Challenges for Sustainable Water Resource Management: Irrigation, Salinity and Contamination

In the countries around the Mediterranean where water needs are increasing and resources tend to decrease, lack of water is one of the most serious threats to agriculture and the environment in general and that of the olive tree in particular. In Morocco, the situation is particularly difficult in the southern regions, which suffer from a chronic insufficiency of water resources (reduced precipitation, overexploitation of groundwater, salinization and contamination of aquifers). The olive tree is relatively resistant to water stress and moderately tolerant to the salinity of water irrigation. The olive industry in Morocco is responsible for huge environmental problems caused by pollution and by liquid effluents or vegetable water commonly known as “margine”. It is estimated that the annual output of margine in this sector is around 250,000 m3.