Calculation of Water Used for Agricultural Purposes at the Downstream Point in Hydroelectric Power Plant Projects with TAGEM-SuET Software and Water Transmission: The Case of Sarıgüzel HPP

Although hydroelectric power plants are ideal sources for electricity generation, the diversion of water from its natural course and its transportation through transmission lines can have various environmental impacts. While aiming to prevent or minimize these impacts, it is necessary to calculate the amount of water that will be left for natural life, human use and agricultural purposes during the design phase of the plant. This study aims to calculate the agricultural water usage to be left for irrigation, estimate plant water consumption, and ensure the effective management of water resources, plan irrigation programs, and design transmission lines. In the calculation of plant water consumption, soil characteristics, climate parameters, and plant characteristics are used. In both the world and our country, computer models can perform these operations quickly and accurately. Using the TAGEM-SuET software, plant water consumption, irrigation scheduling, and irrigation module calculations were made, followed by the provision of technical design parameters for the piped irrigation network. Some data collection and calculation efforts have benefited from GIS and public institutions. TAGEM-SuET could be a good tool for calculating the agricultural water usage left for irrigation and water management in such areas. Additionally, it was concluded that the introduction of a piped irrigation network could reduce irrigation water use while enabling modern irrigation techniques that increase agricultural productivity.