding water supply, many
authors recommend the joint use of different water resources and the development of infrastructures as
nonconventional water sources [22,23]. Another line of research is focused on the improvement of the
efficiency of water use and the development of clean production models that guarantee sustainability
from social and economic perspectives [24,25]. In order to achieve this objective, the whole irrigation
process must be analyzed. This process covers different phases beginning with the water source and
ending with its use for agriculture. Zhang et al. [26] identified three phases in irrigation: The first
includes the extraction of water from the source and its transfer through channels to the point of use;
the second consists of the distribution of the water to the root system to facilitate its absorption by crops
(this includes both traditional irrigation using floods and furrows and modern irrigation through drip
systems and microsprinklers); and the third covers the whole crop-growing process, whereby the water
is transported from the roots to the rest of the plant. The goal is to save resources through minimizing
water losses during these three phases and to improve the efficiency in the use of water resources.
The so-called “Science of Sustainability” also studies how to address these challenges. It is defined
as “a discipline that points the way towards a sustainable society” and is “aimed at understanding
the fundamental character of interactions between natural, human, and social systems, covers a wide
range of academic disciplines”, for the development of agricultural systems and the sustainable use of
water [27–29]. At the end of the 1990s, sustainability was used as a characteristic to describe ecosystems,
referring to the capacity to maintain the flow of services in different environmental, economic, and social
contexts [30]. When it is applied to the management of water resources in agriculture, sustainability
is considered to be a series of practices that increase crop yield and minimize water losses [31]. The
objectives of the sustainable management of water resources in agriculture consider the continuity of
the agricultural system from physical and biological perspectives, as well as the economic efficiency of
the use of the resources and social participation in the decision-making processes [32]. An evaluation
of a change in water use requires, therefore, a multidisciplinary approach that includes an analysis of
the body of water under study in order to understand the possible impacts on the quantity and quality
of the water and the timetable of the different uses. A comprehensive evaluation of the marginal
productivity of water is also required, together with an analysis of its nonmarketable value, such as
that derived from ecosystem services [33].
In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of studies analyzing agricultural
irrigation from the perspective of sustainability with a focus on its environmental, economic, and social
impacts. The objective of this study is to analyze the dynamics of the research on sustainable irrigation
in agriculture over the last twenty years. In order to fulfil this objective, a two-fold analysis was
undertaken: quantitatively through a bibliometric analysis; and qualitatively through a systemic review
based on keyword analysis. The study analyzes the evolution of the number of articles published, the
main authors, institutions and countries that promote this research field, the disciplines involved in the
research, the main lines of research, the differences in academic approach and the countries considered,
and the main issues that affect the research in this field.
Water 2019, 11, 1758 3 of 26

Bibliometric analysis was introduced by Garfield in the 1950s [34], and its objective is to identify,
classify, and evaluate the principal components within a specific research field [35]. Bibliometry
combines tools of quantitative analysis to study the trends of a research topic and identify the main
driving agents and the relevance of their publications [36,37]. In bibliometric analyses, three types
of indicators can be distinguished, which were defined by Durieux and Gevenois [38]: productivity
indicators, relevance indicators, and structural indicators. In addition to these indicators, different
approaches exist in bibliometric analysis. Co-occurrence, co-citation, and bibliographic coupling
analysis are among the traditional approaches. This extended methodology can be considered as
a new one in some research areas. This has also continuously been developing. In this sense, this
work introduces some new methodological aspects which provide a contribution regarding previous
works—in fact, the sample search process, a mixed quantitative and qualitative review, and the
production of keyword networks to identify main trends per country. The results of this study provide
a basis on which to establish priorities and to develop new projects in future research on this topic.

2. Methodology
In order to conduct this study, a traditional approach based on co-occurrence was selected,
which included the assessment of productivity, quality, and structural indicators. In this approach,
first, the agents with the highest number of publications were identified, and second, the impact of
the publications of these authors was analyzed. This type of analysis, particularly with respect to
journals, is highly interesting for researchers, given that it constitutes a way to assess the relevance
of the journals in which authors publish their studies [39]. Finally, we used mapping techniques to
analyze the structure of the network between different agents. The Scopus database was used to select
the sample of studies to analyze. This database has proven to be the most suitable for our area of
study, enabling us to ensure the selection of a representative sample of the studies carried out on
sustainable irrigation (SI). Furthermore, it is easy to access, allows the visualization and analysis of
data, and allows data to be downloaded in different formats for subsequent processing using software
applications [40]. Nevertheless, if some works on SI are not indexed in the Scopus database, they have
not been considered in our sample.
The term used to carry out the search was “sustainable irrigation”, and this selection was based on
previous studies on the same topic [41–43]. This term was searched for under authors’ keywords and
titles. The study period selected was 1999 to 2018. Research activity in this topic peaked during these
years. Furthermore, this period immediately followed the 1st World Water Forum held in Marrakesh
in 1997, which is considered to be one of the main landmarks in this field. Only documents until 2018
were included so that complete annual periods could be compared. In order to avoid duplication, the
sample only included original articles [44]. It is worth pointing out that a different search query could
give rise to different results. The search was carried out in January 2019. The sample of this study was
composed of 713 articles. In addition, a search of articles on “irrigation” was also carried out with the
same restrictions in order to analyze the relative importance of sustainability within this general theme.
Figure 1 shows an outline of the methodology on which this study was based.
The analyzed variables were the number of articles, their years of publication, all of the authors
of the articles, the institutions and countries of all of the authors, the subject areas in which Scopus
classifies the studies, the name of the journals in which they were published, and the keywords. After
downloading this information, the first task was to eliminate duplications. The names of authors and
institutions can be found in different formats. This can lead to errors when counting these records.
Therefore, these two variables were analyzed, and the different records were regrouped so that the
same author and institution were not counted more than once. Once the information had been refined,
different tables and figures were drawn up, and the analysis of the data was conducted. The programs
used were Excel (version 2016) and SciMAT (v1.1.04) (University of Granada, Granada, Spain). The
tool used to create the network maps was VOSviewer, which is widely used in this type of study [42].
Finally, keyword analysis was used to extract the principal research trends [45]. The terms were
 As for the methodology, this work includes some novel aspects compared to previous studies
dealing with a similar topic. Firstly, regarding the sample selection of articles to be analyzed, some
previous studies made a search based on titles, abstracts, and keywords [41–43,46,47]. In this work,
the search was conducted in the fields of title and authors’ keywords. Furthermore, before getting
the final
Water sample,
2019, 11, 1758 it was checked that all included articles were related to the actual SI research.
4 of 26
Secondly, most works on bibliometric reviews include the analysis of keywords. Nevertheless, this is
the first search analysis which aims at detecting SI research trends based on the disciplinary approach
regrouped
of the study in order to eliminate
and the duplications
country where due to was
the research plurals, hyphens,Finally,
conducted. words the
in upper
work case letters,
includes a
etc.
quantitative review based on a bibliometric analysis, as well as a qualitative one based on the
For the grouping of keywords by topics, standardized grouping algorithms were used with the
following
traditionaltools: Vosviewer (Association strength) and SciMAT (network analysis).
review.

Figure 1. Outline
Outline of
of the
the methodological development of this study.

As for the methodology, this work includes some novel aspects compared to previous studies
3. Results
dealing with a similar topic. Firstly, regarding the sample selection of articles to be analyzed, some
3.1. Evolution
previous of the
studies General
made Characteristics
a search of Research
based on titles, on Sustainable
abstracts, and keywordsIrrigation (SI)
[41–43,46,47]. In this work, the
search was 1conducted
Table shows the in evolution
the fields of
of title
the and
mainauthors’ keywords.
variables Furthermore,
related to research onbefore getting
SI during thethe final
period
sample, it was checked that all included articles were related to the actual SI research.
1999–2018. During the studied period, relevant events like international declarations and congresses Secondly, most
works on bibliometric
decisively influenced reviews include the analysis
on the sustainability of keywords.
research. The KyotoNevertheless,
Protocol (UNFCCC, this is the first search
2008), which
analysis
commits which
world aims at detecting
countries to reduceSI research
greenhouse trends
gas based on the
emissions, disciplinary
should approachasofwell
be highlighted, the as
study
the
and the country where the research was conducted. Finally, the work includes a
Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity of 2010; the Rio +20 of 2012; the Millennium Development quantitative review
based
Goals on a bibliometric
of the analysis,
United Nations (UN,as 2015),
well aswhicha qualitative
providesone based on for
guidelines the improving
traditional review.
livelihoods and
the environment globally; or the Paris Agreement on Climate Change of 2016; among others. These
3. Results
happenings additionally stimulate research on this topic [48]. This could also explain the existence of
peaks
3.1. regarding
Evolution theGeneral
of the publication of articles
Characteristics on SI research,
of Research like in Irrigation
on Sustainable 2017. A further
(SI) reason explaining
the higher number of published articles in 2017 compared to 2018 is that the sample selection was
Table 1 shows the evolution of the main variables related to research on SI during the period
conducted in January 2019. The Scopus database updates itself continuously and, at the time of the
1999–2018. During the studied period, relevant events like international declarations and congresses
sample search, not all published articles in 2018 had been registered. If the sample selection were to
decisively influenced on the sustainability research. The Kyoto Protocol (UNFCCC, 2008), which
be performed at the end of 2019, the number of published and indexed articles on SI in Scopus in
commits world countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, should be highlighted, as well as the
2018 would increase.
Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity of 2010; the Rio +20 of 2012; the Millennium Development
Goals of the United Nations (UN, 2015), which provides guidelines for improving livelihoods and
the environment globally; or the Paris Agreement on Climate Change of 2016; among others. These
happenings additionally stimulate research on this topic [48]. This could also explain the existence of
peaks regarding the publication of articles on SI research, like in 2017. A further reason explaining
the higher number of published articles in 2017 compared to 2018 is that the sample selection was
conducted in January 2019. The Scopus database updates itself continuously and, at the time of the
sample search, not all published articles in 2018 had been registered. If the sample selection were to be
Water 2019, 11, 1758 5 of 26

Water 2019, 11, x FOR PEER REVIEW 5 of 27

performed at the end of 2019, the number of published and indexed articles on SI in Scopus in 2018
would In general terms, we observed a growth trend in all of the variables analyzed, which indicates
increase.
the development of this line of research. More than 45% of the total number of studies in the sample
are concentrated inTablethe last five years
1. Main of the period
characteristics analyzed.
of sustainable In order(SI)
irrigation to research.
confirm the growth of this
field of study, the evolution of the number of articles on SI during the period of analysis was
Year Average Citation 1
compared withArticles Authors
all of the articles Journals
published Countries
on irrigation and allCitation
of the articles published on
sustainability. Figure 2 shows the percentage of annual variation in the number of articles0.0
1999 6 13 6 5 0 published
2000 lines of research.
in these 11 22
The average annual9 growth of the 7 articles on 14 0.8 the one
irrigation was 1.6%,
2001 15
of articles on sustainability 3.8%,30while that of11articles on SI10
was 5.2%. This 5 0.6
enabled us to confirm that
2002 15 43 11 14 14 0.7
SI is a line of study that is becoming increasingly more prominent within research in irrigation and
2003 12 24 12 11 35 1.2
in sustainability
2004 in15
general. These 33results agree15with other works
13 on water47and sustainability1.6[1,39,49].
With respect to
2005 20 the rest of the
57 variables included
16 in Table
15 1, the average76 number of authors
2.0 per
article
2006doubled from 35 two at the112beginning of 23the period to 25four at the end.130The number of2.5 journals in
2007
which 22were published
articles on SI 68 increased19from six in 1999 15 to 45 in 2018.
181 The number of 3.3countries
also2008
grew during 31 89
the period analyzed (from24 five in 1999 20 to 42 in 2018).
211 The annual 3.9 number of
2009 25 56 18 21 289 4.8
references increased from 0.8 in 2000 to 12.7 in 2018.
2010 47 135 39 29 331 5.2
2011 37 118 31 29 442 6.1
Table 1. Main characteristics of sustainable irrigation (SI) research.
2012 37 107 26 22 517 7.0
2013 45
Year Articles 149 38 Countries 27
Authors Journals Citation Average650Citation 1 7.9
2014 63
1999 6 21413 6 47 5 38 0 7430.0 8.5
2015 53
2000 11 20222 9 46 7 30 14 9010.8 9.4
2016 2001
68 15 24430 11 55 10 34 5 12680.6 10.5
2017 2002
88 15 325 43 11 58 14 37 14 15150.7 11.4
2018 2003
68 12 29224 12 45 11 42 35 17071.2 12.7
2004 15 33 15 13 47 1.6
1 Total number 2005
of citations
20 accumulated
57 to date
16 divided15by the total
76 number of articles
2.0 published to date.
2006 35 112 23 25 130 2.5
2007 22 68 19 15 181 3.3
In general terms, we observed a growth trend in all of the variables analyzed, which indicates the
2008 31 89 24 20 211 3.9
development of this2009line of 25
research. 56 More than
18 45% 21of the total
289 number of
4.8 studies in the sample are
concentrated in the last
2010five 47
years of135the period
39 analyzed.
29 In order
331 to confirm
5.2 the growth of this field of
study, the evolution 2011 37
of the number 118 31
of articles 29
on SI during 442
the period of 6.1
analysis was compared with
2012 37 107 26 22 517 7.0
all of the articles published
2013 on
45 irrigation
149 and
38 all of the
27 articles
650 published7.9on sustainability. Figure 2
shows the percentage of annual
2014 63 variation
214 in47the number
38 of articles
743 published
8.5 in these lines of research.
The average annual 2015
growth53of the articles
202 46 irrigation
on 30 was 1.6%,
901 the one9.4of articles on sustainability
2016 68 244 55 34 1268 10.5
3.8%, while that of articles
2017 on
88 SI was3255.2%. 58
This enabled
37 us to confirm that
1515 11.4 SI is a line of study that is
becoming increasingly 2018more 68 prominent
292 within
45 research
42 in irrigation
1707 and12.7in sustainability in general.
These1 Total
results agreeofwith
number other
citations works ontowater
accumulated and sustainability
date divided [1,39,49].
by the total number of articles published to date.

14
Annual percentage change in the number of

12
documents based on 1999

10

0
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018

SI Irrigation Sustainability

Figure 2. Comparative trends in irrigation, sustainability, and SI research.

Figure 2. Comparative trends in irrigation, sustainability, and SI research.
Water 2019, 11, 1758 6 of 26

With respect to the rest of the variables included in Table 1, the average number of authors per
article doubled from two at the beginning of the period to four at the end. The number of journals in
which articles
Water 2019, 11, xon SIPEER
FOR wereREVIEW
published increased from six in 1999 to 45 in 2018. The number of countries
6 of 27
also grew during the period analyzed (from five in 1999 to 42 in 2018). The annual number of references
increased fromof0.8
3.2. Evolution in 2000in
Research toSI
12.7
by in 2018.Area
Subject
Figure 3ofshows
3.2. Evolution theinevolution
Research of the
SI by Subject Areamain subject areas into which the articles on SI included in
the Scopus database were classified. It should be noted that an article may belong to more than one
Figure 3 shows the evolution of the main subject areas into which the articles on SI included in
category. From the beginning of the period, the category in which the highest number of studies were
the Scopus database were classified. It should be noted that an article may belong to more than one
classified was Environmental Sciences, which accounted for almost 65% of the total sample. The
category. From the beginning of the period, the category in which the highest number of studies were
second largest block of studies was classified in the Agricultural and Biological Sciences category,
classified was Environmental Sciences, which accounted for almost 65% of the total sample. The second
with 44.3% of the total sample. In third place was the Social Sciences category with 21.1% of the
largest block of studies was classified in the Agricultural and Biological Sciences category, with 44.3%
articles. These three categories have dominated research on SI since the beginning of the studied
of the total sample. In third place was the Social Sciences category with 21.1% of the articles. These
period. However, in contrast to some previous works [37,39,48], our results revealed that over the
three categories
last five have
years, the dominated
Earth research
and Planetary on SI since
Sciences, the beginning
Engineering, Energy,of and
the studied
Economics period. However,
categories have
inbegun
contrast to some
to gain previous
relevance, works [37,39,48],
although none of themour include
results revealed
more thanthat
15%over
of the
the last
totalfive years,inthe
articles the
Earth
sample.and The
Planetary
ScopusSciences, Engineering,
classification Energy, and
distinguishes Economics
between categories categories:
the following have begunBusiness,
to gain
relevance,
Management, although
andnone of them include
Accounting; more thanEconometrics,
and Economics, 15% of the total
andarticles in the
Finance, sample.
which alsoThe Scopus
differ from
classification distinguishes between the following categories: Business, Management, and
Social Sciences. For the purpose of simplification, we grouped these two categories into only one and Accounting;
and Economics,
termed Econometrics, and Finance, which also differ from Social Sciences. For the purpose of
it “Economics”.
simplification, we grouped these two categories into only one and termed it “Economics”.

70

60

50
Number of articles

40

30

20

10

0
1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

Environmental Science Agricultural and Biological Sciences

Social Sciences Earth and Planetary Sciences
Engineering Energy
Economics

Figure 3. Comparative trends of subject categories related to SI research.

The keyword Figure

analysis revealed that
3. Comparative thereofissubject
trends a series of commonly
categories used
related to terms in research on SI,
SI research.
irrespective of the approach of the study. These terms include, among others, agriculture, alternative
agriculture, climate change,
The keyword analysiscrops, groundwater,
revealed that there isirrigation system,
a series of salinity,
commonly sustainable
used terms in development,
research on SI,
water conservation, water management, water resources, water supply, water
irrespective of the approach of the study. These terms include, among others, agriculture, use, water use alternative
efficiency,
and water quality.
agriculture, When
climate we took
change, thegroundwater,
crops, analysis beyond these terms,
irrigation system,wesalinity,
identified a group of
sustainable keywords
development,
used specifically by each discipline.
water conservation, water management, water resources, water supply, water use, water use
In the studies
efficiency, and waterclassified
quality.inWhen
the category
we tookoftheEnvironmental
analysis beyond Sciences, there was
these terms, an emphasis
we identified on
a group
the
of state of theused
keywords soil (soils, soil moisture),
specifically aquifers, and surface water. With respect to processes, from
by each discipline.
In the studies classified in the category of Environmental Sciences, there was an emphasis on the
state of the soil (soils, soil moisture), aquifers, and surface water. With respect to processes, from the
environmental approach, recycling and wastewater reclamation were prominent. In terms of
methodology, the keywords that stood out were numerical model and decision making, particularly
related to the management of the available water resources (water budget, water availability). With
Water 2019, 11, 1758 7 of 26

the environmental approach, recycling and wastewater reclamation were prominent. In terms of
methodology, the keywords that stood out were numerical model and decision making, particularly
related to the management of the available water resources (water budget, water availability). With
regard to the geographical dimension, China, the United States, and India were particularly prominent,
as were the regions of Eurasia and Asia.
In the studies classified within the category of Agricultural and Biological Sciences, technical
terms were predominant. Studies in this category mostly focused on soils and groundwater. There
was particular emphasis on different types of crops (Triticum aestivum, Zea mays, fruit, Gossypium
hirsutum, and rice) and irrigation processes (deficit irrigation, drainage, drip irrigation, leaching,
waterlogging, agricultural irrigation). Furthermore, from the agronomic perspective, the environmental
dimension was also considered (Environmental Impact). In these studies, China and the United States
stood out, together with the regions of Africa and Asia.
The studies carried out from a Social Sciences approach had a more multidisciplinary perspective.
They focused primarily on the stakeholders, water demands, and food security. However, technical
concepts were also prominent, particularly those related to irrigation and water management (drip
irrigation, sustainable water management), crops (Triticum aestivum), and economics (water economics).
Unlike the over categories, land use was found to be one of the prominent subjects of this group of
studies. A focus on management and decision making at different levels was also characteristic of
these studies (governance approach, water planning, policy making, resource management, decision
support system). With respect to geographical distribution, the United States, China, India, Spain,
and Australia were among the most cited countries, and Asia, Europe and Africa stood out on a
regional level.
Finally, the studies carried out based on an economic approach (Economic Sciences) were
the most multidisciplinary, including technical, social, and environmental aspects. Among the
main themes analyzed in these studies, we found food supply, food security, the development and
innovation of irrigation systems (agricultural technology, irrigation performance) and management
processes (integrated resource management, managed change, project management, strategic change,
strategic management, strategic planning, decision making), and issues related to economic and social
management (efficiency, investment, performance, economic and social effects) and the environment
(environmental impact, environmental sustainability).

3.3. Most Relevant Journals in the Research on SI

Table 2 shows the main characteristics of the most prolific journals in the field of SI. The group of
journals with the highest number of articles published on SI accounted for 25.7% of the total articles in
the sample. This indicates that there is a high level of dispersion in terms of the journals that publish
articles on this subject area. The leading journal in terms of the total number of articles published
during the whole period analyzed was Agricultural Water Management, with a total of 52 articles on SI.
This journal has the highest H index and the most citations of the journals with articles published in
this area, and a Scimago journal rank (SJR) factor of 1.272. It published its first issue on this subject in
2001. Since then, it has remained among the top positions in terms of the number of articles published
on SI, becoming the leader in 2014. The journal in second place was Irrigation and Drainage, with a total
of 30 articles on SI. This journal published its first article on SI in 2001 and was the most prolific journal
until 2005. It has the second highest H index, an average of 10.4 citations per article and an SJR index
of 0.342. The third journal was Sustainability, with 17 articles on SI. This journal is among the most
recently incorporated journals, as its first article on SI was published in 2013. However, in only five
years, it rose to third position in terms of the number of articles for the whole of the period of study. It
has an average of 3.8 citations per article, an H index of 6 and an SJR of 0.537. The journal with the
highest average number of citations per article was Science of the Total Environment with 33.8; followed
by the Journal of Hydrology with 31.5 and Water Resources Management with 29.4.
Water 2019, 11, 1758 8 of 26

Table 2. Main characteristics of the most active journals related to SI research.

Average 1st Last

Journal Articles SJR 1 H index 2 Country Citation
Citation 3 Article Article
Agricultural Water
52 1.272 (Q1) 21 Netherlands 1128 21.7 2001 2018
Management
Irrigation and Drainage 30 0.342 (Q2) 10 USA 313 10.4 2001 2018
Sustainability 17 0.537 (Q2) 6 Switzerland 65 3.8 2013 2018
Water 15 0.634 (Q1) 8 Switzerland 129 8.6 2009 2018
Water Policy 11 0.461 (Q2) 6 UK 74 6.7 2005 2018
Water Resources
11 1.185 (Q1) 9 Netherlands 323 29.4 2000 2015
Management
Acta Horticulturae 10 0.198 (Q3) 2 Belgium 17 1.7 2011 2018
Journal of Hydrology 10 1.832 (Q1) 8 Netherlands 315 31.5 2010 2017
Journal of Cleaner
9 1.467 (Q1) 5 Netherlands 49 5.4 2015 2018
Production
Journal of Irrigation and
9 0.521 (Q2) 4 USA 47 5.2 2007 2017
Drainage Engineering
Science of The Total
9 1.546 (Q1) 6 Netherlands 304 33.8 2004 2018
Environment
1Scimago Journal Rank 2017; 2 only sample documents; 3 total number of citations divided by the total number
of articles.

3.4. Most Relevant Countries in Research on SI

Table 3 shows the principle characteristics of the articles on SI from the most prolific countries.
During the analyzed period, the United States was the leading country in research on SI in terms of the
number of articles, with a total of 143. The country with the second highest number of articles was
India, with a total of 74. This was followed by Australia with 67, Spain with 61, and Italy with 55. Due
to the differences in terms of the size and economic development of the different countries, these data
were analyzed to determine the number of articles per capita, measured as the number of articles per
million inhabitants. Based on this variable, Australia was shown to be the most productive country
with 2.7 articles per million inhabitants. This was followed by the Netherlands with 1.5, Spain with
1.3, Italy with 0.9, and the United Kingdom with 0.8. France was shown to be the country with the
most citations per article, with 23.9, followed by the United Kingdom with 22.5, Iran with 21.9, the
Netherlands with 18.6, and the United States with 18.1.

Table 3. Main characteristics of the most active countries related to SI research.

% of Cultivated Area
Average per Average 1st Last
Country Articles Citation H Index 3 Equipped for Irrigation
Capita Articles 1 Citation 2 Article Article
(Ranking Countries) 4
USA 143 0.439 2585 18.1 25 1999 2018 16.94 (72)
India 74 0.055 688 9.3 14 1999 2018 41.54 (38)
Australia 67 2.724 941 14.0 17 2000 2018 5.72 (110)
Spain 61 1.310 815 13.4 14 2004 2018 21.61 (64)
Italy 55 0.908 359 6.5 9 2002 2018 44.22 (35)
China 52 0.038 791 15.2 15 2004 2018 51.48 (28)
UK 51 0.772 1147 22.5 16 1999 2018 3.41 (126)
Germany 36 0.435 509 14.1 12 2004 2018 5.65 (111)
France 29 0.432 692 23.9 10 2000 2018 14.53 (82)
Japan 26 0.205 347 13.3 8 2001 2017 54.96 (25)
Netherlands 26 1.518 483 18.6 11 2001 2018 46.85 (31)
Brazil 22 0.105 163 7.4 6 2006 2018 5.79 (108)
Canada 22 0.599 179 8.1 8 2005 2018 2.44 (134)
Iran 19 0.234 416 21.9 8 2009 2018 51.88 (27)
South Africa 19 0.335 109 5.7 7 2002 2018 12.93 (83)
1 Total number of articles per million inhabitants; 2 total number of citations divided by the total number of articles;
3 only sample documents; 4 FAO Aquastat (2019), last available data.

The percentage of cultivated area ready for irrigation per country has been included in the last
column of the table, as well as the position they have in the world ranking regarding this variable. It can
be stated that these countries do not occupy leading positions as far as irrigation-equipped cultivated
land is concerned. From the available information about 177 countries, Japan is the country with the
highest percentage of irrigation-equipped land surface—54.96%—, reaching the 25th place—followed
Water 2019, 11, 1758 9 of 26

by Iran with 51.88% (27th place), China with 51.48% (28th place), and Netherlands with 46.85% (31st
place). However, some countries leading research on SI place themselves on lower positions within the
irrigation-equipped cultivated surface ranking. This is the case for the USA with 16.94% (72nd place),
Australia with 5.72% (110th place), or the UK with 3.41% (126th place).
Table 4 shows the principal variables related to the international collaboration of countries with
the highest numbers of articles. The average percentage of articles carried out through international
collaboration was 50.3%. The countries with the highest percentage of studies carried out in collaboration
were Canada with 81.8%, France with 79.3%, Germany with 75.1%, the Netherlands with 65.4%, and
China with 55.8%. The United States was found to have the largest collaboration network, with 33
different collaborators. In addition, similarly to Australia, this country forms part of the group of the
main collaborators of 10 of the 15 countries in the table. These data reveal the global nature of research
in this subject area, with very high percentages and extensive collaboration networks on a global level.
The majority of the countries obtained a higher average number of citations per article when they
worked in collaboration with other countries. The articles produced through collaboration obtained an
average of 14.6 citations as opposed to 13.5 citations of noncollaborative articles. When comparing
these results to those of related works on irrigation and water [37,39,48], it can be observed that studies
on sustainability trigger a higher level of international cooperation.

Table 4. International collaboration of the most active countries related to SI research.

Percentage of Number of Average Citation

Country Main Collaborators
Collaboration 1 Collaborators Collaboration 2 Noncollaboration 3
China, Italy, Mexico, Canada,
USA 45.5 33 23.1 13.9
Sweden
USA, Ethiopia, France, UK,
India 21.6 15 11.6 8.7
Australia
China, Canada, Spain, USA,
Australia 52.2 22 18.6 9.1
Bangladesh
Portugal, Australia, Germany,
Spain 40.9 18 22.1 7.3
Italy, Belgium
USA, Netherlands, Spain, France,
Italy 40.0 19 5.0 7.5
South Africa
USA, Australia, Canada,
China 55.8 16 15.7 14.6
Bangladesh, Germany
India, Italy, Netherlands,
UK 47.1 28 22.3 22.6
Philippines, Spain
Uzbekistan, USA, Spain,
Germany 75.1 30 15.6 9.9
Switzerland, Australia
India, USA, Australia, Belgium,
France 79.3 21 19.1 42.2
Italy
Thailand, USA, Vietnam,
Japan 38.5 9 9.9 15.5
Australia, Egypt
Italy, Australia, China, Germany,
Netherlands 65.4 16 23.6 9.1
Pakistan
Spain, USA, Argentina, Germany,
Brazil 31.8 7 14.7 4.0
Italy
Australia, China, USA, Denmark,
Canada 81.8 13 9.2 3.3
India
Australia, USA, Germany,
Iran 26.3 4 2.2 28.9
Netherlands
Australia, Italy, Belgium, Bolivia,
South Africa 52.6 13 6.2 5.2
Denmark
1 2
Number of articles made through international collaboration divided by the total number of articles; number of
citations obtained by articles made through international collaboration divided by the number of articles; 3 number
of citations obtained for articles not made through international collaboration divided by the number of articles.

Figure 4 shows a network map of the collaborations carried out between countries, where the size
of the circle represents the number of documents per country and the color corresponds to the cluster
formed by the different groups of countries. Three clusters can be distinguished, led by the United
States, Australia, and Spain in terms of the number of articles. The first (shown in blue) includes some
of the most prolific countries, such as India, Italy, China, France, Japan, and the Netherlands, and
others, such as Mexico, Egypt, and Bangladesh. Together with Australia, the second cluster (shown in
 Figure 4 shows a network map of the collaborations carried out between countries, where the
size of the circle represents the number of documents per country and the color corresponds to the
cluster formed by the different groups of countries. Three clusters can be distinguished, led by the
United States, Australia, and Spain in terms of the number of articles. The first (shown in blue)
includes
Water 2019, some
11, 1758of the most prolific countries, such as India, Italy, China, France, Japan, and the
10 of 26
Netherlands, and others, such as Mexico, Egypt, and Bangladesh. Together with Australia, the second
cluster (shown in red) includes Canada, Iran, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Pakistan, Sri Lanka,
red) Uzbekistan.
and includes Canada, Iran, South
The group led byAfrica, Sweden,inSwitzerland,
Spain (shown Pakistan,
green) includes someSri Lanka, and
European Uzbekistan.
countries, such
The group led by Spain (shown in green) includes some European countries,
as the United Kingdom, Germany, Belgium, Portugal, and Greece, as well as countries such as the United
in the
Kingdom, Germany,
Mediterranean basin,Belgium,
such asPortugal, and Greece,
Israel, Jordan, as well
Morocco, as Turkey,
and countriesand
in the Mediterranean
others, basin,
such as Brazil,
such as Israel, Jordan,
Thailand, and New Zealand. Morocco, and Turkey, and others, such as Brazil, Thailand, and New Zealand.

Main relationships
Figure 4. Main relationships between countries in SI research.

A keyword analysis was used to detect the preferences in the research conducted by the countries
included in Table 4 (Table 5). We established that there is a group of terms that make up a general line
from which the different specific topics are derived.
In the studies conducted in the United States, the central themes included food supply and food
security (food-supply, food-security), the conservation of natural resources and environmental impacts
(conservation-of-natural-resources, environmental-impact), and land use (land-use). Agronomic issues,
such as crop evapotranspiration and productivity, were prominent. Both surface water and groundwater
were studied with special emphasis on the availability of the resource, the water budget, the water
table, and water stress (surface-water, water-budget, water-availability, water-table, water-stress). The
term most used in relation to methodology was numerical model (numerical-model), and the term
most used with regard to crops was Zea mays (Zea-mays). No noteworthy geographical terms other
than the United States were identified.
Water 2019, 11, 1758 11 of 26

Table 5. Main keywords of the most active countries related to SI research.

Country Keywords
crop-yield, surface-water, alternative-agriculture, numerical-model, food-security,
water-budget, wastewater-reclamation, water-availability, food-supply, evapotranspiration,
USA
conservation-of-natural-resources, environmental-impact, water-table, water-stress, Zea-mays,
land-use
optimization, irrigation-planning, water-table, waterlogging, drainage, Maharashtra,
India irrigation-projects, rice, arid-regions, ecosystems, fertilizers, nutrient, vegetables, waste-water,
South-Asia, surface-water
Australasia, wastewater, irrigation-efficiency, Murray-Darling-basin,
Australia environmental-protection, evapotranspiration, food-supply, hydrogeology, runoff,
water-availability, controlled-study, hydrology, water-treatment, rice, recycling, Canada
energy-efficiency, fruit, irrigation-networks, semiarid-region, profitability, southern-Europe,
soil-moisture, deficit-irrigation, carbon-dioxide, drip-irrigation, water-economics,
Spain
economic-analysis, water-productivity, decision-support-systems, energy-resources,
stakeholder
deficit-irrigation, decision-support-system, southern-Europe, farms, fruit, orchard,
Italy Mediterranean-environment, forestry, stem-water-potential, crop-yield, dicotyledon,
stomatal-conductance, water-stress, drainage, decision-making, environmental-impact
alternative-agriculture, Zea-mays, Triticum-aestivum, Xinjiang-Uygur, North-China-plain,
decision-making, irrigation-district, evapotranspiration, environmental-protection,
China
hydrological-modelling, ecology, landforms, soil-moisture, integrated-approach,
water-availability, uncertainty
alternative-agriculture, environmental-impact, water-treatment, drainage, Africa,
UK environment, wastewater, cost-benefit-analysis, rice, wetland, recycling, runoff,
drainage-and-irrigation, arid-regions, crop-yield, hydrocarbon
food-supply, Triticum-aestivum, Uzbekistan, alternative-agriculture, arid-region, fertilizer,
Germany oasis, climate-models, economic-and-social-effects, drip-irrigation, agricultural-intensification,
food-security, leaching, common-pool-resource, cropping-system, greenhouse-gas
farming-system, stakeholder, groundwater-overexploitation, evapotranspiration,
deficit-irrigation, decision-making, environmental-policy, governance-approach, surface-water,
France
public-private-partnership, pricing-policy, water-economics, chemical-composition,
dynamic-model, linear-programming, ecophysiological-responses
irrigation-development, water-users’-organization, rainfall, sustainable-rice-production,
institutional-development, Triticum-aestivum, Zea-mays, water-policy,
Japan
participatory-irrigation-management, saline-water-irrigation, soil-water-salinity, sorghum,
electrical-conductivity, semiarid-region, sorghum-bicolour, drought
drainage, Triticum-aestivum, food-production, recirculations, well, groundwater-abstraction,
agricultural-extension, smallholder, agricultural-development, food-supply,
Netherlands
agricultural-management, decision-making, rain, alternative-agriculture, catchments,
networking-system
biofuel, expansion, water-availability, environmental-impact, bioenergy, biomass-power,
Brazil Cerrado, sugar-cane, glycine-max, sustainable-production, Saccharum-officinarum,
carbon-dioxide, chemistry, evapotranspiration, metabolism, rainwater
alternative-agriculture, water-policies, sensitivity-analysis, stochastic-programming,
decision-making, environmental-protection, uncertainty-analysis, water-availability,
Canada
water-stress, Gossypium-hirsutum, food-security, global-perspective, food-production,
Triticum-aestivum, water-sharing, yield-response
crop-yield, cropping-pattern, economic-and-social-effects, rainfall, food-supply, Zea-mays,
Iran FAO, optimum-decision, surface-water-resources, recycling, genetic-algorithm, GHG-emission,
irrigation-district, farmers-motivation, untreated-wastewater-irrigation, Bayesian-networks
Sub-Saharan-Africa, wastewater, evapotranspiration, water-economics, drought, simulation,
South Africa controlled-study, electric-conductivity, economic-and-social-effects, GIS, water-balance,
computer-simulation, food-supply, project-management, mine-water, environmental-impact
Water 2019, 11, 1758 12 of 26

The articles from India were found to place more emphasis on new alternative agriculture systems
(alternative-agriculture) and the agricultural activity in arid areas (arid-regions) on an ecosystem
level (ecosystems). Agronomic aspects such as the nutrition and fertilization of crops (fertilizers,
nutrient) and their productivity (crop-yield, productivity) were also prominent. Both surface and
groundwater were studied (surface-water), as was the planning and development of irrigation projects
for optimizing the resource (irrigation-planning, irrigation-project, optimization), with particular
emphasis on irrigation processes (drainage, waterlogging, water-table) and alternative water sources
(wastewater). The term most used in relation to methodology was numerical model (numerical-model),
and with regard to crops, the most used terms were rice and vegetables (rice, vegetables). Prominent
geographical terms, such as the State of Maharashtra or the region of South Asia, were identified.
The studies conducted in Australia covered food supply (food-supply), runoff (runoff),
and environmental protection (environmental-protection). Agronomic issues, such as crop
evapotranspiration (evapotranspiration) and irrigation efficiency (irrigation-efficiency), were prominent.
With respect to water resources, particular emphasis was placed on the availability of the resources, the
water budget (water-availability, water-budget), and the use of alternative sources through recycling
and wastewater treatment (wastewater, water-treatment, recycling). From a methodological point
of view, the hydrological and geological approaches were prominent (hydrology, hydrogeology), as
were controlled studies (controlled-study), and in terms of crops, the prominent term was rice (rice).
Noteworthy geographical terms, such as the basin of the river Murray–Darling (Murray-Darling-basin),
the region of Australasia and the country of Canada, were identified.
In the case of Spain, relevant topics were the management of the use of energy
resources (energy-efficiency, energy-resources), the productivity of water (water-productivity),
efficiency (efficiency), semiarid regions (semiarid-regions), and environmental protection
(environmental-protection). Agronomic issues such as soil moisture (soil-moisture) were prominent,
as were innovations in agricultural and irrigation systems (alternative-agriculture, irrigation-networks,
drip-irrigation, deficit-irrigation) and irrigation efficiency (irrigation-efficiency). In terms of
methodology, the economic approach was prominent (water-economics, economic-analysis,
profitability), as was the social approach (stakeholders, decision-support-systems). With respect
to crops, fruit was the most relevant term (fruit). Noteworthy geographical terms, such as the regions
of Southern Europe and Eurasia (Southern-Europe, Europe, Eurasia), were identified.
The studies conducted in Italy were similar to those conducted in Spain. The main differences
were found in certain agronomic terms related to crops (crop-yield, dicotyledon, stomatal-conductance,
stem-water-potential) or irrigation (drainage, soil-moisture). The studies were carried out on a farm
level (farms, orchard) and focused on the Mediterranean environment. In terms of methodology, the
numerical models focused on decision making (decision-making) were noteworthy. With respect to
crops, as well as fruit (fruit), Zea mays was also prominent. The central themes included water stress
(water-stress), the environmental impact (environmental-impact), and forestry (forestry).
The articles conducted in China placed greater emphasis on environmental protection
(environmental-protection), agricultural activity in arid regions (arid-regions), decision-making
processes (decision-making), and issues at the district level (irrigation-district). Agronomic issues
such as crop evapotranspiration (evapotranspiration) and crop productivity (crop-yield) were also
prominent. With respect to water, the central theme was the level of water resources (water-level), while
in the methodological area, hydrogeological models were prominent (hydrogeological-modelling).
With respect to crops, rice, corn maize and wheat were found to be noteworthy (rice, Zea-mays,
Triticum-aestivum, maize). The most prominent geographical terms were the regions of the North
China Plain and Xinjiang Uygur.
The central themes in the studies conducted in the United Kingdom were crop yield (crop-yield);
the environment and the assessment of the environmental impact (environment, environmental-impact),
particularly in arid regions (arid-regions); and hydrocarbon (hydrocarbon). Processes related to water
and irrigation, such as drainage (drainage), runoff (runoff), and the recycling of water in wetlands
Water 2019, 11, 1758 13 of 26

and wastewater treatment (water-treatment, wastewater, wetlands-recycling), stood out. The most
prominent term related to methodology was cost benefit analysis (cost-benefit-analysis), and in terms
of crops, the study of rice was predominant (rice). This may be due to the country’s connection with
Asian countries (Asia, Eurasia, and South Asia).
The articles conducted in Germany, as in the case of other countries, were conditioned by its
collaborative ties with other nations. The main themes included food supply and food security
(food-supply, food security); the new alternative agricultural systems and the intensification of
agricultural activity (alternative-agriculture, agricultural-intensification); agricultural activity in arid
regions (arid-regions, oasis); and the effects of agricultural activity on economic and social levels and
environmental pollution (economic-and-social-effects, greenhouse-gas, particle-size). The prominent
agronomic aspects were fertilizers (fertilizers), leaching (leaching), and drip irrigation (drip-irrigation).
The most commonly used term with respect to methodology was related to the study of the effects
of climate change: climate models (climate-models). Further fields of interest are common pool
resources; and, with respect to crops, studies on wheat (Triticum-aestivum). One of Germany’s
principal collaborators was China, which is why this country appeared prominently among the
keywords of German studies. Similarly, Uzbekistan is one of Germany’s main trading partners and
also appears among the keywords.
The studies carried out in France particularly focused on the policy and institutional
dimension (environmental-policy, decision-making, governance-approach, public-private-partnership,
pricing-policy). French studies analyzed the level of exploitation (farming-system) and contemplated
the different agents involved (stakeholders). The priority issues included the overexploitation
of groundwater and surface water (groundwater-overexploitation, surface-water); the chemical
composition (chemical-composition); crop evapotranspiration (evapotranspiration) and the response
to possible alterations (ecophysiological-responses); and deficit irrigation (deficit-irrigation). In
terms of methodology, dynamic models and linear programming were prominent (dynamic-model,
linear-programming), together with economic issues related to water (water-economics).
Studies conducted in Japan considered issues such as the development of irrigation,
particularly through participative processes on both institutional and irrigation water user
levels (irrigation-development, water-users’-organization, participatory-irrigation-management,
institutional-development, water-policy). The Japanese studies analyzed aspects related to the salinity
of irrigation water and soil (saline-water-irrigation, soil-water-salinity) and the electrical conductivity
of water (electrical-conductivity). Water shortages due to drought, particularly in semiarid regions,
were also found to be relevant issues (drought, semi-arid-region). The studies from this country
analyzed the use of rainwater as a source for irrigation (rainfall). It is the country with the highest
number of crops, and the study of the sustainable production of rice was found to be particularly
relevant (sustainable-rice-production, Triticum-aestivum, Zea-mays, sorghum, sorghum-bicolour).
In the Netherlands, the primary topics identified were the management and development
of agriculture, particularly towards the use of new alternative systems (agricultural-development,
agricultural-management, alternative-agriculture), and there was special emphasis on the extension of
agricultural practices (agricultural-extension). Other subject areas of many of this country’s studies
were the security and production of food (food-supply, food-production). The crop that is most
studied was wheat (Triticum-aestivum). The articles focused on groundwater and rainwater with
respect to water resources (well, groundwater-abstraction, rain), recirculation processes and network
development (drainage, recirculations, networking-system) and the studies on the level of the basins
were predominant (catchments). On a social level, the point of view of the small farmers (smallholders)
was given special attention, particularly in relation to the decision-making processes (decision-making).
The studies conducted in Brazil contemplated the environmental impacts (environmental-impact),
water availability (water-availability), and the expansion of the agricultural activity
(agricultural-expansion). With respect to crop processes, evapotranspiration, metabolism,
sustainable production, and carbon dioxide were prominent (carbon-dioxide, sustainable-production,
Water 2019, 11, 1758 14 of 26

evapotranspiration, metabolism). This country has published a large number of studies on the use of
rainwater for irrigation (rainwater). Particularly noteworthy is the research on crops related to the
use of biomass for different purposes (biofuel, bioenergy, biomass-power, sugar-cane, glycine-max,
saccharum-officinarum). On a geographic level, studies in the region of Cerrado were predominant.
Additionally, the most prominent methodological approach was found to be chemistry (chemistry).
In Canada, the most relevant themes were the new forms of agriculture (alternative-agriculture),
environmental protection (environmental-protection), food security (food-security, food-production),
and decision making (decision-making, water-policies). The global perspective of this line of research
(global-perspective) was found to be noteworthy. From a methodological point of view, the sensitivity
models, stochastic programming, and uncertainty analysis were prominent (sensitivity-analysis,
stochastic-programming, uncertainty-analysis). The predominant terms with respect to water were
water availability, water stress, and water sharing. With regard to crops, wheat and cotton stood out
(Gossypium-hirsutum, Triticum-aestivum).
In the case of Iran, concern for the food supply was found to be prominent, despite its relationship
with the FAO—Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (food-supply, FAO, crop-yield).
On a methodological level, genetic algorithms stood out (genetic-algorithm), together with processes
for optimizing decisions (optimum-decision), and Bayesian networks (Bayesian-networks). The
economic and social levels were represented through the motivation of farmers and the assessment of
the economic and social effects (economic-and-social-effects, farmers-motivation). In the agronomic
field, cropping patterns and the use of untreated wastewater were priority areas (cropping-pattern,
untreated-wastewater-irrigation). In addition to wastewater, the combined integral use of surface
water, recycled water, and rainwater for irrigation was prominent (rainfall, surface-water-resources,
recycling).
Finally, the articles from South Africa were based on controlled studies, geographical
information systems, and computer simulations (computer-simulation, simulation, controlled-study,
GIS). The environmental impacts (environmental-impact), particularly those related to the use
of mine water and wastewater (mine-water, wastewater); food supply (food-supply); project
management (project-management); and the economic and social effects related to irrigation
(economic-and-social-effects) were priority themes. With respect to the agronomic dimension,
the evapotranspiration processes, drought, electric conductivity, and water balance stood out
(evapotranspiration, drought, electric-conductivity, water-balance).

3.5. Most Relevant Institutions in Research on SI

Table 6 shows the main characteristics of the institutions with the highest number of articles on
SI. The Chinese Academy of Sciences holds the first position with 14 articles. This institution has
accumulated a total of 376 citations in these articles, with an average of 26.9 citations per article and an
H index of 7. The institution with the second largest number of articles is the Commonwealth Scientific
and Industrial Research Organisation—Land and Water (CSIRO Land and Water), with a total of 12
studies published. It has 212 citations, an average of 17.7 citations per article, and an H index of 8. In
third place is the University of South Australia, with 10 articles. This institution has accumulated a
total of 24 citations, an average of 2.4 citations per article, and an H index of 3. The institution with
the largest number of citations and the highest average citations per article in its studies on SI is the
University of Texas, with a total of 562 citations and 93.7 citations per article.
With respect to the international collaboration of institutions, the average percentage of articles
carried out jointly was 46.6%. The institutions with the highest percentage of articles carried out
in collaboration were the IHE Delft Institute for Water Education and the Universidade de Lisboa
(University of Lisbon) with 83.3%. These two institutions were followed by the University of South
Australia with 80.1%, Columbia University with 75.1%, China Agricultural University and Texas A and
M University with 66.7%, and the University of California with 62.5%. The average number of citations
of the jointly-written articles of the group of 22 institutions was 18.3 as opposed to 16.7 citations for the
Water 2019, 11, 1758 15 of 26

rest. The institutions with the highest number of citations in articles written in collaboration were the
University of Texas, the University of California, and China Agricultural University.

Table 6. Main characteristics of the most active institutions related to SI research.

Average Percentage of Average Citation

Institution Country Articles Citation H Index 2
Citation 1 Collaboration 3 Collaboration 4 Noncollaboration 5
Chinese Academy
China 14 376 26.9 7 35.7 22.2 29.4
of Sciences
CSIRO Land and
Australia 12 212 17.7 8 41.7 21.2 15.1
Water
University of
Australia 10 24 2.4 3 80.1 2.5 2.0
South Australia
USDA
Agricultural
USA 9 86 9.6 5 22.2 8.5 9.9
Research Service,
Washington DC
Wageningen
University and Netherlands 9 117 13.0 6 55.6 16.2 9.0
Research Centre
Indian Institute of
Technology India 9 163 18.1 7 33.3 6.0 24.2
Kharagpur
University of
California, USA 8 406 50.8 5 62.5 49.6 52.7
Riverside
Columbia
University in the USA 8 97 12.1 5 75.1 13.2 9.0
City of New York
Universidad de
Spain 7 73 10.4 7 28.6 14.5 8.8
Cordoba
University of
USA 7 87 12.4 3 42.9 26.0 2.3
California, Davis
Università degli
Studi della Italy 7 16 2.3 3 14.3 0.0 2.7
Basilicata
Harran
Turkey 6 77 12.8 3 0.0 0.0 12.8
Üniversitesi
University of
USA 6 562 93.7 5 50.0 110.7 76.7
Texas at Austin
China
Agricultural China 6 104 17.3 3 66.7 26.0 0.0
University
Universidad de
Spain 6 40 6.7 4 50.0 2.7 10.7
Almeria
Texas A and M
USA 6 42 7.0 3 66.7 5.5 10.0
University
IHE Delft Institute
for Water Netherlands 6 142 23.7 5 83.3 22.2 31.0
Education
Ben-Gurion
University of the Israel 6 66 11.0 6 16.7 6.0 12.0
Negev
Alma Mater
Studiorum
Italy 6 155 25.8 3 16.7 13.0 28.4
Università di
Bologna
Commonwealth
Scientific and
Industrial Australia 6 92 15.3 3 50.0 16.7 14.0
Research
Organization
Northwest A & F
China 6 42 7.0 5 50.0 7.0 7.0
University
Universidade de
Portugal 6 65 10.8 5 83.3 13.0 0.0
Lisboa
1 The total number of citations divided by the total number of articles; 2 only sample documents; 3 the number
of articles produced through international collaboration divided by the total number of articles; 4 the number of
citations obtained by articles produced through international collaboration divided by the number of articles; 5 the
number of citations obtained for articles not made through international collaboration divided by the number
of articles.
Water 2019, 11, 1758 16 of 26

3.6. Most Relevant Authors in Research on SI

Table 7 shows the main characteristics of the authors who have produced the highest numbers
of articles on SI. A large number of authors published articles on SI within the study period, but the
number of publications per author was small. The three authors with the most articles were Henning
Bjornlund from the University of South Australia, Bartolomeo Dichio from the Università degli Studi
della Basilicata, and Ajay Kumar R. Singh from the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur. Although
they published the same number of articles, there were large differences in terms of the relevance of the
publications of the different authors. Bjornlund has a total of 20 citations for his articles, Dichio 11, and
Singh 145. James D. Oster of the University of California was the author with the largest number of
citations with a total of 369; and the highest average number of citations per article with 73.8. He was
followed by Mohammad Valipour from the Islamic Azad University, with a total of 366 citations and
73.2 per article. In third place was Dennis Wichelns from the Stockholm Environment Institute with
189 total citations and 37.8 citations per article. The author with the oldest publication was Bart Schultz
of the IHE Delft Institute for Water Education, who published his first article in 2001. This author, who
has written four articles on SI, has accumulated a total of 122 citations and published his last article on
this subject in 2005. The authors who have made more recent contributions to this line of research are P.
Amparo López-Jiménez and Modesto Pérez-Sánchez from the Universitat Politècnica de València.

Table 7. Major characteristics of the most active authors related to SI research.

Average 1st Last

Author Articles Citation H Index 2 Country Affiliation 3
Citations 1 Article Article
Bjornlund, University of South
6 20 3.3 2 Australia 2010 2017
Henning Australia
Dichio, Università degli Studi
6 11 1.8 2 Italy 2010 2018
Bartolomeo della Basilicata
Indian Institute of
Singh, Ajay
6 145 24.2 5 India Technology 2010 2017
Kumar R.
Kharagpur
University of
Oster, James D. 5 369 73.8 3 USA 2003 2013
California
Scholz, Miklas 5 49 9.8 4 UK University of Salford 2006 2018
Valipour, Islamic Azad
5 366 73.2 5 Iran 2015 2017
Mohammad University
Wichelns, Stockholm
5 189 37.8 4 Sweden 2002 2014
Dennis Environment Institute
Xiloyannis, Università degli Studi
5 11 2.2 2 Italy 2010 2018
Cristos della Basilicata
Annandale, John Universiteit van
4 28 7.0 3 South Africa 2002 2017
George Pretoria
Aydogdu,
4 15 3.8 3 Turkey Harran Üniversitesi 2015 2017
Mustafa Hakki
Universitat
López-Jiménez,
4 50 12.5 3 Spain Politècnica de 2016 2018
P. Amparo
València
Montanaro, Università degli Studi
4 9 2.3 1 Italy 2010 2018
Giuseppe della Basilicata
Universitat
Pérez-Sánchez,
4 50 12.5 3 Spain Politècnica de 2016 2018
Modesto
València
IHE Delft Institute for
Schultz, Bart 4 122 30.5 4 Netherlands 2001 2005
Water Education
Swedish University of
Vico, Giulia 4 46 11.5 3 Sweden 2011 2018
Agricultural Sciences
1 Total number of citations divided by the total number of articles; 2 only sample documents; 3 last verified affiliation.
Water 2019, 11, 1758 17 of 26

3.7. Main Issues in SI Research

The most relevant issues in SI research were determined based on the analysis of keywords.
These issues included the concern for the state of natural resources, including water and soil and their
conservation; the impact of agriculture on the environment and the consequences of climate change;
the use of nonconventional water resources as an alternative for irrigation, including desalinated
seawater, reused water, and harvested rainwater; the developments in innovation and technology for
irrigation systems, particularly drip irrigation and deficit irrigation; and, finally, the improvements
in the efficiency of the use of irrigation water. Below is an overview of the research carried out on
these four priority issues. The weight of each priority research line has been established through the
repetition number of the main keywords within each research line as the article average of the sample.
It has to be taken into account that an article can be classified under different topics. For example,
an article which analyzes water efficiency regarding nonconventional water resources shows as the
most weighted research line climatic change, environmental impact, and natural resource conservation,
with a 56.8% out of the total sample works; followed by water use efficiency with 42.5%, irrigation
technology and innovation with 37.6%, and unconventional water resources with 31.2%.

3.7.1. Climatic Change, Environmental Impact, and Natural Resource Conservation

It is predicted that the consequences derived from global climate change will be alterations
in precipitation cycles, triggering long-term droughts, more frequent and more intense extreme
phenomena, and water supply imbalances [39,50]. Furthermore, these consequences will be reflected in
agriculture by way of variations in soil humidity and in the evapotranspiration and runoff flows [14,51].
The United Nations report on the development of global water resources of 2015 estimates that there
will be a drinking water shortage of 40% on a global level by the year 2030 [52].
Bad practice in agriculture produces a series of impacts that can have consequences on
environmental, economic, and social levels. As well as water use, current irrigation agriculture
requires the addition of fertilizers and other chemical products [53]. When the use of chemical products
is incomplete or inefficient or when excessive water is applied, the resulting filtration ends up in
drainage systems or in the groundwater recharge areas under the cultivated land [54]. The most
deteriorated ecosystems currently include the majority of the groundwater bodies on a global scale.
These water resources have enabled the development of agricultural activity in arid and semiarid
regions and also in more humid regions where there are mismatches between precipitation and the
needs of the crops [55]. In recent decades, the intensification of agriculture has given rise to a fall in
piezometric levels, the development of salinization processes, seawater intrusion, and pollution by
agricultural nitrates, among other effects [23].
Due to the estimated increase in the amount of fresh water required to meet the future irrigation
demands, a drastic reduction in biodiversity is expected to take place, together with an increase in the
salinity or flooding of soil, a loss in the flow of complementary services provided by the ecosystems,
and the degradation of water sources and ecosystems in general [56,57]. On a social level, an increase
in the vulnerability and inequality between users is expected [58,59].
In order to mitigate these adverse effects and to contribute to the conservation of the ecosystems,
important legislation is currently being developed on a global level. Among the objectives established
by the United Nations for the Horizon 2030 on Sustainable Development is one specifically related
to water and sanitation (ODS 6), which addresses aspects ranging from water shortage to water use
efficiency [60]. The Horizon 2020 Plan of the European Parliament includes the requirement for
sustainable production in agricultural systems [61]. Many countries, including the United States,
China, India, and Costa Rica, have consolidated payment systems for environmental services provided
by agricultural ecosystems with the objective of conserving water resources in good condition.
Water 2019, 11, 1758 18 of 26

3.7.2. Unconventional Water Resources

The current scenario is one in which so-called conventional water sources are being exhausted
and degraded in large parts of the world. These water sources include both surface water (rivers,
lakes, reservoirs) and groundwater (aquifers). The principal option for increasing the water supply
for irrigation consists of using alternative sources, also called nonconventional water sources [23].
These other sources include the reuse of urban and industrial water, the desalination of seawater, and
rainwater harvesting. In recent years, water from nontraditional sources has become a competitive
option in the supply of quality water for irrigation, particularly in arid and semiarid regions [62] The use
of these types of resources has a series of advantages—two in particular. First, the contribution of these
new water sources represents an increase in the supply of the resource, which is capable of satisfying the
growing demand of the different sectors (urban supply, agricultural activity, tourism sector, industrial
sector, and environmental requirements) [63]. Second, the use of water from alternative sources should
serve to diminish the use of traditional water sources so that the state of deterioration of the wetlands,
rivers, and aquifers can be restored or at least alleviated [64]. If these two advantages are to be
efficient, they have to be accompanied by demand control. In addition to these two principal functions,
the use of nonconventional water resources gives rise to other advantages. They provide a greater
reliability in the supply, they supply higher quality water, they can generate increases in crop yields,
they contribute to ensuring the stability of agricultural incomes, and they can have positive effects on
seawater intrusion processes in the aquifers [65–67].
The use of each of these alternatives also gives rise to a series of limitations and disadvantages.
Evidently, the construction of seawater desalination plants is only feasible in coastal areas. A wastewater
treatment plant requires a volume of a large enough size for the facility to be viable [64]. Therefore, the
use of this resource is not possible in areas where the activities generating wastewater (population
nuclei, industrial facilities, livestock farms, etc.) do not have sufficient water use [63]. Thus, despite
water reuse being the ideal way of maintaining continuous use of the resource, this type of facility
is not appropriate for many rural areas where the population is dispersed. The main problem of
rainwater harvesting systems is the low volume of water that can be supplied in comparison with
the demand [67]. Furthermore, the seasonality of rain in many regions means that the water must be
stored for long periods of time for use when needed. To these limitations we must also add the high
cost of water derived through these systems. The installation costs are usually very high, and we must
also take into account the cost of production. In the case of desalination and reuse, these costs usually
establish a price for water that is much higher than the price of conventional resources [68]. This means
that many farmers throughout the world are not willing to pay the price of the water unless there is no
alternative available. Studies have been carried out on experience with the use of desalinated seawater,
reused water or harvested rainwater all over the world [69–75].

3.7.3. Irrigation Technology and Innovation

Irrigation technology has evolved continuously over the last few decades. Flood irrigation,
sprinkler irrigation, furrow irrigation, and drip irrigation are some of the methods that have emerged,
and their advantages and disadvantages have been studied with respect to different types of crops,
soils, and climatic conditions. New technologies have given rise to the development of comprehensive
automated systems that combine the use of tensiometers, lysimeters, software applications, and even
geographical information systems. However, drip irrigation and deficit irrigation are the terms that
appear among the most used keywords.
De Wrachienb et al. [76] date the beginning of drip irrigation systems to the 1940s in Australia.
The development of this system came about after the emergence of polypropylene tubes. It was
not until two decades later that this system was improved in Israel, from where it was exported
all over the world. Currently, thanks to automation and the use of microcontrollers, sensors, and
integrated systems, this method has been perfected, and the drip irrigation system is now considerably
more advantageous than traditional systems such as flood irrigation or sprinklers [77–79]. The main
Water 2019, 11, 1758 19 of 26

contribution of this system is that it enables a substantial saving in the use of water for irrigation, which
enables the development or expansion of agricultural activity in arid and semiarid regions, where it
would not be possible otherwise [80,81]. Another advantage is that it can prevent evaporation, as it
supplies water directly to the roots of plants [82]. Different studies show that the use of drip irrigation
increases the marketable yield and quality of crops and stabilizes production when deficit irrigation is
used and that fertigation through drip irrigation helps to reduce the use of fertilizers and, therefore,
the risk of pollution due to leachate [80,83]. Salvador and Aragüés [84] analyzed the advantages and
disadvantages of the use of underground drip irrigation systems. They demonstrated their usefulness,
profitability, and sustainability and indicated that the design, handling, and maintenance of this
system, together with the quality of the irrigation water and type of soil, are fundamental aspects that
determine their sustainability. On the other hand, Puy et al. [85] indicated that this type of system can
have harmful consequences in terms of the degradation of the soil or the production of greenhouse
gas emissions.
Deficit irrigation was introduced as a measure to limit the vegetative growth of crops [86]. This
irrigation technique has been fully developed, and it is used extensively [87]. This method has been
used with both drip irrigation and microsprinkling on different crops and can be combined with
remote sensing technology or infrared techniques to produce significant water savings while crop
yields remain unaffected. Du et al. [88] analyzed the use of deficit irrigation as a sustainable strategy
for managing water resources in agriculture for food security in China. These authors concluded
that the current understanding of physiological processes enables the deficit irrigation methods to be
adjusted to different crops and environments in order to increase water use efficiency and the yield
and quality of crops. Many studies have been carried out on this subject area [89–93].
Though many authors support drip irrigation as a sustainability measure, some recent studies
question it. Perry et al. [94] confirm the “zero-sum game” hypothesis which argues that the impact of
high-technology watering in a farm increases the demand of local water and land production at the
expense of water availability and production in other places. Furthermore, due to the advantageous
effects of drip irrigation, it makes water more affordable and, at the time, it allows irrigating larger
areas, obtaining greater profits, and shift to more valuable crops. The most foreseeable impact of
water efficiency improvement will be the increase of current water demands. In this sense, water
scarcity would remain difficult to manage. Paul et al. [95], in their review of the rebound effects on
the management of land and cultivation soils, found evidence for the presence of rebound effects and
the Jevons paradox, together with productivity increases and efficiency of irrigation water due to
technological innovations. Further studies agree with these results [96,97].

3.7.4. Water Use Efficiency

All of these innovations have the objective of improving water use efficiency for irrigation. In
the year 2000, Kofi Annan, the Secretary General of the United Nations, proposed a “Blue Revolution
in Agriculture” that was proposed to be capable of increasing productivity per unit of water. This
strategy became known by the slogan “more crop per drop” [24]. According to Yang [98], obtaining
the ideal water efficiency for irrigating crops involves the reduction of losses caused by evaporation,
runoff, and underground draining while increasing production. Zhang et al. [26] indicated that the
use of technology to save irrigation water not only saves water and increases production but also
improves the nutritional value of agricultural products and guarantees food safety by improving
the environmental conditions. Water use efficiency in agriculture generally implies a reduction in
water use to meet a specific production objective or to increase the production of a specific water
supply [99]. The aim of improving water use efficiency is to increase food production, boost financial
gains, and guarantee the supply of ecosystem services at lower social and environmental costs per
unit of water used [100,101]. The practices used to achieve this objective include rainwater harvesting,
complementary irrigation, deficit irrigation, and the use of precision irrigation techniques and practices
to conserve groundwater [24,102]. The priority areas where it is possible to significantly increase the
Water 2019, 11, 1758 20 of 26

productivity of water include areas with a high level of poverty and a low level of water productivity;
areas with physical water shortage, where competition for water is high; areas with limited development
of water resources, where the high yields of additional water have a considerable impact; and areas with
degraded ecosystems driven by water, such as depleting water tables and dried-up rivers [103,104].
Among the different improvements developed over the last few decades, the use of drip irrigation
has been fundamental in the improvement of water use efficiency and saving. Different studies
have shown that drip irrigation has a water-saving potential of between 18% and 75%. According
to Narayanamoorthy [82], drip irrigation saves an average of 25 to 75% of water compared to
flood irrigation. Similar results were found, although with different percentages, in studies by
Ibragimov et al. [105], Maisiri et al. [106], Yazar et al. [107], or Peterson and Ding [108], Abdulai et al. [109],
Cremades et al. [110], and Jalota et al. [111].

4. Conclusions
This study presented the dynamics of global research in sustainable irrigation in agriculture over
the last two decades, the main agents promoting it, and the topics that have received the most attention.
The main concerns stated in the Introduction section related to the improvement of irrigation water
use in order to increase food production, the world overexploitation of water resources, and the effects
of global climate change. Our analysis verified how these questions are addressed by countries taking
into account interdisciplinary approaches, and it also proved how these questions are mirrored in the
main research lines on SI.
The results of the analysis of the principal variables revealed that the study of sustainable irrigation
has grown in recent years in all of the variables considered: articles, authors, journals, institutions,
and countries. Despite the fact that the growth trend in this topic is higher than that of general
research in irrigation, an even greater research effort using a sustainability-based approach is required
to further knowledge in this area. Traditionally, studies on sustainability have focused on one of the
areas of which it is composed, namely, the environmental, social or economic dimensions. In the
study of irrigation, the dominant area has been the environmental dimension, far more than the social
or economic perspectives. The studies that analyzed just one of these dimensions provide highly
useful information, but this information is only partial. It is necessary to integrate the three aspects of
sustainability in order to gain full knowledge of the feasibility of certain practices, not only in terms of
their environmental impacts but also with respect to income generation for farmers and the wellbeing
of the community.
The keyword study revealed the existence of diversity between studies carried out using specific
approaches and in different countries. In general, the study of environmental impacts and climate
change, water availability, the improvement in efficiency, sustainable development, food supply, and
the conservation of water bodies, particularly aquifers that have deteriorated, are common themes.
However, certain practices, such as deficit irrigation or drip irrigation and aspects related to energy
consumption and certain crops, are priority issues for particular countries. The methodological
approaches used and the tools applied are other points of differentiation of the research carried out
by each country. The keyword analysis showed four main research lines on SI: climatic change,
environmental impact, and natural resource conservation; unconventional water resources; irrigation
technology and innovation; and water use efficiency. Due to the large number of analyzed documents
and the scope of this work, an in-depth content analysis per topic has not been undertaken. It will
be highly interesting for future studies in order to provide more detailed information of these four
specific topics.
As a final conclusion, we believe that certain aspects of the research on sustainable irrigation
in agriculture in each of the dimensions of sustainability should be promoted. From a technical
point of view, innovation and technology have furthered the development of irrigation systems and
new available water sources that can contribute to improving the efficiency of water use and the
sustainability of rural areas, particularly agricultural activity in arid regions. However, effort should
Water 2019, 11, 1758 21 of 26

be made to make this technology accessible, as its cost is economically unfeasible for small-scale
agriculture in many countries. New water sources, such as those derived from desalination, reuse
and rainwater harvesting systems, are very expensive for farmers compared to traditional sources.
The production processes for desalination and reuse should be improved, particularly with respect to
energy consumption in order to bring down the final price of the water. Furthermore, although the use
of these nonconventional water resources has proved to have a series of advantages for the crops and
the soil, this knowledge has not been transmitted to the farmers, and therefore, they are still reluctant to
use it for irrigation. Greater effort should be made to communicate the results of the research to society.
Finally, greater knowledge of the environmental impacts of irrigation-related practices in different
areas on plot, district, basin and regional levels is needed. Water bodies are connected to each other, so
certain practices that generate a small impact on river source areas can have a multiplying effect and
be experienced in the underground bodies of coastal areas.

Author Contributions: The four authors have equally contributed to this paper. All authors have revised and
approved the final manuscript.
Funding: This research received no external funding.
Acknowledgments: This work was partially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness
and the European Regional Development Fund by means of the research project ECO2017-82347-P, and by the
Research Plan of the University of Almería through a Postdoctoral Contract to Juan F. Velasco Muñoz.
Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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