Water-saving potential evaluation of water-receiving regions in Shandong province on the East Route of the South-to-North Water Transfer Project of China

Taking 13 water-receiving areas on the East Route of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project (ERSNWDP) in Shandong Province as the study area, and comparing it with Jiangsu Province on the ERSNWDP and the Middle Route of the South-to-North (MRSNWDP), the current water-saving potential of the water-receiving areas within the municipalities of Shandong was analyzed. Different water-saving scenarios were constructed and analyzed with key water-saving indexes in various industries. These indexes include the effective utilization coefficient of farmland irrigation water, total water consumption of industrial sectors with an added value of over 10 000 RMB, average leakage rate of the urban public water supply pipe network and the penetration rate of water-saving appliances. Based on the scenarios, comprehensive water-saving potential of the 13 water-receiving area cities was calculated. The results show that the water-saving potential of the study area is at a relative high level. However, some cities still have a certain amount of water-saving potential for agriculture and industry to be elevated. Under the recommended water-saving scenario, the water-saving potential is 1.134 billion m³, accounting for 5.33% of the current total water consumption, of which 460 million m³ is in agriculture, 600 million m³ in industry, is and 74.20 million m³ in urban domestic sector. Comprehensive water-saving measures for the study area were proposed from the aspects of agricultural, industrial and domestic water uses. Agricultural and industrial water saving are more significant. The major cities for agricultural water saving include Jining City, Heze City, Weifang City and Jinan City; the focus cities of industrial water saving mainly include Weihai City, Jining City and Qingdao City and etc.; the key water-saving areas for urban use mainly include Zaozhuang City, Jining City and Heze City.