**2. Approaching the problem from a technical perspective**

One of the most important problems brought by climate change in irrigated agriculture, particularly in Mediterranean basin, is the increased variability of weather patterns and a higher frequency of extreme weather events [11]. For the management of water resources, Water Authorities (WAs) have to make decisions before knowing the weather conditions they are going to face. So, every year, due Water Authorities are less able to make decisions consistent with the weather pattern of the following season due to the decreased predictability of events and the less relevant use of past records to make future decisions. As a consequence, current water management decisions are often a compromise between the outcome determined by all the weather states that could emerge. On the other hand, considering the necessary effort to reach convenient water use and management, the rehabilitation of the irrigation project structures, and the modernization of irrigation systems are a priority [12].

#### **2.1 Modernization of the irrigation systems**

In the first third of the 20th century, an ambitious plan of agricultural development works began in Portugal and Spain, which included some public irrigation schemes of considerable area, and which still are in operation as a result of adaptation and rehabilitation works of their infrastructures [13]. It should be noted that most of these irrigation schemes never had high levels of adherence, for various reasons, namely the incentive to farmers for the new reality of land use. The high cost of agricultural production factors (including fuel and electricity costs), combined with the volatility of agricultural product sales prices, has been a disincentive to investment in agricultural activity, in particular in irrigation. In recent years, we have witnessed a resurgence of interest on the part of farmers, mostly young people, in irrigated agriculture, greatly encouraged by the country's new irrigation schemes aided by modern technologies. In the last half-century, we can see a significant increase in efficiency in the use of water in agriculture, from 15.000 m3 /ha.year in 1960 to 6.600 m3 /ha.year in 2014 (**Figure 1**) [14], mainly due to the modernization of irrigation systems. This has corresponded to the replacement of traditional irrigation systems with water distribution by gravity, by automated systems equipped with pumping systems that require energy for their operation. Thus, energy consumption has increased sharply in the same period, from 200 kW.h/ha in 1960 to 1.534 kW.h/ha in 2014 (**Figure 1**) [14]. On the other hand, the economic productivity of irrigation water (Gross Added Value/m3 of water, calculated at constant 2006 prices) has increased in the last decade by more than 30% [15].

**Figure 1.** *Evolution of water consumption and energy in Portugal, in irrigated agriculture (Adapted of [14]).*

It is foreseeable that in the coming years the efficiency of water use in irrigation will continue to increase, driven by operational programs, financial incentives, and the use of innovative technologies [16]. As mentioned above, irrigation farming is unavoidable in the summer months in most of the Iberian Peninsula, especially in the south of this territory, where there are climatic conditions to enhance the productive capacity of the crops. The climatic variables that influence evapotranspiration (solar radiation, temperature, relative humidity, and wind) reach comparatively more favorable values in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, which determine high rates of that indicator of the physiological activity of plants [17]. It is evident that the productive potential of the crops is not only expressed through the convenient supply of water but also through other cropping practices allowed to obtain good production, such as adequate levels of fertilization, the effective fight against pests and diseases, among others [9]. In the context of climate change, in many aspects already confirmed, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has been alerting to the scenario of a drier climate determining less available water resources, less production of hydropower energy and losses of 25% of volume water intended for agriculture activity [18]. In this context of greater water scarcity, the greater pressure in its demand for irrigation and other activities should lead to an increase in the costs of irrigated agriculture [19].

#### **2.2 Information and communications technologies**

Adaptation and mitigation are the two pillars facing climate change. In this regard, weather and climate services can help decision-makers in making informed decisions to improve adaptation capacity by assessing and forecasting existing and emerging risks. Since all adaptation actions depend on the availability of adequate information, the rapid diffusion of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), such as mobile phones and the internet, poses new opportunities to face climate change by improving access to information and consequently by improving

#### *Resilience of Irrigated Agriculture to Face the Challenges in Mediterranean Climatic Conditions… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.107882*

the information environment under which water suppliers and water users operate [20]. The availability of ICTs might contribute to mitigating the moving-target problem by providing timely information on future climate and weather conditions, thereby reducing uncertainty before and during the irrigating season. Overall, the ICT-informed decision process of water management could help irrigated agriculture by reducing losses from climate shocks and taking advantage of favorable years. The potentialities of ICTs for the management of water resources in agriculture motivate many studies normally with the objective of quantitatively estimating economic benefits from the ICT-informed decision process of water management in agriculture at the Water Authorities (WAs) level. Some authors developed theoretical models based on insights from the Bayesian Decision Theory [21–23]. It assesses the economic benefits brought by new pieces of information, influencing WA's perception of uncertain events with direct consequences on its strategic decisions.

Background in agriculture, some models using ICT investigate the role played by information in supporting WAs to rationalize the management of water resources and the prevention of extreme weather event impacts. Because decisions on land and water allocation are sequential across the season and influenced by one another, the methodology accounts for the passing of time in the decision process to assess how the time of information provision affects its usability [21]. Great potential is found for such technologies in contributing to food security and climate change adaptation in the agricultural sector. Qualitative studies showed their benefits for both developed and developing countries. Among these, [24] identified the following: (i) promoting economic performance, (ii) raising efficiency, and (iii) fostering innovation. Nevertheless, reference [25] suggested that ICTs impacts on decision outcomes are highly variable. One reason for this variability lies in the findings of the authors in [26]; according to them, ICTs are successful only when key information needs are addressed. In addition, many ICTs projects do not reach the expected success because developers take useful information for granted. As a consequence, ICTs developers tend to poorly consult end users on their information requirements and the resulting ICTs may turn out to be inapplicable in their decision process.

The elements characterizing information and determining its value are: (a) content of information: the WA must be able to implement the additional information in the decision process; if the WA is not able to act upon information, it has no value for it; (b) accuracy of information: the more accurate the information is, the smaller the risk of failures and the higher the VOI (Value of Information); imprecise information is not capable of inducing any change in WA beliefs; (c) timing of information provision: information must be provided at the right time in the decision process; late messages have no value. The timing factor (c) plays a key role in influencing the accuracy of information (b). Usually, information provided well in advance of the occurrence of an event might condition strategic decisions but it will not be so accurate. If information is provided in a short advance, the decisions influenced by the information will not be so strategic, but the information will be likely more accurate. This is typically the case with emerging information, such as weather forecasts.

Developing and applying a method to assess the economic value of ICTs seems to be an interesting topic for agricultural and resource economists. Moreover, considering the growing societal demand for climate services, together with the limited budget available, this topic is of high policy relevance.
