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| Titel |
Virtual water trade: an assessment of water use efficiency in the international food trade |
| VerfasserIn |
H. Yang, L. Wang, K. C. Abbaspour, A. J. B. Zehnder |
| Medientyp |
Artikel
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| Sprache |
Englisch
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| ISSN |
1027-5606
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| Digitales Dokument |
URL |
| Erschienen |
In: Hydrology and Earth System Sciences ; 10, no. 3 ; Nr. 10, no. 3 (2006-06-30), S.443-454 |
| Datensatznummer |
250008066
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| Publikation (Nr.) |
 copernicus.org/hess-10-443-2006.pdf |
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| Zusammenfassung |
| Amid an increasing water scarcity in many parts of the world, virtual water
trade as both a policy instrument and practical means to balance the local,
national and global water budget has received much attention in recent
years. Building upon the knowledge of virtual water accounting in the
literature, this study assesses the efficiency of water use embodied in the
international food trade from the perspectives of exporting and importing
countries and at the global and country levels. The investigation reveals
that the virtual water flows primarily from countries of high crop water
productivity to countries of low crop water productivity, generating a
global saving in water use. Meanwhile, the total virtual water trade is
dominated by green virtual water, which constitutes a low opportunity cost
of water use as opposed to blue virtual water. A sensitivity analysis,
however, suggests high uncertainties in the virtual water accounting and the
estimation of the scale of water saving. The study also raises awareness of
the limited effect of water scarcity on the global virtual water trade and
the negative implications of the global water saving for the water use
efficiency and food security in importing countries and the environment in
exporting countries. The analysis shows the complexity in evaluating the
efficiency gains in the international virtual water trade. The findings of
the study, nevertheless, call for a greater emphasis on rainfed agriculture
to improve the global food security and environmental sustainability. |
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