DEMETER In The Context Of The Irrigation And Reclamation Consortia In Southern Italy

About 75% of agricultural production in Southern Italy depends on irrigation. Water is therefore a vital element, required by farmers timely, at a reasonable price and in the requested quantities. In Southern Italy water is relatively scarce and is not uniformly distributes: regions or areas with the most intensive agricultural irrigated crops have limited water availability. Furthermore, there is a very strong competition between irrigation and other uses of water (urban areas, industries and tourist resorts). Water management is highly fragmented, among over 60 local reclamation consortia, regional governments, organisms in charge of dams’ maintenance and regulation. In this framework DEMETER could play a key role in water use optimization, but defining an operative level approach, and an agreement with the local water governance in financial supporting DEMETER services and technological tools up‐take.