Bonoan, Romalaine Chrisselle R.

AENG 243

How much water does rice need?

Rice is a very important crop. It is a staple food in the Philippines and as such, it is one of
the country’s major agricultural products. Rice is also a very water demanding crop. In fact,
majority of agricultural water use is allotted for rice production alone. Amid climate change and a
global water crisis, rice production is still an adamant industry in the country. The real challenge
nowadays lies mainly on how well farmers manage one very important resource: water.

When the question “how much water does rice need?” is asked, we might think that the
answer is simple. However, the reality is that it would give even more questions than answers. To
begin with, it is important to define “rice” and to determine the factors which affect its water “use”.
According to Bouman (2009), water use – due to transpiration, evaporation, and seepage and
percolation – depends on the scale of rice in question i.e. the rice plant, the rice crop, or the rice
field.

Rice plant

The rice plant satisfies the water demand used by the plant through the process of
transpiration. Transpiration is the process in which water flows from the roots to the leaves and is
released to the atmosphere (USGS 2016). Bouman describes this as a “real” water use since
water that is released to the atmosphere can no longer be reused by the plant during the same
growth cycle. The transpired moisture will then follow the process of the water cycle until it reaches
back the earth through precipitation. In experiments carried out by the International Rice Research
Institute, it was found that rice plants transpire around 500 to 1,000 liters of water to produce a
kilo of unmilled rice.

Rice crop

The rice crop refers to the plants and the underlying soil (Bouman 2009). Aside from the
transpired water from the rice plant, evaporated water from the soil is also considered. Same with
transpiration, evaporation is considered a “real” water use that will go on with the water cycle.
Since transpiration and evaporation are hard to individually measure in the field, the water
demands of the rice crop are combined and is called evapotranspiration.

Several experiments have been conducted which aim to determine the evapotranspiration
of rice under certain conditions using different methods. One method is through empirical
equations such as the FAO Penman-Moteith. Another way of determining evapotranspiration is
by using the pan evapotranspiration method or the microlysimeter technique.

Mom (2007) as cited in Bouman (2009) states that estimated water use from rice
production is around 859 cubic kilometers per year which then produces 600 million tons of rice.
Therefore, 1,432 liters of water is needed for every kilo of unmilled rice to satisfy the needs of
the rice crop evapotranspiration. Zwart and Bastiaanssen (2004), on the other hand, determined
the water use of rice by evapotranspiration to be between 625 to 1,667 liters per 1 kilogram of
rough rice.

Rice field

Finally, the rice field comprises of the whole system of rice in which all the elements –
such as the puddled soil, floodwater, and bunds – are taken into account. As previously
mentioned, rice is a water loving crop; thus, water is flooded in the field to ensure that there will
be enough to support the crop’s growth. Aside from evapotranspiration, there is also water loss
because of seepage and percolation or the sideward and downward movements of water in the
field. Unlike evapotranspiration, losses from seepage and percolation can be reused. In some
cases, water moving from one field to another can be recaptured and used for irrigation.
Generally, farmers aim to compensate for the losses from evapotranspiration and seepage and
percolation through sufficient irrigation.

Water use of the rice field includes evapotranspiration and losses from seepage and
percolation. Around 2,500 liters of water is needed to supply these needs and to produce a kilo
of rice. This average value is a product of a number of experiments conducted across Asia. The
resulting values range from 800 to 5,000 liters per 1 kilo of rice depending on crop management
activities employed.

Water balance of a puddled rice field (C: capillary rise, E: evaporation, I: irrigation, O:
over-bund flow, P: percolation, R: rainfall, S: seepage, T: transpiration) Source: Bouman,
2009

To end, it was determined that the question “how much water does rice need” cannot be
answered straightforwardly. The question suggests a more in-depth examination on what the
question really means. The real answer lies on the type of rice in question and on the whole new
discussion that stems out from there and beyond.
References

Bouman, B. 2009. How much water does rice use. Rice Today 8(1) 28-29. Retrieved on
September 21, 2018 from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281474989_How_
much_water_does_rice_use

Bouman, B. 2018. Does rice really use too much water. Retrieved on September 25, 2018 from
http://irri.org/blogs/bas-bouman-s-blog-global-rice-science-partnership/does-rice-really-
use-too-much-water

USGS. 2016. Transpiration – The water cycle. Retrieved on September 26, 2018 from
https://water.usgs.gov/edu/watercycletranspiration.html

Zwart, S.J. and Bastiaanssen, W.G.M. 2004. Review of measured crop water productivity values
for irrigated wheat, rice, cotton and maize. Agricultural Water Management, 69(2). Pp. 115-
133. doi: 0.1016/j.agwat.2004.04.007