Assessing Gozitan farmers’ perceptions of using treated sewage effluent for irrigation

Abstract

Groundwater bodies within the Maltese Islands have been subjected to unsustainable abstraction which has resulted in serious qualitative and quantitative shortfalls. One of the major users of groundwater is the agricultural sector which is estimated to abstract more groundwater than the Water Services Corporation (WSC) abstracts to supply all of the Maltese Islands. Corrective actions need to be taken in order to sustainably manage and conserve Malta’s groundwater bodies. The WSC has embarked upon a project to further polish treated sewage effluent (TSE) through ultra-filtration and desalination technologies with a view to produce a high quality effluent which can be used as a substitute for groundwater not least across the agricultural sector. Thus, knowledge about the farmers’ perceptions of using TSE for irrigation is essential for the development of supporting infrastructure and for the formulation of programmes to facilitate a smooth transition from the present situation to one which maximises the use of alternative water resources. This study aims to assess the perceptions of Gozitan farmers towards using the proposed TSE for irrigation purposes. In particular, this research study investigates farmers’ willingness to use (WTU) and willingness to pay (WTP) for TSE use whilst identifying any limiting barriers and concerns which may hinder the acceptance of this resource. The methodology adopted was based on 100 face-to-face interviews conducted with randomly selected farmers around the island of Gozo, covering 47.3% of the total utilised agricultural land. The main findings indicate that there is a general acceptance by farmers towards the use of TSE. Of all the farmers interviewed, 78% were willing to use this resource provided that the tariff is lower than the cost for abstracting groundwater and is provided via a metered piped system. Farmers (92.3%) were willing to pay an average price of €0.135/m3. This study also puts forward recommendations to facilitate and maximise the utilisation of this resource within the local context.