Read the following passage carefully:
The transition toward micro-irrigation technologies in semi-arid agrarian regions is widely advocated to combat severe groundwater depletion. However, empirical assessments reveal a structural paradox: while micro-irrigation enhances crop yields per unit of water applied, it frequently leads to an increase in total net consumptive water use across the watershed. Farmers, incentivized by improved water productivity and flat-rate electricity subsidies, routinely shift from drought-tolerant coarse grains to water-intensive high-value crops or expand their total cropped acreage. Consequently, despite achieving substantial on-farm application efficiency, total extraction from underlying aquifers accelerates. Furthermore, existing governance frameworks focus almost exclusively on surface water allocation, leaving groundwater extraction rights unconditionally bundled with private land ownership. In the absence of binding volumetric extraction limits and restructured energy tariffs, technological efficiency gains risk exacerbating resource exhaustion rather than alleviating it.
Based on the passage, which of the following statements represent logically valid inferences? (Select all that apply.)
- Improvements in farm-level irrigation efficiency can occur simultaneously with an increase in total regional water depletion.Answer
- BSurface water management is inherently less effective at resource conservation than groundwater regulation.
- Subsidized power alongside enhanced water application efficiency creates financial incentives that encourage higher overall water extraction.Answer
- DImplementing binding volumetric extraction caps will guarantee the complete replenishment of depleted aquifers.